The Chihuahua is a Mexican breed that was discovered about 100 years ago. They are a toy dog that stands between 6 and 9 inches tall and they typically weigh less than 6 pounds. Their coats come in two variations, short and long. The long coat is soft and can be either straight or wavy. The short coat is soft and dense. Both coat variations can come in just about any color or color combination.
To care for this breed you will need to groom their hair daily for the long haired version, and as needed for the short hair version. This is an indoor pet that is not suited for extended periods of time outside. However, they do enjoy playing outside and going for short walks. To manage this breed’s temperament you need to socialize it and train it early. Some of the health concerns that are associated with this breed include kneecap problems, eye problems, and tracheal problems.
Chihuahuas are small dogs with BIG attitudes. Made famous by Hollywood, the Chihuahuas are now a popular dogs in the celebrity world.
The Chihuahua is the smallest breed of dog. But its spunky demeanor and personality outshines its diminutive size.
Origin
The Chihuahua’s origin in Mexico is archaeologically proven and they are believed to be descendants of the Techichi, the dogs most favored by the ancient Toltecs in Mexico.
The Techichis are pack canines and they hunt in groups. They closely resemble the modern Chihuahuas but they are larger in frame and size. Ancient civilizations in Mexico considered these dogs to be mystically endowed and they valued their existence very much.
The first Chihuahua was reputedly found in 1850 in old ruins near Casas Grandes in the Mexican state of Chihuahua from which the breed gets its name.
Appearance and Abilities
Chihuahuas are very small dogs but with robust build. They have distinctive facial features that almost seem fierce and aggressive.
They have two varieties in terms of coats, the common smooth-coated variety and the long-coated variety. Chihuahuas also come in different colors — solid, marked or splashed. All colors are accepted.
They are quick-moving little creatures. Graceful and sturdy in their movements, they are very proud and intelligent dogs.
Temperament and Tendencies
They are very alert dogs and they are extremely territorial and protective. Chihuahuas can be very wary of strangers and the unfamiliarity triggers their warrior-like spirit.
They are very attached to their owners and prefer to be with them at all times. They don’t want anything more than the absolute attention of their masters. Because of this, they can be very jealous of their owners’ other relationships. Chihuahuas can be unwelcoming to their master’s friends and loved ones if it is not socialized properly.
Chihuahuas are also aggressive to other animals especially other dogs. It can be very difficult to mix them with other pet dogs as they will battle other pets for supremacy. They want to be regarded as the favorite of their masters. They tend to only get along with other Chihuahuas. Chihuahuas prefer to stick to their own kind.
Chihuahua Training and Care
Since Chihuahuas have strong pack mentality, owners must take the alpha role. Chihuahuas are relatively difficult to train but they will be impossible to train if the owners don’t establish dominance over the dog. Don’t let them develop small-dog-syndrome, a dominance related behavioral disorder.
Always be firm with your set of rules. Train them consistently with positive reinforcement such as treats and praises. By the way, eat your food first before giving them theirs. This will show the dog who’s boss.
With Chihuahuas, you must always give time to pet them and show physical affection. Attention and affection is vital for Chihuahuas’ sanity.
Although small, this breed is not for little children that are still boisterous and rowdy. When there is a child near your Chihuahua, tell the child not to tease or provoke the Chihuahua because they are easily annoyed and angered.
Socialization is very important for Chihuahuas. This will counter their fierce tendencies. You should start early to help them develop into well-mannered dogs as they mature.
Housebreaking is fairly difficult but just like most small dogs, patience and consistency is the key.
Image credit: Toronja Azul
38 Responses to “How to Train a Chihuahua”
I adopted my 4 year old chi mix about a month ago. He’s extremely good with people and curious of most animals, but very skittish around any extra small animals. He runs in terror from my neighbors 6 week old chi (rescued from a hoarder), but he’ll sniff/bow at rotties, poodles, shihzus, and cats. I wish I could explain to him that they’re just babies, so he could feel safe.
My Chi does bark when he hears things in our alcove. In his defense, our neighbors walk like elephants all hours of the night. Their over-weight 4-6 month old chi only goes potty with no leash 1-2 times a day, so maybe my boy barks hearing/smelling their dog. Still, I argue with my partner about late-night alert barking. It’s NOT bad, it’s normal! I would like to train my “son” to sit, quiet, and lay down. Is that reasonable to expect from a 4 year old chi?
One last question - He suffers from a reverse sneeze in the evenings. Is it possible that my pet could have airborne allergies to the outdoors? his vet suggested benadryl, but is there a doggy zyrtec I could have prescribed for him to take before a walk?
Is it reasonable to expect that level of obedience from your Chihuahua? Absolutely. Not only that, those commands should be a minimum of what your dog knows/does.
