Concerned New Chihuahua Owner ... Needs Help! Thanks. :(

[wiz83]

Hi, I'm new here. I found this forums from Google. I bought a long-hair Chihuahua for my girlfriend for Valentine's Day, took it home on 12th February 2008. She was born and registered on November 7, 2007.

My girlfriend and I decided to name her Belle ... and I took her home after she's slightly more than 3 months ...

Now here's a couple of questions ...

When I took her home, I bought her a crate from the breeder for $15, and apparently the breeder told me she's pretty much potty trained on the potty/puppy pad. Since my apartment is fully carpeted, the only place I could keep her is in the bathroom. My bathroom has a bathtub, which I close the door to it all the time, a toilet, and a sink. Belle seemed pretty happy with her crate, I have an old pillow and a fleece sheet for her, and she seemed to like to stay in there most of the time ... so I've got no problem with her getting in her crate ...

I never lock the crate though, as I thought the crate is a bit small, just enough for her to turn around and stand up ... so I have the potty/puppy pad laid at one corner ... I'm quite surprised that she's pretty good at peeing on the pad ... she pees on the pad all the time when she's in the bathroom ... but the problem is she doesn't poop on it, she poops on another corner ... I've used anti-stain and odor remover all the time, but she seemed to poop at different places all the time, except the potty pad where she usually pees ... what can I do to make sure she potties on the pad all the time ? I can't bring her out, because I'm at Iowa, and it's like 5F out there, freezing cold ...

Another huge concern is ... she's 2 lbs heavy/light ... my breeder told me they fed all puppies with eukanuba small breed dry kibbles ... I got a bag of free sample ... and I follow the guideline on the package, which says for a 2 lbs puppy 3 months old, I'd need to feed her approximately 1/2 cup a day ... so what I did was I measured 1/2 cup, put on a small bowl next to her crate ... but when I really look at it, she doesn't eat much ... if you have to ask me, I'd say even less than 1/4 cup a day ... which kinds of concern me ... so I went out and bought all kinds of puppy foods, I spent quite a bit, I bought Purina, iams, and Nutrisource all for small/toy breed puppies ... Belle doesn't seemed interested in any food at all ...

I've read all kind of training guides, trying to use treats to train her ... but I can't do that ... she doesn't seemed interested in food at all ... I felt as though she's really skinny ... I can feel her bones and stuffs ...

So what I did yesterday was I called the breeder who sold me the puppy, she taught me to buy some baby food (chicken gravy) and mix with the Eukanuba (which she ate all the time at the breeder) ... took her more than 10-15 minutes to gain her attention, then she started to eat only about approximately 8-10 kibbles then she stops eating again ... I'm kind of concerned ... so I kept doing google search, some said she's actually eating, just that I don't know ... so I decided to count the kibbles ... I put in exactly 30 kibbles last night ... this morning I woke up and counted the kibbles (with baby food chicken gravy) and there was 24 kibbles exactly ... she ate 6 kibbles ... not a lot I'd say ... I'm very concerned ...

Another note is that, she pees 3-4 times a day ... that's the number of different color stains I see and counted when she went pee'ing when I was supervising ... but she poops only once or twice a day the last 2 days ... According to the breeder, she needs to poop at least 3-4 times a day, or even more ...

Please ... please please ... help me ... give me suggestions ... I used to have a boxer for 11 years before he died 2 years ago, and never had such problems ... the boxer seemed to love food and I could gain attention from him with food, but not this chihuahua ...

Again, hi everybody ... and hope someone would be able to help ... I'll be around to stay for a while ...

Oh by the way, I don't think she's nervous around my girlfriend and I ... she seemed to love coming over to us lying on our lap ...

[Milo 07]

Hi There...Welcome to the group! :) My Chi's not a big eater at all...Hes 4mths and might....might eat 1/4 cup the whole day. I will put about 10 kibbles in his bowl, or i will use some kibbles at playtime, when hes exctied. I throw the kibble across the floor, he runs for them and gobbles them up:D I have heard that you should do alot of hand feeding, not sure how accurate it is but they say if you hand feed your dog you will have a good bond with it and he will really trust you. :confused: I do hand feed Milo usually one or two times/day. He eats Sceince diet and seems to like it.

