I am SO completely overwhelmed! HELP! - YorkieTalk.com Forums

monica139 · 06-13-2008, 05:50 AM

Hi everyone! I am new here! I just bought my little baby Bella last Sunday.

A little background: We bought her at a pet store THEN read all of the bad stuff about puppy mills, etc. So knowing what I know now, I will never step foot into a store like that again. But, it was love at first sight, so I don't regret getting her for a second!

So she has her first vet visit this afternoon, and I'm realizing I have NO idea what to ask the vet! Please help me think of things to ask the vet. There is SO much I do not know, that I can't think of more than a few things to even ask!

I will ask about kennel cough - she sounds a little phlemy when she's excited or after she's run around a lot, but no coughing. What does kennel cough sound like??

I will also ask why she seems to be itchy around her neck area after I out on Frontline and a collar - is that normal??

And I will also ask why she doesn't eat much. I'm talking maybe a 1/4 cup of wet food a DAY! She will not eat dry food at all if that's all that's in the bowl, and even if I mix it with wet food, she'll eat around the dry- totally leaving it.

Oh! And for the 1st day or two, she would pee and poop 50% of the time outside, but for the last 2 days, she refuses. She also does both in her crate (but I attribute that to her horrible beginnings). But is this normal, or is she regressing or what?

Also, she's had one round of shots from the breeder/pet store, so I haven't let her go for walks yet...do you all think walking will stimulate her to do her business outside?

That's about all I can think of for now, but I thank you all in advance for any help, advice, suggestions, etc. you can give me!!!

Deenie · 06-13-2008, 05:54 AM

You will find great information! Welcome to YT and hope to hear more about sweet Bella

nydia · 06-13-2008, 05:56 AM

Since you got her from a pet store I would ask your vet to do a CBC on her which is blood work to check all organ functions, I'm not sure how old your baby is but if she is older than 5 months then ask the vet to do a bile test on her to make sure her liver is functioning right. Make sure to take some of her poop along with you to the visit so it can be test for parasites, if she has parasites that may be the reason for her not eating. For now that is all I can think of, oh yeah about the cough thing, if she makes a coughing or choking sound after playing it might be whats called reverse sneezing, yorkies have very tiny noses and sometimes dust or hair can get caught in there air ways and they do what's called reverse sneezing totally normal but then again it could be a loose trachea, ask the vet to check for a loose trachea.

ProfessorPeteZa · 06-13-2008, 05:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nydia

Since you got her from a pet store I would ask your vet to do a CBC on her which is blood work to check all organ functions, I'm not sure how old your baby is but if she is older than 5 months then ask the vet to do a bile test on her to make sure her liver is functioning right. Make sure to take some of her poop along with you to the visit so it can be test for parasites, if she has parasites that may be the reason for her not eating. For now that is all I can think of, oh yeah about the cough thing, if she makes a coughing or choking sound after playing it might be whats called reverse sneezing, yorkies have very tiny noses and sometimes dust or hair can get caught in there air ways and they do what's called reverse sneezing totally normal but then again it could be a loose trachea, ask the vet to check for a loose trachea.

2nd everything!

monica139 · 06-13-2008, 06:10 AM

Thank you so much!! She's 11 weeks old, btw. I just love her to death - almost as if I gave birth to her myself!! lol

puppy_Love08 · 06-13-2008, 06:24 AM

Make sure her crate is not too big. She should have just enough room to stand up and turn around. We have the smallest crate available, and it was still too big for Logan when we first got him. So I stuffed a towel at the back of the crate. If the crate is too big, she will find a potty spot inside. Make sure you take her outside to potty quite often. There are some good web sites with crate training info. Yorkies can be difficult to housetrain. Logan is 10 months old, and we are still working on it (but it's getting better).

LaurenThig · 06-13-2008, 07:51 AM

Congrats on your new addition and welcome! This is such a great site and FULL of great info and helpful people.

I have a 12 week old myself and went through a lot of what you're going through right at first... It's mostly first-time parent nervousness I think!

