Chihuahua
Facts

help, my puppy wont eat!

This is very normal for  the first few days, baby him, make what he does eat count.

What should you give him?
PUPPY MILK called ESBILAC – Powder is easiest and more economical. If you buy the liquid an open can can stay in the refrigerator for 3 days. Mix  the ready to feed  liquid with a little bit of water  so the puppy gets extra fluid.

Gerber baby food, chicken, turkey or beef, has tons of protein, and puppies love it! try putting it on your finger if he wont eat it out of a bowl add Nutri-Cal.

After a few days your puppy will eat normally.

LACK OF APPETITE

1. We find that puppies cannot resist GERBER baby food, single meats and also the Gerber Meat Sticks.
2. You MUST use NUTRI-CAL® six times a day  on a Chihuahua puppy who refuses to eat. Keep trying other foods  while keeping up with the NUTRI-CAL®. Put it on your fingers, puppies love to lick you. You can do this with water too.
3. Use plain unflavored Pedialyte for a puppy who is not eating. Use a large size child medicine dropper and slowly squeeze the fluid into the Chihuahua puppies mouth.
4. Esbilac/a> PUPPY MILK can be given to the Chihuahua puppy by dropper. Use the larger dropper and give at least 1 oz three times daily, plus NUTRI-CAL® and whatever else you can get the puppy to eat from the list given on this care form.
5. 1/2 teaspoon of KARO 3 times daily can lift up low blood sugar in a weak Chihuahua puppy (or NUTRI-CAL®)
6. DON’T FORGET ABOUT WATER! Use unflavored PEDIALYTE® to add to the water. Is the urine a dark color? If so, the puppy is probably dehydrated.

Any Chihuahua puppy who refuses food altogether, even if you force feed him/her with a dropper, may be sick. You should get them to a veterinarian and have a fecal study done as soon as possible.

You can always contact us if you are having problems.

I DON’T WANT AN ANKLE BITER

Genetic influence is a major cause of dogs with not-nice temperaments in the breed. Tiny dogs have small litters and the high demand makes it easy for people to sell even carelessly bred Chihuahuas. To find a carefully bred Chihuahua, you need a careful breeder. A puppies temperment begins inutero. A healthy, happy, well fed, stress free mother will produce much nicer (and healthier) puppies than a caged, poorley fed, over bred (puppymill) mother. Puppies will watch how their mother ingages with humans. If the mother cowers in fear, becomes aggressive, or see’s humans as someone who just drops off the food a few times a day (like in a puppy mill) the puppies will do the same. If the puppy see’s a mother who loves her human, wanting to be with her every minute for love and praise, the puppy will do likewise.

The other major influences on your Chihuahua’s personality will be what the dog experiences in life. That makes how you allow others to treat your dog important. Chihuahuas need to be rather courageous to cope confidently with a world so much bigger than them. It’s our job to keep that confidence a positive force rather than a self-defense attitude because the dog has learned to doubt humans will provide the protection such a little one requires.

Fearful dogs are not happy dogs and can be hard to handle. Chihuahuas are unlikely to cause terrible injuries, but disease transmission, infected dog bites and restrictions on your lifestyle certainly happen with aggressive Chihuahuas. Tiny dogs are highly susceptible to developing defensive aggression from fear if mishandled by children. With large dogs we have to worry most about what the dog might do to a person, while with the tiny dogs we must be extremely vigilant about what people do to them. The himan doesn’t have to mean harm by an action for harm to result from it.

I HEARD CHIHUAHUAS AREN’T GOOD WITH KIDS

We have 10 children, so chihuahuas can and do live in harmony with them, but you will need to be very careful, especially while your pup is still growing. We always recommend a bigger chihuahua for families with small children. A 6 pound – 8 pound dog is great for cuddling. They can get on and off the couch by themselves and they can be “played”with by your child. The 2 to 3 pounders are so small and delicate and makes them more like caring for a newborn baby, all of their lives.

HOW IS THEIR HEALTH?