I also use a crate but i have Milos bed at one end and a pee pad at the other.Unfortunately i have to work so i can't be home all the time with him so he does get locked in, He generally won't pee in there unless i don't get home from work on time then he might pee. But i keep newspaper out in the garage and i take him out about every 45minutes...maybe a bit long intervals but when i first got him...oh man we were always out in the garage! I just find i watch him super close, so if he shows signs that hes going to have to poop then i take him right to the garage. If its not too cold i will take him outside to the backyard and he will go but i'm like you its freezing here in Ontario :eek: Another thing i use to do was make the bathroom area a little larger than the pee pad. I would make a big square with newspaper then lay the pee pad right in the middle and i would kinda shoo milo on the paper if he tried to come off and tell him paper pee....lol...but it worked!

Sorry this was so long hopefully things work out for your family & Bella:)

[wiz83]

Finger feeding works a bit, but it would work maybe for like 10-15 kibbles, then she'd stop eating.

I don't know how to play with her, as she's not excited with any toys at all. I bought her a mini-tennis ball from Wal-Mart, and the breeder gives me a new soft-toy for her, couldn't seem to get her attention to any of them. The only good thing about her now is that, when ever my girlfriend and I sit down on the floor, she seemed to like to come to our lap and lay down ... and just chill for a while ... I live in a 1 bed-room apartment, with 1 bathroom, living room, kitchen, and my room. She seemed to love our room the most, every time we open the door in the morning, she'd run into our room.

We had to leave Belle in the bathroom for 12 hours yesterday, because we had to work, then I had a dinner, and she kinda went crazy, messed the whole bathroom up, mess the whole potty pad up, and biting the toilet rolls all over the bathroom, and pee'ing all over places. I don't know for sure, but I think she's showing attitude ...

I guess I'd have to start locking her in her crate? Should I leave her food in the crate? Or only feed her according to schedule? I'm giving her a lot of water supply so she could drink enough.

Thanks.

[Milo 07]

Your pup is probably still adjusting to you and your girlfriend. She has to get to trust you guys, maybe once shes more relaxed then she will play and eat more! I'd definatley use a crate, do you have access to a bit bigger crate? I know your not really suppose to put them in a huge crate but my crate is on the small side but i can still put a bed and a pee pad. When i use to leave Milo in his crate when he was smaller/younger i would leave some kibbles just incase of that low blood sugar thing i had read so much about and i was worried. But then he got older and i saw him eat is food in the am before i left then i'd not put any in...Then when i got home at 330 i would give him a few kibbles to munch on until i got his dinner. I know alot of people let their chi's graze. I don't anymore only becasue i can regulate his pooping times better this way and we have less oppies;) Hopefully someone with more experience can help out with the advice, Milo is my first Chi...so this is still new to me too!

[wiz83]

Problem is if I lock her in the crate, she'd start crying/barking ... and that kinds of annoy the neighbor ... And the bad thing is that my apartment/landlord doesn't allow pets ... :( I'm thinking of moving out in July, to a place where I can have pets ... but for now, I can't do anything till my lease ends ...

[GimmeChis]

Hi...I've got 4 Chi's so I can try to share some of my experiences with you...

First of all, Belle is VERY young...at 3 months she has just hit the point where she can begin to learn housetraining. And with tiny dogs it takes a little longer - they have tiny bladders and the trip from the mouth to the bottom is not long! The next time she poops in the wrong spot, show it to her, tell her "no", and put it on the pad - show it to her on the pad and praise her as if she did it there. Leave it on the pad (I know it stinks but she needs to know that this is where we put the poop!). Be very, very patient. She is so young and tiny - she needs repetition, consistency and time. She doesn't know what to do, you have to teach her. It's amazing that she pees on the pad - you're one step ahead on that one!

Second, a puppy this young ideally needs to be fed 3 times a day until she is 6 months old - is there a way you can do this? But if you can only do it 2 times a day, make sure you do it on a pretty regular schedule, this will give her stability & regulate her potty cycle. You also might want to switch to a higher quality food like Solid Gold, Innova, Canidae, etc. Just switch slowly, mixing it with her old food at first - a sudden switch can cause stomach upset. You also might try taking a little canned food, warming it, and mixing it with her kibble to soften it up and make it more palatable. My Joey was the same way when he was a baby - he worried me to no end! I had to hand feed him, and even bought some of that Nutri-Cal in a tube and just rubbed it on his tongue just so he would get something into him! Now he's my biggest Chi!