Just wanted to share with you a little of what I've learned so far:

Kennel cough... Lily has it right now.

It sounds like a dry, honking cough and then a gag at the end. If your baby just sounds a little phleghmy, that's probably not what you have. HOPEFULLY you won't have to go through this too!!

My little one doesn't wear a collar... I've read a lot on here about people not putting collars on tiny dogs b/c it's not good for their throats. Is it a flea collar by any chance?

Lily eats about 1/2 a cup of dry food a day right now, but for the first couple weeks, she only ate MAYBE a 1/4 cup daily. You need to invest in a good quality food since Yorkies can have allergies. We feed Wellness. I've heard lots of cons against feeding Science Diet, but like our aunt/vet told us: some dogs do really well with it, but there's a lot of dogs that don't. Also if your baby is really little, it could be that she's not eating the dry food b/c her teeth haven't fully come in. Wet it with some warm water, let it soak 10 minutes or so and then see if that helps.

I know a lot of people don't want to let their babies go outside too much, but we take Lily out for 15-20 minutes at a time to play a little and get some fresh air.

We crate train too, and I take Lily straight outside (don't even let her feet hit the floor) if she's been crated or sleeping for ANY amount of time, even if it's just 10 minutes. That's helping to get her in a good pattern of only going potty outside. Try small amounts of time in the crate at first, and then PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE when she goes outside. We reward Lily with Cheerios... she's a food motivated girl.

Hope all this helps!! I know it's long! Good luck and best wishes!

Xena'smommy · 06-13-2008, 07:59 AM

Congrats on your new puppy! I would have them also check her knees for LP's. Good luck.

monica139 · 06-13-2008, 10:16 AM

Thank you all SO much for replying and for all of the great advice! I'm about to leave work now to go collect Bella and take her lil bum to the vet.

I'll let you know what comes of it! I AM such a nervous new mom! LOL Thanks again!!

Patti · 06-13-2008, 01:40 PM

Welcome. congratulations!!! Good luck at the vet and let up know how it goes.

06-13-2008, 05:50 AM	#1
monica139 Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 16	I am SO completely overwhelmed! HELP! Hi everyone! I am new here! I just bought my little baby Bella last Sunday. A little background: We bought her at a pet store THEN read all of the bad stuff about puppy mills, etc. So knowing what I know now, I will never step foot into a store like that again. But, it was love at first sight, so I don't regret getting her for a second! So she has her first vet visit this afternoon, and I'm realizing I have NO idea what to ask the vet! Please help me think of things to ask the vet. There is SO much I do not know, that I can't think of more than a few things to even ask! I will ask about kennel cough - she sounds a little phlemy when she's excited or after she's run around a lot, but no coughing. What does kennel cough sound like?? I will also ask why she seems to be itchy around her neck area after I out on Frontline and a collar - is that normal?? And I will also ask why she doesn't eat much. I'm talking maybe a 1/4 cup of wet food a DAY! She will not eat dry food at all if that's all that's in the bowl, and even if I mix it with wet food, she'll eat around the dry- totally leaving it. Oh! And for the 1st day or two, she would pee and poop 50% of the time outside, but for the last 2 days, she refuses. She also does both in her crate (but I attribute that to her horrible beginnings). But is this normal, or is she regressing or what? Also, she's had one round of shots from the breeder/pet store, so I haven't let her go for walks yet...do you all think walking will stimulate her to do her business outside? That's about all I can think of for now, but I thank you all in advance for any help, advice, suggestions, etc. you can give me!!!

