Unfortuately that is the opinions of many people who havent owned a chihuahua.
THe bad thing about that is that there are some Chihuahua's that are just like that, but that isnt their fault, its the owners fault!!!
Chihuahua's need to be socialized as early as possible with other dogs and other people. Your vet will be able to tell you when it is safe to start taking your puppy in the public.
Find out what treats your puppy loves and take your puppy to PetCo or anyother store that allows dogs and have people come up to you. Hand them a treat so they can give it to your pup and have them pet her.
Have friends and family you trust handle your pup as much as possible. Take your pup to different places (stores, parks, malls if allowed) anywhere where they can be exposed to other people and dogs. (Careful about dogs though, you dont want your little one to get hurt, but they need to be exposed to dogs....thats why I LOVE puppy classes...its worth the money because you can really get some good socialization in those classes)
My three were very hard to potty train, but just as long as you remain totally consistant they will get it. Remember they have tiny bladders and cannot go more then an hour at a time without pee'ing.
My dogs have never bitten anyone, but Ginger has tried to on more then one occasion, but that is because I did not socialize her like I did Tequila and Kylie. I didnt because she was sooooo small and I babied her....now I am paying for it. (She was also way too young when she was taken from her mom....not my choice but it was already done and I knew I could properly care for her)
Chi's are extremely loving dogs who do whatever it takes to please you. They are by far my favorit breed, and I grew up with tons of different dogs. Read up on them more and just socialize your pup and you will find that all of those chihuahua steriotypes are not alway the case.
-Jessica
Possible Chi Problems
1) Poor socialization....make sure to not seclude your pup because they can quickly become overprotective of you and shy away from everyone else..probably will turn into agression
2) Potty training: They are TINY dogs so make sure your puppy makes frequent potty breaks! As long as you do this and remain consistant training will go better
3) Barking....unfortunately chihuahua's are known barkers. The key is to stop excessive barking and that can be done with proper socialization also...so that way whenever a person walks by your house you dont have a barking dog. (but just expect a chatty dog in a chihuahua...all three of mine bark when someone new comes inside but it only lasts a couple seconds)
4) Agression: If you completely isolate your dog from the outside world, you will get an agressive dog, no matter if its a chihuahua or a lab. Be smart and you wont have to deal with this. If you notice your chi becoming agressive act quickly and correct the problem before it becomes something you might not be able to correct...either ask advise on how to correct a problem or go to a trainer who can help you correct the problem.
5) Size; The are extremely SMALL dogs and the biggest thing you need to worry about is hurting them or leaving things out that will hurt them. They dont think they are small and that can cause problems. Things like jumping off the bed/couch, being stepped on/sat on, and playing with larger dogs can cause serious injury. Some injuries are just unavoidable unless you cage your dog all day (which is bad) but just be smart and you can pretty much avoid most accidents.
Thats about all I can think of. Again, its never really the dog who is at fault, its the owner. Do some research on proper socialization (because I think that is key for this breed) and just remember you are getting the smallest breed of dog in the dog family...treat them as such and you should be fine :wink:
Again, I think they are the best breed in the whole dog family!!! I couldnt imagine my life without my three!
-Jessica
PS - Kylie is becoming a Therapy Dog (need to be friendly to do that) and Tequila is becoming an Agility dog (need to behave and be friendly to do that also) Everyone is shocked when I bring them to classes and quite often I get people coming up to me saying that their opinions of chihuahua's have changed since meeting mine. I just tell them that most chihuahua's are nice, they just get a bad rap.