And you didn't mention...has she been to the vet yet? It's important to take a new puppy to the vet for a "new pup" check and get her established....then if something comes up you can call them or go in.

As for going nuts when you were gone 12 hours - that sounds pretty normal to me. She's very young to be left alone that long and she missed you! What a pup this young needs is stability, consistency, lots of love (which you obviously have or you wouldn't be here!) and to know she is safe and cared for.

It's hard at first with a new puppy - they make you work hard and sometimes you just want to sit down and cry but in the end you have a sweet, loyal, smart, loving little friend and companion who adores you no matter what. Hang in there...it WILL get easier and you'll be thankful you toughed it out. :) Chihuahuas are so special!

I hope this helps...please ask more if you need to. :)

[Chloesnana]

Maybe getting a ex-pen will help and buying a roll of flooring for under the expen.I have used a expen for all my puppies.Its nice, they have room to move and they are around people.

[wiz83]

Thanks for the suggestion, I guess I'll have to hand feed more often.

So, any idea how to train my chihuahua to basic commands like, "come", "sit", and stuffs like that without the use of treats? Like I said before, she doesn't seemed interested in treats at the moment, or should I just potty train her for now, and start the other trainings much later when she's done with potty training?

Thanks.

[GimmeChis]

Thanks for the suggestion, I guess I'll have to hand feed more often.

So, any idea how to train my chihuahua to basic commands like, "come", "sit", and stuffs like that without the use of treats? Like I said before, she doesn't seemed interested in treats at the moment, or should I just potty train her for now, and start the other trainings much later when she's done with potty training?

Thanks.


As far as treats go, you may want to try some plain boiled or baked chicken - sometimes that gets their attention quicker than "dog" treats. My feeling is that potty training is most important. With a small dog those commands are not as "urgent" as they would be with a large breed that could soon take over!

Of course training with your dog is a great way to bond and she will need it eventually so she'll be a polite little girl!...I would suggest that after she is finished with all her puppy vaccines and fully immunized, sign up for a basic puppy training class. You and she will learn all the commands and it's also a great way to help socialize her with other people and dogs.

Best of luck with your new baby...she's lucky to have a home with someone who cares so much! :)

[wiz83]

All her vaccines are up to date, completed everything, except for rabies (and spaying?) at 6 months.

I don't think I could afford to enroll her in classes, I'm full time, and studying part time for my masters, and I don't have the time to do it, and my girlfriend works full time, but she visits home once a while to make sure everything goes well, as she works less than 5 blocks away.

[GimmeChis]

Is there a Petsmart near you? I took a puppy class there on Saturday afternoon and it wasn't too expensive.

But if you can't take a class, you could go on Amazon and buy a training book that demonstrates commands, socialization, etc.

Most of the real work takes place outside of the class anyway - you learn in class and the real learning for your dog takes place at home when you practice with her - so if you got a book you could practice on your own time.

[wiz83]

The closest Petsmart is about 60 miles away. I'm at upper Iowa, and the Petsmart is at Central Iowa. So, is there a particular book you'd recommend before I order from Amazon?

Thanks.

[GimmeChis]

Okay - I went online and looked at some books, so this is just a guess mind you, but these look good:
How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With (Clarice Rutherford/David Neil)
It got a good review from Dog Fancy so I take that as a good endorsement!
and How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days (Shirlee Kalstone)


Another one on the Barnes & Noble site:
Good Owners, Great Dogs (Brian Kilcommons)
It got good reviews on Amazon but they don't carry it anymore


Remember...I'm just going by what I read but these are the books I would buy.

Hang in there...don't be too hard on yourself or your baby! You'll get there! :)

[wiz83]

Again, thanks. I've ordered "How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With from Amazon. I don't know if I'd have enough time to complete the book, but I'll try ...