06-13-2008, 05:54 AM	#2
Deenie Donating YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Texas Posts: 1,292 Blog Entries: 1	You will find great information! Welcome to YT and hope to hear more about sweet Bella __________________ Dena Rick Big C little c and Zoe Nub

06-13-2008, 07:51 AM	#7
LaurenThig Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2008 Location: Greenwood, SC Posts: 159	Congrats on your new addition and welcome! This is such a great site and FULL of great info and helpful people. I have a 12 week old myself and went through a lot of what you're going through right at first... It's mostly first-time parent nervousness I think! Just wanted to share with you a little of what I've learned so far: Kennel cough... Lily has it right now. It sounds like a dry, honking cough and then a gag at the end. If your baby just sounds a little phleghmy, that's probably not what you have. HOPEFULLY you won't have to go through this too!! My little one doesn't wear a collar... I've read a lot on here about people not putting collars on tiny dogs b/c it's not good for their throats. Is it a flea collar by any chance? Lily eats about 1/2 a cup of dry food a day right now, but for the first couple weeks, she only ate MAYBE a 1/4 cup daily. You need to invest in a good quality food since Yorkies can have allergies. We feed Wellness. I've heard lots of cons against feeding Science Diet, but like our aunt/vet told us: some dogs do really well with it, but there's a lot of dogs that don't. Also if your baby is really little, it could be that she's not eating the dry food b/c her teeth haven't fully come in. Wet it with some warm water, let it soak 10 minutes or so and then see if that helps. I know a lot of people don't want to let their babies go outside too much, but we take Lily out for 15-20 minutes at a time to play a little and get some fresh air. We crate train too, and I take Lily straight outside (don't even let her feet hit the floor) if she's been crated or sleeping for ANY amount of time, even if it's just 10 minutes. That's helping to get her in a good pattern of only going potty outside. Try small amounts of time in the crate at first, and then PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE when she goes outside. We reward Lily with Cheerios... she's a food motivated girl. Hope all this helps!! I know it's long! Good luck and best wishes! __________________ Lauren and Lily Lovin' my Lily PadProud Member of the Spoiled Rotten Club

06-13-2008, 07:59 AM	#8
Xena'smommy Donating Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Telluride, CO Posts: 309	Congrats on your new puppy! I would have them also check her knees for LP's. Good luck. __________________ The dog was created especially for children. He is the god of frolic.

06-13-2008, 01:40 PM	#10
Patti Donating YT 30K Club Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Illinois Posts: 35,509 Blog Entries: 6	Welcome. congratulations!!! Good luck at the vet and let up know how it goes. __________________ Cali Pixie Roxie : RIP Nikki; RIP Maya;RIP my sweet Dixie girl 1/17/08 http://callipuppyscastle.bravehost.com/index.html

06-13-2008, 05:56 AM	#3
nydia Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Connecticut Posts: 292	Since you got her from a pet store I would ask your vet to do a CBC on her which is blood work to check all organ functions, I'm not sure how old your baby is but if she is older than 5 months then ask the vet to do a bile test on her to make sure her liver is functioning right. Make sure to take some of her poop along with you to the visit so it can be test for parasites, if she has parasites that may be the reason for her not eating. For now that is all I can think of, oh yeah about the cough thing, if she makes a coughing or choking sound after playing it might be whats called reverse sneezing, yorkies have very tiny noses and sometimes dust or hair can get caught in there air ways and they do what's called reverse sneezing totally normal but then again it could be a loose trachea, ask the vet to check for a loose trachea.

06-13-2008, 06:10 AM	#5
monica139 Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 16	Thank you so much!! She's 11 weeks old, btw. I just love her to death - almost as if I gave birth to her myself!! lol

06-13-2008, 06:24 AM	#6
puppy_Love08 YT Addict Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: AL Posts: 465	Make sure her crate is not too big. She should have just enough room to stand up and turn around. We have the smallest crate available, and it was still too big for Logan when we first got him. So I stuffed a towel at the back of the crate. If the crate is too big, she will find a potty spot inside. Make sure you take her outside to potty quite often. There are some good web sites with crate training info. Yorkies can be difficult to housetrain. Logan is 10 months old, and we are still working on it (but it's getting better).

06-13-2008, 10:16 AM	#9
monica139 Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 16	Thank you all SO much for replying and for all of the great advice! I'm about to leave work now to go collect Bella and take her lil bum to the vet. I'll let you know what comes of it! I AM such a nervous new mom! LOL Thanks again!!