The reverse sneezing is fairly common amongst dogs. Not having seen it, though, it probably wouldn’t be good for me to give an opinion.
Best of luck.
My dog keeps going for the treat and not the training
I’m afraid I don’t know what that means.
ok so we have a 5 month old male chihuahua, he is absolutly perfect, in every way except , he pees in the house when I am home and not when my husband is home. I often take him out of his kennel and he is soaked from pee, or he starts peeing as I pick him up. Even though he was just outside 2 hours prev. I am at my end with him. He doesnt bark, he doesnt bite, he isnt aggressive, loves everyone, but the peeing. Its just gross! Help, we have to fix this or he is gone.
Does he always pee as you’re getting him or does he sometimes pee well before you’ve come back? Do you have bedding in the crate?
I just got a Chihuahu who was born on October 28th. I never trained a dog to be potty trained before and i dont know what to do. My boyfriend works durning the day so its on me to train me. Please give me advice
Have you looked at all the resources on this site about housebreaking?
i dont know how to train my 6 week old puppy on potty training or to make sure he listens to me please help
I have a 12 month old rescue chihauhau how can i stop him going for other dogs in park ? Have just had him neutered and take him to socialisation classes
Neutering and socialization are good. What most people don’t realize, though, is that proper socialization has three aspects to it:
- Volume- Lots of new things
- Variety- Lots of different types of people, places, things, etc.
- Control- This is where almost every dog owner and dog trainer go wrong. You need control, ie obedience, in your socialization efforts. Trying to socialize a dog or trying to get him to stop going after other dogs in the park will prove futile without some high end obedience.
I saw this little chihauhua at our local petsmart and was instantly turned on to how calm he was compared to the other dogs that were on show for adoption. Since I live in an Apartment I figured a small dog would work for me, and I was already on the market for one so I decided to adopt instead of finding a breeder. And I couldn’t be happier, he is really well behaved and is potty trained but does not know any of the basics, so I’ve set out to train him myself. So far he’s been doing wonderfully. He’s finally learned his name and more than 50% of the time will sit, as well as go lay down when told to. I’m working in steps teaching him one thing at a time and waiting until he knows those things before I teach him a new thing. What I’m writing about is his barking. Now he’s not an excessive barker, but when he does bark he does not stop when told. I don’t mind that he barks, I don’t expect him to stop, I know it’s part of the breed, as well as his way of communication, so that’s not a problem with me… What I want to know is if you have any advice on how to get him to stop when told. I’ve learned the difference between a “There’s someone there” and a “I need to protect momma” bark… The first I don’t mind…but again I want him to stop when told, however the later of the two I do mind and would love advice on how to stop him from doing that as much as possible. Now If I pick him up he stops, and I can usually introduce him after that, he’s willing enough to be introduced… but I don’t want him to encourage him and I have heard that picking up a dog when it’s barking can do just that.
You are right, picking up the dog can enable the dog and make the problem worse.
With all of our clients we always do things through obedience. In your case, I would work on a place command (go to a bed). When someone knocks at the door you would work on that command. Very few dogs can continue barking like crazy AND be holding a ‘stay’. The idea is to replace bad behavior with desired behavior to show the dog that there is no need to be so afraid.
I have been telling him to go lay down when we are in the house and someone knocks, that works for the most part, thank you. But what should I do when we are out and walking and he does that, usually he can ignore most people when walking, but if they have dogs with him he becomes persistent in his barks… sometimes it’s a bark that says “I wanna say hi” other times it’s the “Get away from momma” bark… Both aren’t always received well by the other dogs or their owners. I’ve been trying to make him sit when a dog and owner start walking down the path we are on when we walk.. Is there any advice you can give for that?
I use two methods for correcting aggression in those instances; one I call the ‘distance method’ and the other is the ‘step back recall’. I teach them both in my aggression program- https://www.dogbehavioronline.com/curing-dog-aggression-p/
Hi, My Name is Misty and My Chiuahuah’s Name is Bella. I am having a very hard time training Bella. She will be 2 next Month on May, 21st. Is is possibly because shes too old to train? She kind of listens to my fiance. He got her free outside of Wal-Mart..She was in a box and when he picked her up he brought her home to me. She only sit’s with treats. She was mostly potty trained when we got her but we had to finish the potty training..so she is potty trained. We got her when she was 6 Month’s old. Can you please tell me how i can train her to Lay down and shake and sit and a few others with and without treats? Please?? Thank You!
No, she’s not too old to train. This entire website is dedicated to teaching your dog obedience without treats so start studying.
iv got a five year old chihuahua she attacks my daughter an son if they come near me. she will attack them barks all the time an dont listen to me help me .