My puppy is so adorable ... but she's very inconsistent with potty training now ... :( I left her in the bathroom for 1 hour after she ate, and she wouldn't potty ... then I took her out, in less than 30 seconds, she pooped on my carpet ... :(

[GimmeChis]

You are so welcome. I hope that I have helped...Chihuahuas are such special little dogs and so worth the effort!

That sounds totally normal. Especially for a toy dog - they can take longer to train than larger dogs. They just can't hold it as long!

Remember, she doesn't know what she is supposed to do. You have to teach her, and hopefully the book will give you some structure and guidelines that you can give to her.

Best of luck with everything - and don't worry so much - enjoy her - especially now, she's only a puppy for a short time!

[wiz83]

Sigh ... Belle is starting to not use her puppy pad ... I left her in the bathroom, she wouldn't pee, when I let her out, she'd immediately pee on the carpet ... :(

How long would it usually take to potty train a puppy? Belle still doesn't seemed to be interested in food, couldn't give her treats yet ... :(

[Dia D]

Is the pad really saturated? I know my little one won't use it once she's peed on it about 3 times + so i have to put a new one down. More often than not she will use the fresh one. :) Think about it.. would you want to use a potty that was uh, used several times before you? lol.. i would not.

But yeah, make a big deal and praise her a lot when she goes on the pad. I've read that puppies love the sound of "yaaaaay!!".

If you catch her - and ONLY if you catch her at the exact moment- doing it on the carpet, tell her NO, firmly but not screaming at her.. and put her on the pad, then pet her. Sometimes it helps to push her lil butt down while she's on the pad and maybe she'll get the idea. Don't scold her for a pee or poo she already did, but you just found because she won't know what she's being yelled at for.

Like everyone else has said, it takes a lot of repetition and patience, but they respond very well to praise and positive reinforcement. Mine is 3 months old and is starting to really get the hang of it. She hasn't had an accident in a few days now, I'm very proud!! :D

[GimmeChis]

I second what Diana D said. When you catch Belle making a pee or poo, scold her firmly but gently, pick up the pee or poo and take it with Belle to the pad, put them all down and praise her as if she did it there. Praise her and praise her! Use a word for the pad that is easy for her to learn like "potty". She is still very young and it takes little dogs longer to learn sometimes.

It concerns me that you said she is still not interested in food. Is she not eating at all?

[wiz83]

She eats, but not a lot ... less than 1/4 cup a day ... :(

[GimmeChis]

She just weighs 2 lbs. right? That's not so bad for such a small dog. My eight/nine lb Chi's just get 1/2 - 3/4 cup a day. Is she still eating Eukanuba? I would suggest switching her, slowly (mix the old food with the new food, giving her less of the old each day until it's all new food) to a higher quality food like Solid Gold, Innova, Canidae, Eagle's Pack. Also, take a little canned food, warm it in a little water, and mix it with the kibble. That might make it more palatable for her, not to mention easier to chew. You could also give her some plain, boneless chicken.

Now I'm not a vet, I'm assuming she's gotten a clean bill of health from her doctor? Have you talked to the vet about her appetite?

You're being way too hard on yourself. Raising a boxer is totally different. I've had Shelties, a Great Pyrenees, and now I also have an Anatolian Shepherd. You're right, like the boxer, they scarf down their food and they are easy to housetrain. Chihuahuas are completely different. I know I can't hear you or see you but you sound really tense - relax!! :) Your puppy can feel your tension, too! :eek: You will get there. And we're all here to help you. :)

[wiz83]

Yeps, brought her to the vet 2 days ago, everything seemed fine. I added water to the kibbles to make it softer, and she's starting to eat by herself, without me needing to finger feed her. I told the vet that she's not eating much, but apparently the vet thinks she's doing alright. The vet highly recommend Eukanuba as she thinks it's the best puppy food out there, and I've been feeding her with Eukanuba as well. Stop feeding her with other brand stuffs.

She ate quite a bit yesterday, not a whole lot, but slightly more than 1/4 cup now, but less than 1/2 cup ... trying to get her to eat 1/2 cup a day, just like what the package recommends for a 2lbs 3.5month old Chihuahua ... :)

I guess I'm being too hard for myself, but I'm concerned ... that she's not eating enough ... I need her to be healthy ... :)

[GimmeChis]

I understand that! :) You love your baby!

