All puppies are naturally cute and friendly. The same thing certainly is true for your puppies. Of course, it takes training to make the puppies a great companion for you. If you have Chihuahuas at home, they can be sweet friends, right? Many families love Chihuahua as they can easily fall in love with the masters. However, Chihuahuas also have some unique characteristics, which you should new when finding ways on how to train a Chihuahua to be friendly.
Chihuahua does not really love meeting other dogs, and even other people. They can easily feel comfortable with their ‘home’ but are not interested in others. Fortunately, proper Chihuahua training guides allow you to expand his personal space and to make him a lovely and friendly puppy.
A friendly Chihuahua would not bark when your doorbell rings or someone unfamiliar comes to your house. Your guests would not yell in scare because your dog barks at them. A well-trained Chihuahua does not growl at your guests. Instead, he sits comfortably in your lap. On the other hand, a bad-trained Chihuahua may become aggressive when someone is near to you. Therefore, they must be properly trained, so that they stay calm when you have guests at home.
How to Train a Chihuahua: Step-By-Step Guides
If you want to know how to train a Chihuahua to be a friendly dog, the following tips may help you:
Chihuahua Training Guide: The Basic
Just like training other species of puppies, the first key to success in Chihuahua obedience training is starting the socialization as early as possible. It will be better if you adopt the puppy Chihuahua, so you can handle him as soon as possible. In case that there are other dogs in your house, let them interact with the Chihuahua. Frequent interaction with other dogs will help your Chihuahua to socialize as early as possible.
However, always pay close attention to the puppy, particularly when the other dogs are older. When the dogs know each other, this will reduce his dependency on you as his master. Chihuahua that only knows the master as his sole companion sometimes can go aggressive or unfriendly when meeting other dogs. Teaching older Chihuahua to be friendly may take more time that teaching the younger one. However, even older Chihuahua can still be a friendly companion, when trained properly.
Chihuahua is known to have unique temperament. Identifying it helps you in planning the training properly. They are companion dogs, if carefully trained. However, when they do not get proper training, as a master, you will face several issues, such as:
- Even the puppies may behave larger than they look. Although the dog is actually entertaining and very adorable, the way they behave like older dogs may be dangerous.
- They can be aggressive and standoffish with strangers and other dogs;
- They can be snappy with kids.
Chihuahua Training Guide: Important Notes
The first thing you need to do when training Chihuahua is making sure that he gets and do your command. Essentially, little dogs can easily learn fun tricks, which allow him to attract attention:
- You can begin with simple commands like “stand!”, “move!”, “sit!” “roll over!” “stay!” “heel!” or “down!” Increase the level of difficulty with time. You are recommended to put the puppy on a table; therefore, you do not need to bend while giving the lesson.
- Combine learning process and treat. Anytime the puppy shows positive progress and behavior, treat him properly.
- Set a regular feeding schedule and do not let him free feed.
- Try to teach the puppy to set back or stand at a defined space when you prepare the food and put it in his meal bow. Do not allow the Chihuahua to beg or jump while you are preparing the meal. You need to teach him ‘wait’ command.
- Define an area, which will become his territory, around your house. Take him to walk on a leash and show him only area, which he will use. This helps you set a rule that the dog can only use that area. Do this repeatedly, and only visit the same places anytime you take him to walk on a leash.
- After showing his territory, you can proceed to show him the spaces you shared. Instances include your bed or couch. Let him lie down near to your bed (on the floor). This tells him that he should be under your command. However, when he becomes a good companion and you can trust him, you can eventually let him on your level (i.e. lie down exactly new to you).
- If there are other people or other dogs in your house, train him to socialize and adapt with others. This way, you can train the puppy to feel comfortable around other people or other dogs.
- Train the dog to be comfortable being alone at home. If not properly trained, the Chihuahua may bark et all when left home alone. For this, you may consider a separate crate training, in which you train the dog systematically to reduce anxieties and stress when you are not at home.
The basic training is regarded successful when the Chihuahua is able to socialize, understand simple command, wait while you are preparing the meal, and know his territory and shared space. At this point, you may proceed to the next training method.
Chihuahua Training Guides: Respect Training
This aims at training the Chihuahua to respect you and the leader of command and respect others. The following are some of the tips:
- Set the rule of respect as early as possible. For instance, when he acts aggressively, do not coddle or baby him, as it means you teach him to enforce the behavior. Instead, just put him down and pick him when he calms down.