My mom has a male chihuahua, he will be a 2 years old in May. In the last two months he has become very aggressive towards her, started with nipping at her feet to now growling at her and actually biting her last week when she tried to get up from the couch. She is so attached to this dog but has now become afraid of him, what could be causing this aggression. He doesn’t do this with anyone else just her?
What’s causing it is a complete lack of respect.
I don’t usually comment on blogs but I felt this was well written, and thought out as it’s author. You can tell that they took the time to learn attitudes and personality of this sweet and precious breed. I just got my Peanut at 6 weeks and she is now 5 months and everything that this writer said is spot on! Love this piece of material and will refer back to it over and over! Great job and thanks so much for posting for us new chi lovers! ♥
I got my chi Bella at about a year and a half as a rescue and just turned 2. I have tried teaching her simple commands like sitting and laying down especially coming when called. Often on walks I don’t use a leash cause she doesn’t go with one on but whenever she walks off and I call her it takes her a few calls to respond and even that doesn’t work I often have to go get her. She is a little aggressive towards our other dogs another chi and a bigger lab but only when she is approached by them with food or if she is being held by me or my girlfriend. I am more worried about the commands as I want her to be a little more trained and more comfortable with dogs cause she will snap at them pretty bad and I will spank her to teach her that is not ok especially with the smaller dogs but she doesn’t seem to listen. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
so i like this but i got a question i have a male Chihuahua he’s 1yr. 1/2 old and i want to sell him but i don’t know how much i should ask for him he has no papers or anything. can someone please give me some price ranges.
No.
I just adopted a chi from another family, her ex owner was a cop so she didn’t have time to take care of her. I don’t know nothing about this dog like her age or even her name, Well is obvious that she is scare of us is her first time with us, she came in her own cage, I gave her some food and water inside her cage cause I was scared that she might bite me and she didn’t bark or did nothing, but when we try to get next to her cage she barked at us like she was going to bite us, with the chi came a bag with all her stuff and she looks like she was trained cause I told her to sit and she sat, but what should I do with her if I’m scared of her cause I know that they are aggressive and I never been afraid of dogs cause all my life I’ve had pitbulls, so please tell me how could I adapt this chi to us if I don’t even know her name? Thank you for your time.
Names don’t mean anything. You don’t need to know her name in order to be calm, firm, and clear with your communication.
Get the dog on a leash and keep the dog on a leash for the next month or so while you’re home. It’s called the ‘umbilical cord’ method and it allows you to keep her close, bond with her, correct misbehavior, teach good behavior, etc.
I have a 8 month old Chihuahua. I have tried numerous times to get her to wear a collar or harness but when I put either of them on her she just lays down with her front paws under her chest and will not move. She will lay like that until you take the collar or harness off. Any suggestions on how to get her to wear the collar. I would love to take her for walks and I know she would enjoy them also. Someone please help.
The name of the game is inundation. Put the collar on and leave it on. Attach a leash and require the dog to follow you around. Within a few days your dog will be fine with the collar.
My family and I have a great but passive female lab mix, adopted when 3 mths old and is now 6 yrs old. She is a wonderful dog that has always listened well and gets along with other dogs and people. We just rescued a female chihuahua 1 week ago that appears to be a 4-6 yr old female. She gets along fine with Dad, both tween boys, and loves me(Mom). However, she jumps and snaps at our lab just for walking by. Our lab just walks away and seems to stay away from the rest of the family out of fear of the chihuahua. Is there a way to help them get along? Please help!
Have you corrected the chihuahua for snapping at the lab?
I adopted a 1 1/2 year old male chihuahua from a family who lived on a farm He growled at me when i walked in but after that was very attached to me. we have had him for two weeks now and he is fine. The only problem is when visitors come over he growls and barks and tries to bite them. I dont want to give him up because he is a really good dog other then that. How can i improove this? is it to late?
It’s not too late. It sounds like you’re just starting with him.
What have you done to work on his obedience so far?
My four month old chichuahua will not come to me at all. I put my hand out, and. In a baby-talk voice ask her to come. She will bounce around like she’s taunting me but won’t let me get near her. She sleeps with me and sits on my lap but won’t come when called. Help
I would use a long line to teach her to come.
My Chihuahua only acts up when she is alone with me in the house. I live in an apartment, when we are alone she will bark at anyone walking by our window. How do I stop this behavior?
Sounds like you don’t have much control. You need obedience training.
I have a full bred chihuahua and I’ve had him since he was a young puppy and he is a year old now. He is fixed. I try to train him with sit and lay down and stuff like that but he gets scared and runs away or cowers down to the floor. How do I get him out of that? And also he is very agressive towards other people. He chases people and bites them if they come over or if someone is running down the street and he even chases cars. How do I get him out of that?
Boy, you need quite a bit of help. A few lines of advice aren’t going to cut it with a case like this. Have you considered a local trainer? Our dvd programs?