Let me tell you my Joey was the same way and I worried terribly about him. When I got him he was 2 lbs. and 2 weeks after he arrived he came down with a respiratory infection. A lady in the hospital waiting room told me,"that's the cutest cough I've ever heard." He got over that but he was still the pickiest little eater - just like your girl. I had to do the hand feeding, and I bought a tube of Nutri-Cal (empty calories but it was something) - and I would just put it on my finger and rub it on his tongue so he would HAVE to swallow it. I did that to help him grow and hopefully stimulate his appetite so he'd eat healthy food. He's 6 now but he can still be a picky boy on occasion, although he's my biggest Chi at 9 lbs (that's him in my avatar, the one in the middle).

Just keep doing what your doing, and you should always feel comfortable to contact your vet with any questions or concerns. :)

And show us a picture of this little girl! :D

[sungold88]

As a breeder of Chihuahua puppies, I give out this brochur with the purchase of pups. Hope it will help you some....






How do I care for my new puppy once I get it home?


1.What First-- When you take your new pup home please do not give it free run of your home. For the pups safety please confine your pup to a small area. Be sure in this area the pup has a bed to sleep in, and can see its food and water dish. You can put newspapers or house training pads down in this area for your pup to go potty. I have found that a Childs playpen works great for a new puppy. You can put the bed and food dish along with some paper down in the playpen. This will not only keep your pup safe but also give it room to play and exercise.

2.Feeding--I recommend free feeding your little puppy. This means to make sure your pup has food in his/her dish at all times. These pups have very small stomachs and eat a little bit at a time. Toy dogs are what you call nibblers. When a pup comes to a new home sometimes they can get a little stressed out. If they seem not to want to eat the recommended dog food then mix it with wet can pedigree for puppies. They seem to love this can dog food. However I do not recommend you keep the pup on this food permanently. It causes loose and frequent stools.

3.Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)—This is a very rare happening but I want you to be informed of this condition. Some pups can get very stressed in moving to his/her new home. You have to stop and think this pup was use to being around all its littermates and mother. This stress can cause the pups natural glucose levels to fall. If you notice you’re pup becoming very listless and in active this could be a warning sign. If this happens you need to get your pup pumped up with some glucose. The best thing I found is children’s pedialite. Also Gatorade can be used. If you do not have these items available karo syrup or honey can be used temporarily. If this does not seem to pep up your puppy with in 10 to 20 minutes take the pup to the vet immediately.

4.House Training--Your pup is going to be very tiny when you first bring it home. I recommend waiting till the puppy is at least 12 weeks old before getting really strict on house breaking. Until then train your pup to newspapers or training pads which can be purchased at Wal-Mart.

5.Vaccinations--Your puppy will have been started on its first puppy shot and will have been wormed. Puppies need a series of puppy shots. To be confident that your pup is protected from disease you must keep it up to date on all its vaccines. Please get your puppy under a Vets care as soon as possible.

6.Grooming--Chihuahuas Puppies do not have to be bathed that often. If you have purchased a smooth coat Chihuahua you may simply keep it washed off with a washcloth or baby wipes are good to use. Once a month is plenty enough to bath your Chihuahua.Keep there nails trimmed back to the pink area in the nail. Clean out their ears with Q-tips and Peroxide. When your Chihuahua reaches 1 year of age you will need to have the vet check its teeth for cleanings.

[wiz83]

I'll take a picture and post, but my brother took my digital camera away. I'm planning to order a Digital SLR (Pentax K10D) sometime soon, then I could take lovely pictures of Belle ... :)

[GimmeChis]

Can't wait to see her!! :D

[wiz83]

Hi, it's me again. Belle's potty training/house breaking has been a disaster the last 2 days. She'd tear up the potty pad, and she'd pee/poop everywhere else ... I even taped the pads on the floor, but she'd just tear em' up ... I'm using potty pads by OUT!

[GimmeChis]

Hey there. It doesn't surprise me one bit that she's ripping up the pads. That's pretty normal puppy behavior. You said it's been a disaster the past 2 days...was it going well before that?
Let's try to figure it out...:)
How old is she right now?
Describe your daily routine with Belle, maybe there's something we can "tweak".

