Questions Galore!!

First of all welcome! :wave: I can't answer all of your questions but I'll try to answer some.

1. Well you have to understand that all chihuhuas are different but most of them are little sweeties!

2.Once again all chis are different but my chi Molly is great with me (only in 7th grade) and my little sister(7 years old) but you have to make sure that you socialize them like crazy so that they will like all types of people including children.

3.Well first of all the long-haired chis actually shed less so that would be one thing to consider. Also you may have to brush her more than a couple times a week until her full coat grows in because before that everything will still be developing and she may be shedding more than she normally would.

4.Well I;m not exactly sure but you will definatly have to take her to get all her shots and vaccinations also if you think she is sick. One more thing make sure you get a tube on NUTROCAL because is she begins to be hypoglycimic (s/p?) then that will make her feel much better. ( I think but I'm no vet!)

5. Well you will have to take her to the vet like I said to get all her shots, vaccinations, rabies vacc. etc... ( sorry if I didn't answer that too well!)

6. Pros- lots of love!
Cons- ? ( Sorry!)

Well I guess I did answer all of your questions but not that well but I hope that you like it here and I wanna say thankx for coming here and wanting to get educated about the breed and dog before you just ran out and got 'her'. once again, Welcome! :wave:

(1) Why do you not recommend a Chi for children?

I don't recommend children that are very young or very rough and tumble. chi's are delicate and can get hurt pretty easy.....

(2) If you consider them a 1-2 person dog, then the fact that I have 5 people in my family, should I stop looking at Chi's?

There are about 5 people in my house too and my puppy has taken to every one of us but you can tell who's "baby" she really is. She is also accustomed to people at my job cause i bring he rto work with me.

Chi's are my favorite dogs... I would be getting this dog brand new, 6 weeks old (roughly)

I recommend waiting until the puppy is at least 10 weeks old!

(3) Shouldn't a Chi that young get used being around a certain number of people?

Yep, i beleive in socializing the puppy at a young age and getting them used to your daily routine. but the people also have to involve her and talk to her, pet her and just make themselves a positive force in her life...

WELCOME! :wave:

Now, to answer your questions:

How tempermental are the chihuahua's breed?
I have two - Lola is not tempermental AT ALL. Bosco isn't really, either, but he is not the biggest fan of strangers. He tends to bark.
How good is a chihuahua with children?
They can be good ... but they can also be bad. When looking for a Chihuahua, definitely look for one that has been bred for temperment and you will be a lot happier. Definitely wait till 10 weeks of age before bringing the Chihuahua home, and definitely encourage your Chihuahua to be friendly to strangers and children.
How often would I have to groom my chihuahua so there isn't much pet dander for my DH?
My DH is also allergic to dander but the Chihuahuas do not give him trouble at all. Ours get washed about once a month, and they are smooth, short coats so we don't brush them or anything. Very easy to maintain!
How often should I take my dog to the vet?
Once you bring a pup home, you should bring it to the vet within 24 hours just to get a check-up. They will then set you up with a "plan" - you usually have to take them at 8, 10, 12, 16 weeks for shots. Then again at about 6 months for spay/neuter, then just yearly after that.
At what age should I begin to take 'her' to the vet?
A.S.A.P. after bringing her home, just to ensure she is healthy.
What are the pros and cons of having a chihuahua?
PROS: The most loving, loyal, and SILLY dog you will ever own.
CONS: Can be quite a barker and if not properly bred and socialized, can be quite snippy or afraid of strangers.
Why do you not recommend a Chi for children?
My only real concern with Chi's and children is the fact that Chi's are so small and can easily be hurt by a falling toddler or a rough-housing child. You just have to keep an eye on 'em!
If you consider them a 1-2 person dog, then the fact that I have 5 people in my family, should I stop looking at Chi's?
No, definitely not. The Chihuahua will most likely attach itself to only one person though.
Shouldn't a young Chi get used being around a certain number of people?
Yes, start socializing as soon as possible, but be aware that a young pup (under 16 weeks old) should not be around too many other dogs as they may get a disease like Parvo from another dog.

Okay I just went to a birthday party with the breeder (we are co-workers and one of our other co-workers had her daughter's birthday party today) I talked to her about when I can take the pup home and she said she doesn't let them out of her house till about 7 weeks. I mentioned to her about keeping it there for about another 3 weeks and she said that if she will keep it there, then she might get to attached to it and keep it herself so I plan on bringing it home 7 weeks old.

She said she also does it's first shots and so on. She buys most of the things over the counter at pet stores and does it herself. The only one she can not do is the rabies shots. Should I tell her not to worry bout the shots and take the dogs to the vet instead. She has been breeding for about 9-10 yrs and not one dog that I have seen in the last 5 litters that her dogs have had... had any problesm with her doing the shots.

I do not think I will spay or neuter my female pup since the breeders female is getting a little old and she would like me to venture into breeding. I might change my mind a little down the road since I wouldn't want to breed my pup till she is about 3-5 yrs old.

I plan on taking my Chi to the park with the kids and I since summer weather is now arriving. Would this be enough socializing... not many kids go to the park and in the town I live in not many of the kids are 'nice' if you know what I mean.

My kids are 5, 4, and almost 3. They have been around the Chi's at the breeders and I only began to think about getting a Chi. My kids love the dogs there and her dogs love to play with the kids. In the last year my kids might of tripped on her pup (2 yrs) once.

This will be my first dog and I do not plan on having her around other dogs.

She mentioned to me about giving the pup a bath every week and that she uses human conditioner. Does anyone recommend this on a chi pup?

Thanks again!

Hello, welcome :wave:

I would recommend buying a book on chihuahuas, and one on puppies. That will answer most of your questions.

I wouldn't recommend using human products on the puppy, and every week is a bit excessive unless they get into something...my mom used baby shampoo on her puppy and it caused her to get really dry skin so she switched to puppy shampoo. Charlie has danderuff so the vet told me to give him a bath every other month (at least in the winter) and use an oatmeal shampoo.

I would agree with sjc and 8batch...you'll want a vet to check out the puppy and set up a vaccination schedule.

If you supervise your kids and teach them to be careful, and gentle with the puppy it should be fine, my 2 1/2 yr old nephew loves the "pippies" and sits with them in his lap for hours. We always watch him with the chihuahuas but he has learned that he has to be very gentle. (my chi loves everybody and has a wonderful temperment, my sister's has to be convinced that he wants to sit with my nephew, and prefers my sister to anybody else)

Good luck with the new puppy! They are great fun!