Chihuahuas are prone to their share of physical problems that you need to know about in order to take the best care of your dog:

1. Luxating Patellas – otherwise known as slipping kneecaps—are a problem in many toy breeds. Sometimes they require surgical correction, but because the chihuahua is so small, most do not.
2. Their tiny trachea is vulnerable, which is why it’s best not to attach a leash to the Chihuahua’s identification collar and use a harness instead.
3. The Chihuahua’s skull has a unique shape that can create complications. Have your puppy checked by a veterinarian to make sure this is not so extreme as to cause your dog problems.
4. Tiny dogs can dehydrate and die quickly from vomiting and/or diarrhea. Do not delay taking a sick Chihuahua to a veterinarian. Be sure you have finances available at all times so that you will never be tempted to postpone medical care.
5. Tiny dogs have a poor ability to keep their bodies adequately warmed. You will need to protect your Chihuahua from the cold, and for the short-coated ones you will need to provide coats or sweaters. In some conditions a long-coated Chihuahua will need clothing, too.
6. Tiny dogs are easily overdosed on medications. Never give your dog any medication without specific instructions from your veterinarian. What is safe for humans is often deadly to dogs, especially tiny ones.
7. Feeding is more critical with tiny dogs. They need to eat frequently enough to avoid blood sugar problems, and they need more consistent diets. Junk food can do serious harm. There is little wiggle room in feeding when the dog is so small.
8. Don’t go for the lowest cost when it comes to spay/neuter or other care of a tiny dog. They need the closer monitoring provided by better clinics. When your dog is ill, you need a relationship with a well-equipped veterinarian who sees the dog for routine things as well. The quick help you need when a tiny dog falls ill is easier for the clinic to provide to regular clients whose records are up to date.
9. Groom your little dog daily. It’s great training for a dog who needs to be handled so much, and of course doesn’t take much time. The long-coated Chihuahua is easy to comb, and the short-coated dogs respond well to gentle massage/rubdown with your hands. This helps you detect medical problems early, too.

Occasional bouts of sneezing, snorting, honking and wheezing are not unusual in chihuahuas, and is sometimes called a “reverse sneeze”. This is usually caused by a elongated soft palate that is thought to become temporarily misaligned. It is a common trait in toy breeds. Pulling hard on a leash, drinking too fast or getting overly excited can lead to an episode of reverse sneezing. Reverse sneezing SHOULD NOT be confused with a different condition called “collapsed trachea“.

Although reverse sneezing may appear to be scary, it only lasts a short time and can be ended by massaging the dog’s neck and throat and encouraging the dog to swallow or lick. Another way to slow the reverse sneeze is to clap your hands to distract the dog, or pinch closed the dog’s nostrils with your fingers, forcing it to breathe through its mouths and to swallow.

LONG OR SHORT COAT?

Its just personal preference.

I WANT A “TEA CUP”

As with all living things, there will be a size variance between individual dogs within this breed. Within the human family, brothers and sisters will differ in height and in weight, as well as other physical attributes. They are described as humans, male or female, and there is seldom if ever a need to break the description down further. The same holds true in regard to the Chihuahua; they are Chihuahuas-Long Coat/Smooth Coat, Male/Female.

Unfortunately, the additional adjectives used to describe the size difference and physical appearances are many; and have been misused for so long they now seem legitimate. Tea-cup, Pocket Size, Tiny Toy, Miniature or Standard – are just a few of the many tags and labels that have been attached to this breed over the years. The Chihuahua Club of America is concerned that these terms may be used to entice perspective buyers into thinking that puppies described in this way are of greater monetary value. They are not; and the use of these terms is incorrect and misleading.

Occasionally, within a litter, there may be a puppy that is unusually small. That puppy is a small Chihuahua and any other breakdown in description is not correct. To attach any of these additional labels to a particular pup is to misrepresent that animal as something that is rare or exceptional and causes a great deal of confusion among those fanciers who are looking for a Chihuahua.

The Chihuahua Club of America does not endorse or condone the use of any of these terms and would caution the perspective puppy buyer not to be misled by them.

We recognize that many Chihuahua fanciers do want the very small puppy. While they are adorable and can be perfectly healthy, the buyer should be cautioned as to the extra care that may be required with regard. the tiniest chihuahuas can be prone to health issues that the larger 4pound and up chihuahuas do not suffer from. also remember these problems are costly in terms of vet bills, but also costly to your heart. these tiny pups dont usually live as long as the larger chi’s.

it is hard to predict the weight of a chihuahua when it is under 6 months old. there are weight charts that breeders use, but this is no guarantee. please only buy a puppy from me if you will love it when it is 2 lbs, AND if it gets over 6 lbs. the love you have for your dog should not be based on its weight.

LOOK AT THOSE EARS!

WHY DO THEY SHAKE SO MUCH?

Most dogs are nervous by nature.

Nervousness can make the dog shiver or appear to shake, as if it’s cold. However, the Chihuahua, is a very small dog making it even more nervous than most. Also, because of it’s small size it does get cold much faster. Just imagine yourself being a small Chihuahua and everyone and everything around you is so huge. You would be nervous too! This explains why Chihuahua’s love to bury themselves under blankets.

They also known to shake when they are in pain, or excited.