Hello and welcome
Hello all!!
Hi everyone. Last week we adopted three 8 week old Chihuahua pups. I had Chihuahuas MANY years ago, when I was a teenager. Through the years, and many other breeds, I have remembered my first trio of Chihuahuas with great fondness and affection. A few months ago we lost George, an amazing combo of Cocker Spaniel and Basset Hound, through heart disease. For the first time in many.....many years, we were dogless. Then, out of the blue the opportunity to adopt the new pups was offered to me, and I LEAPED on it, lol. There is so much I have forgotten about Chi's, and I want to do right by my new little friends.
Well, Tyr, Icarus and Persephone have been home for 3 days now. They took instantly to the idea of the crate, and I have them on a training schedule. Tyr and Persephone really seem to understand what I want of them....I am, for now, using potty pads but hope to have an outside area set up for them fairly soon....but Icarus reacts to the pad as if it were Kryptonite!!!
I know Chi's have the reputation of being...... difficult.
I have an abundance of patience and am in this for the long, long haul. I already can't imagine life without my pups. I'm going to need to learn from the experiences of other Chihuahua lovers the BEST ways of handling the 'problems' without damaging the exuberance of my new little best friends.
I am looking forward to reading about the experiences of everyone here, and how you all have dealt with the joys, and the difficulties of this marvelous and wonderful breed of dogs.
cheers to all! :ngreet2:
Well, Tyr, Icarus and Persephone have been home for 3 days now. They took instantly to the idea of the crate, and I have them on a training schedule. Tyr and Persephone really seem to understand what I want of them....I am, for now, using potty pads but hope to have an outside area set up for them fairly soon....but Icarus reacts to the pad as if it were Kryptonite!!!
I know Chi's have the reputation of being...... difficult. I have an abundance of patience and am in this for the long, long haul. I already can't imagine life without my pups. I'm going to need to learn from the experiences of other Chihuahua lovers the BEST ways of handling the 'problems' without damaging the exuberance of my new little best friends.
I am looking forward to reading about the experiences of everyone here, and how you all have dealt with the joys, and the difficulties of this marvelous and wonderful breed of dogs.
cheers to all! :ngreet2:
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Hey Charlotte...super busy for sure!
I live in NW Indiana, and last week I went down to my son in Indianapolis to collect my new children. Needless to say, it was total love at first sight.....tinged with the knowledge of just how much I was letting myself in for. The first thing I did was head for Wal-Mart....praying that they would have a crate the right size in stock. They did. Then I set the thing up in my son and his girlfriend's kitchen.... turned it into a comfy little one room apartment for the kids... and let them try it on for size. They really do seem to love it.
My son and his girlfriend had been going to adopt the little girl, but discovered within a day that even one would just be too much for them. (They had them gated into their big utility room, basically running wild. Pretty daunting, I'm sure, three energetic, yappy little Chi's.) I took one look, and instantly said that I would take her, in addition to my two boys. She is a complete doll! :love4:
I spent five days down there before we headed home. For the past almost three days, I've been establishing a schedule for potty training. It is really going pretty good, considering how lively.
my furry little trio is. Icarus does have a bunch of skepticism about the pad thing....BUT.... when I had them out for potty and play a little while ago he did his piddle, went off to crunch some puppy kibble and chase his siblings around the love seat....and then....with no prompting from me, hopped over to the pad to do his poo. LOL, I didn't celebrate that much when my HUMAN children were being potty trained. Now, I know that one brilliant success, (giggle) doesn't mean my campaign is over....but I can taste eventual success.... Once they figure out their bathroom responsibilities we can REALLY start having some FUN! Last night their last potty/play time was over right about eleven, and I got them up for their morning potty a little after five. They all peed an ocean...on the pad....and had a perfectly dry crate. Then chow time, race time, cuddle time and....back into the crate. I've been doing this every 2 to 3 hours...except for night time. And I will continue to do this until I am certain they really grasp the concept. I am fortunate that at this time of my life I HAVE the time to do this right. I am soooo in love with these little guys.
Well, I've rambled on. But all of you guys understand just how wonderful these little dogs are....don't cha? And yes, again, they are keeping me very busy....and I love it.
Welcome to the forums!! :hello1:Well, Tyr, Icarus and Persephone have been home for 3 days now. They took instantly to the idea of the crate, and I have them on a training schedule. Tyr and Persephone really seem to understand what I want of them....I am, for now, using potty pads but hope to have an outside area set up for them fairly soon....but Icarus reacts to the pad as if it were Kryptonite!!!
A lot of people love to paper or pee pad train their chis, but honestly, in my experience, it's better to start with outside ONLY at first. I tried to do both with Teddy and he got really confused. He wasn't holding his urine because saying "THIS spot is okay to pee on inside the house, but not this OTHER spot" is really confusing for a little pup. Once I eliminated the pee pads entirely, he really got the idea that OUTSIDE is for pee, and not INSIDE on my carpet.
When he was a little older (about 8 months old) and more reliable with his potty training, I started introducing pee pads again and only in one specific area in the house. (I chose the bathroom because it has a solid floor. This made cleanup easier if he missed at all.) Now if I miss the signals to take him outside, he runs to the bathroom and goes on his pee pad (which now sits inside a wide dog litter box). Just make sure that wherever you put the pee pad is always the same. Once they are trained to go in a specific area, if you move the pad they will often continue peeing in that area even if there's no pad there.
The problem that I foresee for you will be when they get too big to stay in that crate together plus a pee pad and you have to move either dogs or the pad around. They will likely get confused because their routine will be disrupted, and you'll have accidents. You'll probably have to go back to basics at that point anyway. That's why I think it's easier to introduce the pads once they're already pretty house trained, rather than trying to do both at once.
I hope this helps. It's true that these little guys can be difficult to housetrain, but taking them out VERY frequently (every 30-45 minutes for a pup, and every hour or two for an adult) and being 100% consistent is the key. Their bladders are only about the size of a shot glass fully grown, after all.
The boys seem to be more difficult, especially if you don't neuter them by the time they start lifting their leg to pee instead of squatting. (I really wish I had neutered Teddy just a week or two before I did.. He was 7 months old and had JUST started lifting his leg, and he hasn't stopped since, unfortunately. Now he's kind of an obsessive urine marker.)Also, if you're interested at all in teaching them to tolerate a carrier, the earlier the better. I started introducing the carrier to Teddy with positive reinforcement when he was 11 or 12 weeks old. Even just a few minutes a day of throwing a treat into a bag and watching them go in after it will build positive associations. Don't expect too much at first.
Good luck with training and I'm looking forward to seeing some pics of your pups soon!!
Welcome to Chi Ppl
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