[wiz83]

Hi there again,

Belle was born on 7th November 2007, and she is currently 3 months 3 weeks old (1 week from 4 months old).

She has been using the potty pad to pee, but she'd poop on another corner, since it's in the bathroom, and not on the carpeted floor, it really didn't matter to me if she poop'ed on the other corner. But she ALWAYS pee on the potty pad, which is very good.

Then things went bad almost a week ago, she'd start to pee randomly all around the bathroom, so I read some guides online, and used a leash, tie it on one of the towel hanger on one corner, leave it just long enough for her to get to her food/water, her crate (bed), and the potty pad. Surprisingly enough, she'd use the potty pad to do both her business (poo and pee). I wouldn't let her run around the apartment unless she's finished both her business, as I do not want her to dirty up the apartment. But after just about 2-3 days, she'd start biting on everything, she chewed on the corner of the crate, the bowl that I had food and water for her, and recently tearing up the potty pads, and up to 2 days ago, she has successfully chewed off the leash, and broken herself free. Now, my girlfriend had to sew the leash back together, but I thought she might be doing all those nasty stuffs because she's being tied up, so I decided to let her run around the bathroom again. I would like to believe that I have successfully house trained her, as she'd almost use the potty pad all the time, but she'd also tear the potty pad apart as well. She'd do her business in that corner, whether or not the potty pad is there, or it's torn up, or it's not there. I don't know if I should let her run around, as I'm still not confident that she'd run back to the potty pads if she's not in the bathroom. So, the disaster that I've been talking about is the tearing of potty pad. 3 days ago, she tore 2 potty pads, 2 days ago, she tore 4 potty pads, and 3 potty pads was ripped apart yesterday. It's 6am now, I just woke up, she tore the brand new potty pad I put there for her last night before I went to bed. If she keeps doing this, I might have to spend a lot on getting potty pads all the time. Oh by the way, the potty pads are taped to the floor.

One thing good happened though. She didn't used to eat a lot, less than 1/4 cup a day, but recently she's been eating a lot, which I'm happy about. She's eating about 1/3 to 1/2 cup a day now.

[GimmeChis]

Okay this really doesn't sound bad at all. I know it's easy for me to say right?! ;)
But really, I didn't realize Belle was SO YOUNG. Typically, a puppy cannot even BEGIN to learn housetraining until she is 3 months old, and for a toy breed, it may be a little longer, so Belle is fine in that respect. In fact the fact that she used the pee pads at all is a good step at her age.

I wouldn't tie her up again. Not only is it frustrating, like you suspected, but it can be dangerous - she could accidently choke/hang herself.

The chewing is TOTALLY normal. Get used to that for a while. Puppies chew and she's not even teething yet. Get her some safe toys to chew on. I prefer the Nylabone Durables - they are totally safe and most dogs like them. Don't get her any cheap rubber toys or toys with squeakers that she could tear up and swallow.

She's not going to just "get" this housetraining immediately. She's a tiny, tiny baby. She's going to backslide. That's normal. All of what you described sounds normal. You just keep giving her calm, consistent training.

I know it's so different from your Boxer, this is a surprise a minute for you! I get that - larger dogs are easier, but even my Anatolian wasn't totally housetrained until he was 5/6 months old.

I'm so glad that she is eating better. I know that's a big relief for you. They're so tiny - they really make us worry!

God bless and come back here with more questions or if you need to vent!!:)

[wiz83]

Again, thanks for the help.

Anyway, I just called up Petsmart, only to find out that the closest Petsmart is 45 miles away, instead of 60 miles. I just enrolled her to the Puppy Education training sessions, $99 + tax for 8 hourly weekly sessions, every Wednesday at 8pm, and class starts this coming Wednesday. I don't know if Belle would be too young. I was thinking, spending an hour driving down to Petsmart, and an hour session, and an hour back, each/per week, isn't too much.

What made inspired me to really want to send her to a personal trainer was that I watched a really nice video on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8ciJjP5AkQ&NR=1 and really wished she could do everything like those, and who knows, maybe more? Like I said, I used to own a boxer, which my parents, brothers, and I trained, had never been able to do all those tricks. Hope a trainer could really help. :)

[GimmeChis]

Hey that's great! I took the same class with my Anatolian Shepherd and it was really good. Just remember most of the work takes place when you get home with Belle! :)
Good luck, have fun, and I look forward to hearing how everything goes!

