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Old 01-22-2010, 10:30 PM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl
4,091 posts, read 5,974,275 times
Reputation: 3415

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My girlfriend and I got a chihuahua off CL about a year ago. Beautiful dog. White coat, black spots, a big brown spot on one of his ears. One brown eye and one blue to green colored eye (think Husky kind of). Full bred according to the AKC paperwork that came with him. Three years old, neutered. Has never once acted in aggression towards us, and only growls when he has to poop and we're not picking up on his more subtly hints. Hopefully this answers any questions that you may have when I go into the issue:

We go to the ladies house to pick him up, and notice that she has four kids, three other dogs, and everything is filthy (her kids especially). Her youngest child took it upon himself to take a green marker and draw on his head with it . After seeing this, my girlfriend was ready to leave with him. Right before getting the paperwork and everything, the "leader" of this unorganized pack of whatever small dog this woman could find walks up, jumps on top of our poor Petey, and starts biting and swatting it's paws at him while the lady explains "this happens all the time."

We leave the house and he has no issues coming with us. No problem getting him in the car (he hopped in on his own) and no whining. We asked the lady if she had anything with their scent on it to make the transition easier. She gave us his favorite stuffed animal. He refused to go near it for the first two weeks. After my girlfriend and I started trying to play with him (he doesn't like to play) he started dragging it around when we weren't home. Anyways, I'm going off topic.

We let him out, and sometimes we let him out without a leash and, when another dog comes out, he goes into attack mode. He only attacks MUCH bigger dogs (a pit bull who just ran away and a black lab who was trying to play with him) and is terrified of smaller dogs (comes running up to us to pick him up). He stopped going after things when I started raising my voice and saying "NO!" But it doesn't just go for dogs. We were taking him for a walk one day, and a woman asks if her kids can pet him. I know Chihuahuas aren't good with kids, so, I hold him close to me and pet him as the kids pet him. He was shaking when they were petting him (I'm assuming because he was scared) and then went for a quick nip when the last kid pulled their hand away. I read that once a dog is attacked by a dog, it loses all trust. What can I do to make my chihuahua more social?
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Old 01-22-2010, 10:42 PM
 
4,231 posts, read 15,371,277 times
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Glad you rescued him, sounds like he had a tough life before you got him. To make him more sociable, have heard giving someone treats (to give to him) will help, you'll want him a bit hungry and you'll want to use some tasty treats (small (pencil-eraser size) pieces of chicken, steak or cheese (go easy on the cheese or it can give him diarrhea, even a Nutro soft stick or Biljax (or other brand) broken into small pieces should help (IOW, not a Milkbone, you want something tasty) - but I wouldnt force the issue, if he's hesitant, go slow w/ him, he has to be ready and comfortable but I think the treats would help. Would also do it for short times, occasionally, end it on a positive note too, when it's gone well (rather than ending it if he nips someone). Also, you'd prob. want to pre-plan this w/ a friend and not a kid as kids invariably make sudden movements and it may unnerve your boy. Ive had people come up to me in PetsMart who've actually asked me to pet their pups etc (some exercise in the middle of a class), also at a dog show. Also, a lot of dogs are more comfortable being petted under their necks rather than on their heads, it's prob. intimidating to a nervous dog to have a hand coming down swooping at him, no matter how well intentioned, if he's unsure. Would go slow at first though and not force the issue, he has to be comfortable, baby steps...

PS Would also keep him on a leash b/c he if antagonizes the wrong dog, he prob. wont win and you dont want him to get used to bullying anyone.

Last edited by Honeycrisp; 01-22-2010 at 10:45 PM.. Reason: ps
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Old 01-22-2010, 10:54 PM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl
4,091 posts, read 5,974,275 times
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Now we have a fenced in backyard, so it's not a problem. But I would like to be able to take him to a park, or for a walk, or something without him attacking.
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Old 01-22-2010, 11:12 PM
 
Location: Destrehan, Louisiana
2,189 posts, read 7,031,353 times
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Chihuahuas are nuts, but some of the most protecting dogs I ever had.

Ben on the left and Brownie on the right, and he is brown are two of the most lovable dogs around, but Brownie is just plain nuts.


Attached Thumbnails
Making a chihuahua more social...-img_8170.jpg  
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Old 01-22-2010, 11:36 PM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl
4,091 posts, read 5,974,275 times
Reputation: 3415
Awww! They're cute! This dog is the most loyal and protective dog I've ever had. I just wish he were able to play nice with the other little doggies! My girlfriend did inform me that she took him for a walk with her friend who had a female chihuahua and they got along perfectly... But that was just the one dog.

http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v3807/41/110/1765253293/n1765253293_16873_3587130.jpg (broken link)
Right after we got him.
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Old 01-23-2010, 06:05 AM
 
7,079 posts, read 37,850,332 times
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Chihuahuas aren't known to be the friendliest of breeds. With people. With dogs. I lucked out with my rescue girl, although there are some people she simply does NOT like. She growls and tries to snap (she has no teeth, as her former 'family' didn't take good care of her and she had to have them all pulled when I adopted her).

It's great that you got your dog away from that awful situation. But PLEASE keep him on a leash at ALL TIMES when walking him outside. PLEASE. I've seen too many tragedies when dogs see something across a road (it could be another dog or anything) and runs to attack and needless to say, a car + a tiny dog is a disaster.

Frankly, there is a SMALL window in puppyhood when a dog's socialization is malleable. Outside of that window, which ends at about 6 months of age, it's extremely difficult to modify that. Please don't use negative reinforcement (yelling 'no!') - it only scares the dog and makes him scared of YOU.

Take a look at a book: The Other End Of the Leash by Patricia McConnell. You'll learn so much about canine behavior!
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Old 01-24-2010, 12:23 AM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl
4,091 posts, read 5,974,275 times
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Thanks for all the help guys.
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