In this section we’re going to talk about some training tips you can use when training a Chihuahua: crate training, potty training, obedience training, controlling barking and many more.
There’s certain rules you need to follow if you want to be successful at teaching your Chihuahua. Your dog won’t differentiate between exercises and play if he’s having fun. To make sure that your training time together is both enjoyable and useful, get into good habits and stick to them.
There’s a variety of training methods you can choose from, when it comes to your Chihuahua.The question is which training method will fit the best for your little friend. Not only do dog owner temperaments and personalities differ, but so do dogs. Breed heritages differ, too.
Training your Chihuahua to eliminate indoors can be convenient if you live in a high-rise apartment or have a tiny or small dog. Puppies normally have to eliminate as soon as they wake, so rushing a puppy down fifteen flights to get outside is problematic.
The worst mistake you can make in house training a Chihuahua is to call or drag your Chi over to an accident and scold her. Doing this does nothing to speed up her learning; it only teaches her not to come when you call her. In the case of collaring her and dragging her over […]
Sometimes waiting for your Chi to produce the desired behavior on her own may take too long. In this case, using food lures to shape your Chihuahua into position can be very effective and is absolutely nonconfrontational and nonthreatening. A really good example of using a food lure to shape a behavior is the sit. […]
Teaching your Chihuahua to come when called will not only save a lot of frustration, it could also save your Chihuahua’s life someday. Countless pet owners retell stories of narrow misses when a dog or puppy got loose and only avoided a car accident or encounter with an aggressive dog because she actually came when […]
The best training collar for your Chihuahua will be one that fits well – in other words, that she can’t slip out of – but that is still comfortable and will not hurt her or restrict her delicate windpipe. Here’s some of the more common types of training collars used with Chihuahuas.
Teaching your Chihuahua to respond to basic commands is the obvious benefit of training. Including these training skills into your daily life will make your interaction with your dog a success!! For example, perhaps your Chihuahua regularly launches into a barking frenzy when the doorbell rings. Chihuahuas are naturally territorial, and this may have begun […]
The difference between practicing obedience skills with your Chihuahua at home or as part of a class and competing in formal obedience trials may be subtle to some owners, while quite significant to others. Your perspective may largely depend on both your own personality and the general temperament of your dog. A Chihuahua should be […]
Most people assume that a dog that guards her resources – like food, bones, chews, toys, or stolen goods – is a very bad, dominant, aggressive dog. Precisely the opposite is usually true. Usually, and this is most obvious in a pack of dogs, the alpha Chihuahua doesn’t need to guard her resources from the […]
Down: When you need Dinky to stay in one place for a long time, you can’t expect him to sit or stand. This is when the down command really comes in handy. Begin teaching the down command to your Chihuahua in the sitting position. Say “Dinky, down.” Then show him a tidbit, and move it […]
Educating your Chihuahua can never begin too early or too late. With a very young puppy, train for even shorter time periods than you would an adult. The exercises every Chihuahua should eventually know are sit, down, stay, come, and heel. These exercises will be demonstrated with the help of a budding Chihuahua genius named […]
Even Chihuahuas need to be trained. A well-trained dog is a safer and happier dog. Around the house you may need your dog to stay while you leave the door open for a moment, to sit out of the way while you prepare his dinner, to lie down while you groom him, or to come […]
Communicating with your Chihuahua is extremely important when it comes to training your puppy. To understand how a dog communicates can be crucial in our training efforts. Voice. Dogs are extremely sensitive to human vocal tones. Although your Chihuahua doesn’t have the capacity to understand English, his ability to understand you can easily give this […]
Even the best Chihuahuas with the best owners can sometimes do the worst things. Too often distraught owners get their training advice from the next-door neighbor or dog trainers who don’t have a scientific background in dog behavior. Veterinarians can sometimes offer advice, but few are extensively trained in behavior. Fortunately, great strides have been […]
Litter box or paper training your Chihuahua can be the ideal solution. Puppy pads are readily available, and will absorb the urine, making it easy to dispose of. Litter box training has also becoming much more common for small dogs and can be used much like a cat litter box. The puppy pad or litter […]
Your Chihuahua looks at you with big sad eyes. A subtle whine, some barking and perhaps a hopeful tail wag when you look his way, or a paw scratching on your leg. Someone has done a “great” job on how to train a Chihuahua not to beg. That’s right, poor table manners were learned, initially […]
After your Chihuahua is sitting still and relaxed for more than a second, you should start to teach him how to lay down. Not only is it a more comfy position for your Chihuahua for an extended period of time, but your Chihuahua is also less likely to pop out of position without being released. […]
There’s a few ways to train a Chihuahua to potty outside. First thing in the morning take her to that quiet location that you previously scouted out for suitability. Your puppy should be leashed and escorted to the potty spot, as puppies get easily distracted and will “forget” that they had to go. Use a […]
The quickest behavior to get under control is a sit. With a good sit comes a solid stay. After all, what good is it if your Chihuahua hits the floor like a champ, but can’t hold it long enough for it to be a useful skill? But first let’s see how you can teach a […]
When new Chihuahua owners think about training their puppy, the first thing they think about is a group obedience class. Though that may be good for some puppies for a variety of reasons, you have some other options that might be better. Here’s a few ideas to find a training program for your Chihuahua. The […]