[wiz83]

I talked to the trainer earlier before I enrolled in the class, and she (Sarah) says their class recommends puppy doing their business outside the house. I told her my dog is really small, and she might feel that it's too cold, what do you think, since you own a couple of Chihuahuas? According to the trainer, she said it's all up to me, it's my preference.

And I was wondering, what's the difference between the Puppy Education and Beginner's Training. I managed to get her enrolled in Puppy Education, because she's only 4 months old, and Belle needs to be 5 months old to be eligible for Beginner's Training. So, now, she's in Puppy Education.

[GimmeChis]

I think it's fine for them to go outside in the cold, just put a sweater on her. You said you're in Iowa, right? I know it's gets colder there than here, but when it's really cold here, when we even get some snow, I still let them out but I do put sweaters on the two smooth coats. The two long coats don't get as cold. What does your vet say? It's hard for me to tell you with 100% certainty because I don't know how cold it is there. But the trainer is right - it is your personal preference; with such a small dog it would be fine for her to always potty inside - a lot of people do that. But you do have to pick one - trying to teach Belle both would just confuse her.


And the classes - I took the Beginner's Class. We learned basic commands: sit, down, stay; we learned "drop it", "leave it"; and we did basic social stuff like leash walking and not being distracted by other dogs. I didn't do the Puppy Education - you'll have to ask her the difference. My class was good. You know I've heard good and bad things about Petsmart classes, but I guess it depends on the trainer. Also, like I said before, most of the real work will take place at home with you & Belle.

[wiz83]

According to websites I read about, it's either hit or miss. I even mentioned it to the trainer, and Petsmart assured me that I'd be satisfied, if it isn't the best session I've ever taken, they'd issue a full refund at the end of the 8 weeks session, but I need to complete them. The trainer was really cool, and she said she'd even make up missed sessions if I can't make it due to any reasons. For $99, that's an absolute steal, but I don't know the quality of the training though.

[GimmeChis]

That's true - there were some people in my class making up sessions one time. I think it's probably a good idea. If you like the trainer go for it. $99 for 8 weeks - and there's no way you can't learn something! :)

[wiz83]

My girlfriend and I, along with Belle, attended the first session. There are 5 puppies enrolled in the class, including Belle. We introduced ourselves, and talked about our puppies, and managed to help each of our puppies to find a treat that they like so we could train them effectively. Belle seemed to be interested in the Liver and Chicken treats right there. We then purchased those for Belle. Nothing much happened during the 1st session, except that we a homework which we were supposed to get our puppies to recognize their own name.

We then brought Belle home, and tried to train her with the treats we just bought, she never got excited, she'd eat a chunk or two, but after that, not interested in those treats anymore. I'm having hard time getting her attention with treats, anyone able to help?

[miaka]

my chi is 4 months now and i was having the same problems. As for the potty training, buy some pet stain/smell remover to clean up the area. Spike was going all over my one rug but i sprayed it with that and he has stoped since. also when she goes poop i would move her poop over to the pad and leave it there.. and it seams to be working.. have not found poop on the floor for almost a week!:)

With the treats. i have never really done that.. i just praise alot! lots of hugs and kisses and stuff.. so far so good:D He got his new name which was Ed before to Spike in 3 days. He also knows the name for his favorit toy Mr.Blue.

Good luck! It will all be worth it in the end

[beckert49]

I have a chihuahua who is almost 9 months old. When we first got him I had a job that allowed me to take him to work with me so he wouldn't have to be left alone at home all day. When he got older, we would leave him in his kennel at home. He would whine and bark for a long time after we left the room. I also live in an apartment so it was hard to leave him knowing he was making so much noise. What we started to do for him was to put his favorite toy in his kennel with him, but his kennel on top of our bed facing the tv and leave the tv on for him. We also put a light blanket over his kennel (except for the door so he could see the tv) to muffle the noise of his whining. As he got used to the routine, he whined less and less every day until he would no longer bark or whine when we put him in his kennel. Dogs like routine and get used to routines. So the more consistent you are with your new puppy, the more comfortable he will be. Hope this helps!