- Never talk with anger or loud voice to the Chihuahua. Yelling and the puppy may confuse him. He may try to do the same, i.e. acting aggressively or whining. Instead, keep talking in a calm manner to the puppy.
- Do lot let the dog demand or even intimidate you. Train him to wait for anything he wants. Just like when you train him to wait when you are preparing the meal, tell him also to do the same for other things. Let him see when you open the doorway, take the meal, clean the meal bowl, put the food into the bowl, and serve it to him. Let him wait!
- To let him wait, give some commands. Practice ‘sit down!’ command and see how he responds. When he responds properly, treat him by serving the food. Or, before you let him lie down near to you, give him ‘beg!’ command and see the response.
Teach him to socialize and behave properly around others. As the dog learns and understands your command, you can get him to know the world around him. Respect training is regarded successful when the dog is able to respect you and people around you, can wait patiently, and do your command properly.
This step of training is actually related to the previous training, i.e., setting the rules and the boundaries. The rules may involve the sleeping arrangements. For instance, you can set the rules whether the Chihuahua may sleep on your bed or not. If not, set the rule from the beginning and make him obey it. You can also determine other physical boundaries that the dog should obey. For instance, if you do not want him to get into the kitchen while you are cooking or get into your bathroom, let the Chihuahua know this from the start.
How to Train the Chihuahua To be Obedient
Most dogs bite. Therefore, they will get into a play biting phase. Therefore, you need to train the puppies not to bite others. The puppy usually bites when someone tries to handle him or when others are close to the masters. Even when you approach him while he is eating or playing, the puppy may bite, as you are intervening something he likes. If you do not want to Chihuahua to bite, always be gentle with him. For this, the following tips may be helpful:
- Always be gentle with the Chihuahua.
- Never use chose collars on his neck, as he can get hurt easily. You may choose a flat buckle collar to protect his neck and trachea. If the harness is not comfortable for the puppy, it takes you longer to train the puppy to walk on a leash.
- Do the exercise of using the collars daily. There is no need to take him far away from your house. Instead, walking around your house is enough.
- If want to take him for outdoor walk, particularly during the cold weather, make sure to provide him with a comfortable sweater, as the Chihuahua puppies are known for sensitivity to cold weather. Do not take him out when it is too cold outside.
- Do not train him to jump too early. Jumping for a high place may hurt his joints. It must be noted that hurt joints and fractures are among the most common physical problems facing the Chihuahua puppies. So, try to minimize the risks by not allowing him to jump from a high place.
- If the training to avoid the puppies from beating does not work, you may consider hiring a canine behaviorist or a professional dog trainer.
You may think that a baby dog cannot do much damage. However, if the biting and aggression are not resolved early, the habit may continue when he grows up. It is much more difficult to train the adult Chihuahua not to bite.
General Tips on How to Train Chihuahua
The Chihuahuas learn in different ways. Therefore, do not expect that all the training sessions will automatically bring your puppy to the desired results. Some Chihuahuas need longer time to learn a command, but others can do it in a shorter time. The following tips on how to train Chihuahua may help you to make the process more effortless:
- Never give up. Some Chihuahuas may be stubborn, while others learn faster. The point is: never give up! Even though the puppy does not show the desired behavior or does not even show any interest in the training, do not give up.
- Avoid training the dogs when you are tired or have emotional problems, like anger and anxiety.
- Offer high-value treats, like toys or foods that the dog loves very much, for any success in the training steps.
- Keep the training session short, as this animals show shorter level of construction.
- Arrange the training schedule carefully. Start from the basics and increase the level of difficulty with time.
- Do not let your Chihuahua lead you. Since the beginning of the training, show him that you are the leader. In case the puppy shows aggression or growling at your guests, do not give him any affection. Instead, let him calm down. Treat him only when he is done with the growling.
- Reward the puppy with a tasty or high-value treat when he shows good behavior or does not growl to other persons or other dogs
- Provide the treats for any good behaviors, like showing affection and social time. Make sure that the treats are ready before beginning the training.
Finally, proper training must be a priority in the training schedule. It is better if the Chihuahua is toilet trained earlier. Do not start the training using pee pads, as it will be difficult for you to manage the dogs to have normal outdoor toilet routine later in their life. Most Chihuahuas can control the bladder for about 3-4 hours during the day and 5 to 6 hours in the night. Therefore, make sure to take him out on time. If you are not home, make sure to have someone to take the puppies for outdoor toilet routine. However, make sure that the puppies are familiar with the person.
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