It can be difficult to narrow down what your Chihuahua really needs to know, and overwhelming to know where to start. There are dozens of potential skills and tricks you could teach, but how do you know what you should start with, and what is really necessary? It is a good idea to start training […]
Understanding how to apply positive reinforcement training to your Chihuahua can be overwhelming when you just want a well behaved, well adjusted companion. Not everyone wants to master an entire scientific discipline, they just want a pet they can live with. With that in mind, the following basic principles can address most issues that will […]
Behaviorists identify up to fifteen different kinds of aggression in dogs. An important point to remember is that aggressive behavior serves a function to the aggressor and is therefore reinforced when conflict happens and the outcome is in his favor. However, this also means aggressive behaviors can be changed, and more appropriate behaviors can become […]
There are many mistaken assumptions about how dogs really learn: It’s all in the voice (usually, deep, loud, and booming); you need to show them who’s the boss (by rolling them on their back to make them submit); endless repetitions (often with “corrections” for wrong behavior); old dogs can’t learn new tricks; and so on. […]
Clicker training refers to training using operant conditioning principles, using a behavior marker linked to positive reinforcement of high value. Clicker trainers routinely leave out negative reinforcement and positive punishment, due to the unwanted side effects of inhibiting behavior and forming negative associations with the trainer. Of course, not all behavior makers are created equal. […]
There is a wide array of aggressive behaviors that any Chihuahua has the potential to exhibit. Ethologists identify over a dozen different kinds of aggression, ranging from maternal aggression, the hormonally mediated defense of offspring, to food-related aggression, a subset of resource guarding. Defining the term itself is complex and controversial, and its definition […]
Here’s a few tips on how to introduce the crate to your Chihuahua: Start slowly. Toss a treat into the crate, let your Chihuahua run in to get it and come out immediately. Praise and give her another treat. Get the Chihuahua interested in playing with a toy, then toss the toy into the crate. […]
Before starting the house training process, it is important to realize that from the perspective of new puppies or untrained dogs, there is no good reason why they should not potty inside the home. It is up to people to give their dogs the tools they need to succeed in a domestic world, that […]
Potty training a Chihuahua can be easily done, by following some simple, but important rules. But first you need to recognize the signs of needs. Recognizing the sign of need Many times, your Chihuahua must relieve himself more often than other larger breeds. When house training, prevention works wonders, so watch him closely. […]
Having dogs with separation anxiety can be quite a big problem, when it comes to leaving your puppy alone while at work. Especially if you don’t have nobody to keep on eye on him while you’re gone. Home Alone and Feeling Frantic Most mature dogs catch a nap when their owners leave the house, […]
When you come home, does your dog greet you happily but with a hint of shyness, while squatting and dribbling several drops of urine? That’s called submissive urination. Though often mistaken for a house training problem, this is really an anxiety problem and has nothing to do with house training at all. The tendency may […]
Many times you ask yourself: why is my Chihuahua aggressive towards me? Aggressive Chihuahua behavior in many cases may extend beyond the food dish. Some Chihuahuas demand sole ownership of their favorite chairs, their end of sofa, or even their snuggle spots on the bed. And when anyone tries to sit in their spots, the […]
To stop a Chihuahua barking can be quite challenging most of the times. Chihuahuas make good watchdogs because they have excellent hearing and a loud bark, considering their size. Some barking is a good thing. Most people are glad when their dogs tell them that strangers are approaching their homes. But it’s best to […]
A crate can be enormously useful for the purpose of house training a Chihuahua. Dogs, even the youngest puppies, are naturally very clean animals. They do not wish to urinate or defecate in the same place where they sleep. By keeping your dog in a crate just large enough for him to comfortably stand […]
Beside house training issues, common Chihuahua behavior problems include: destructive chewing, excessive barking, jumping, nipping, and possessiveness. Okay, that’s the bad news. The good news is that if your Chihuahua is still young, you can prevent most of the typical pitfalls of puppyhood. And prevention is a whole lot easier than correcting problems after they […]
The most mistakes what Toy-breed owners make often, is teaching their dogs how to walk on a leash too late. It’s so easy to carry a tiny dog that some people just don’t get around when it comes to leash training a Chihuahua. Some breeders teach their puppies to walk on a leash before selling […]
Imagine how nice it is living with a dog that always comes when you call, sits and lies down on command, stays in place when told to, and respects the words No and Enough. Well, obedience training is easier than you may think. Teaching Words that all good dogs obey Conditioning Chihuahua puppies (or […]
In most cases, crate training a Chihuahua can be really easy, all you need is just a little patience. It is very important to make the crate a home base. Besides serving as your pup’s private den and his home away from home, your puppy’s crate (in our case a Chihuahua) is your best house […]
Despite the fact that Chihuahuas have an undeserved bad reputation when it comes to obedience training, house training Chihuahuas is not harder than house training any other breeds. Dogs are naturally clean critters, yet having accidents in the house is considered one of the biggest behavior problems in the Toy breeds. The truth is, Toy […]
Indoor training offers one major advantage over outdoor training – your dog can relieve himself whenever the need arises, whether anyone is home or not. This may be a considerable asset to you if you work outside the home. Many Chihuahua owners also choose this route because it is more convenient for their individual […]
If you aren’t using a crate, you will need to work a little harder at house training your Chihuahua. Keep your dog with you at all times during training, and be sure to stick to your dog’s schedule for elimination. Since a puppy will be more likely to go whenever he feels the urge, you […]
