How and When to Train Your Chihuahua

It is best to train your Chihuahua while still a puppy. It is also easiest to train your male Chihuahua if he has been neutered since they tend to be extremely territorial un-neutered. Chihuahua trainability improves when you enroll your Chihuahua in an obedience school. This is especially helpful at a young age. You may find that house training your Chihuahua is a bit more challenging then with other dog breeds because of the size of their tiny bladders, but they can defiantly eventually become fully house trained with your patience.

Chihuahua Trainability And Children

If you have children, involving them in the training is also important since it gives the children the understanding of what to expect from their dog. Children assume that dogs just know how to do things. By including them in the training, they get a new sense of respect for the dog when the Chihuahua learns a new trick. Chihuahuas and children make a great team!

Chihuahuas can be trained as long as their is care and patience during the training process.  Though it may seem like a long and time consuming process, chihuahua trainability is very possible.

Chihuahua Sociability and Other Dogs

Chihuahuas tend to do well with other Chihuahuas, but it is still important to use extreme caution especially at first. Even though they tend to get along pretty well with other Chihuahuas, the breed does not normally tolerate other breeds as well no matter how big or small. A Chihuahua will try and start mayhem with even a mastiff. This is a real danger for your Chihuahua since the other dog may become irritated and hurt him.

Tips on Improving Chihuahua Sociability

Chihuahua sociability is dependent on how you allow them to interact with other dogs. With that being said, here are some suggestions that may be helpful when introducing your Chihuahua to other pets:

-The first is that your Chihuahua may get along best with other Chihuahuas and toy dogs.

-Second, always use a leash and a chihuahua collar at first when introducing your chihuahua to other dogs until you get to know how the pets respond to each other!

-Third, begin socializing your dog with other animals while it is still a puppy.

If you do those three simple things, you’ll drastically improve your chihuahua sociability.

You may not believe it but Chihuahua aggression is a social problem that can be solved early in your dog’s life. Chihuahuas are the smallest dog breed in the world, but the Chihuahua is completely oblivious to that fact. In their little hearts and minds, they are as big and tough as a wolf. Many Chihuahua owners find the feisty little attitude that their Chihuahua possesses as funny, cute, and harmless. It may look to be funny and cute, considering how small the dog is, but it is far from funny and cute the day your Chihuahua turns its Chihuahua aggression on a child or another small animal or dog.

It is important to make your Chihuahua aware of unacceptable aggressive behavior. Chihuahuas are wired to serve as a watchdog regardless of their small size. Their nature is to protect their owners or the people they love. You may find that your Chihuahua barks and growls at the sound of the doorbell or a stranger walking by. Your Chihuahua may even bark and growl at visitors in which he or she finds unfamiliar.

There are a few steps that you can take to control Chihuahua aggression. When you have a visitor or someone at your door who your Chihuahua finds unfamiliar, pet your Chihuahua gently and say things such as “it’s okay”. Your gentleness and calmness around that person will show the Chihuahua that the person is not a threat to you. Have the person at the door or in your home give your Chihuahua a treat as well as any person who comes to your home that is welcome. Your Chihuahua will associate these visitors with treats and eventually become excited to see them at your home.

It is very important to not let children play with Chihuahuas, or any pet for that matter, unsupervised. Many children tend to play with Chihuahuas too aggressively making your Chihuahua feel threatened. Don’t ever allow a child to push, tease, or kick your Chihuahua even if it seems harmless to you. Your Chihuahua will find this as a threat and will bite to defend himself. Instead, teach your children to play with your Chihuahua by playing games such as fetch with your dog’s favorite toy or to just pet or scratch the Chihuahua gently. Remember, Chihuahua aggression doesn’t have to be a problem.

Many chihuahua owners have faced issues with chihuahua chewing at some point.  Have you ever come home to find that your dog has chewed off the corner of a piece of furniture, chewed a hole on your couch or even ruined a pair of your favorite shoes? If so, you are not alone! One of the biggest problems that a Chihuahua owner, or any dog owner, faces is that their Chihuahua is chewing and destroying their furniture. This may be very frustrating, but it is important to understand what causes chihuahua chewing in order to prevent it and make it stop.

Causes of Chihuahua Chewing

Chihuahuas chew on things because they are bored. Imagine being a dog left home alone for hours with nothing to do. Notice the destruction normally happens when you’re away, right? The other reason a Chihuahua may chew on furniture is out of excitement or anxiety. Chihuahua puppies will naturally want to chew on things just as babies do when they are teething.

How to Stop Chihuahua Chewing

The first thing that you need to do in order to stop your Chihuahua’s destructive behavior towards your furniture is to make your dog aware of what is not okay for it to chew on. You will need to scold your dog when you see him chewing on something bad. You can do this by saying “NO!” angrily and put him in a crate for 20 minutes. Every time you catch your dog chewing on furniture, you do the same thing and your dog will get to know that this behavior is not allowed.

The next thing to do is to provide your dog plenty of chew toys that are okay for him to chew on. Most dogs like toys that make some type of sound such as a squeak. Dog bones are also excellent for them to chew on. Put the chew toys around your dog and encourage him to play with them. Every time you see your Chihuahua chewing on the toy, reward him by giving him a treat. Keep repeating this until you find that your dog no longer needs to chew on furniture.

Always remember, if you are away during the day, it may be best to keep your Chihuahua in a crate or confined to a certain space or room such as the kitchen for example. Keep plenty of chew toys with your Chihuahua in that space for when he gets bored. Also, remember a dog is an animal and does not understand what is valuable to you. If there is something you do not want your dog to get a hold of and destroy, just keep it out of your Chihuahua’s reach.  Chihuahua chewing can become of thing of the past for your chihuahua.

Causes of Excessive Chihuahua Barking

If you are experiencing excessive chihuahua barking at the presence of a foreign person or guest, then it’s just your dogs way of warning you that someone is there that normally isn’t and therefore may pose a threat. If this is happening around people you’ve invited in your home then try picking up your dog and saying something like “That’s Enough” or “No more.” and place them back down. If they stop barking, reward them with praise so they associate the praise with the command and the action. If they continue to bark, repeat the process. If this tactic isn’t working try putting them in another room for a few minutes until the barking subsides. Once it subsides allow them to reenter the room and praise them for being quiet again.

If your Chihuahua is barking due to being isolated, this can be caused by separation anxiety which is a common problem among Chihuahuas. Just because it’s common though, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t treat it seriously. This greatly affects their mental health and stress levels. If they are barking due to being in a separate room at night, try moving their bed into your room so they feel your presence. Do not scold your dog since the only reason they are barking is because they miss you!

Barking is a dog’s natural way at communicating. If their barking is too often and becoming to much of an inconvenience, then try the methods we’ve described. Remember, be patient. Excessive chihuahua barking is a problem that be resolved but it will go much smoother if your remain calm.