Remember…this story is NOT typical…but want to share nevertheless. I had Dolly 15 months before I got Desi. She was such a sweet little girl and I just wanted to get her a playmate. I got Desi – a boy instead of the little girl that I wanted – and that first day I was thinking that I made a mistake because it appeared that Dolly turned into this little screeching mean dog that I didn’t know. I thought that I ruined Dolly’s sweet disposition and that Desi could have gone to a better home. This went on and on…until months later I realized that she was ‘Chihuahua talking’ to him and teaching him the rules…some of mine – but I am sure that there were a few of hers tucked in also. All is well that ends well. Desi Lou adores Dolly Dee. They are almost inseparable. When I try to take one out to the vet, that one will pull and pull to where the other one is. So…they go on rides with me, they go to the vet together (even though only one needs any medical attention.)
So…there are rules that you have to enforce from the beginning…but just watch and make sure no one is actually getting hurt and let your alpha be the alpha to train the little one. You just need to intercede when things start to get out of hand. From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of [email protected] Sent: Monday, March 05, 2012 5:32 AM To: [email protected] Subject: RE: [Chihuahuas] One person dog Thanks Joan for sharing your experience! My Dali, like your Dolly is also alpha dog. She will bark and pull to get at another dog when we are walking too! Funny thing is that when another dog is barking at us first, she stays quiet and just walks on by. It's like she knows not to push her luck! I am supposed to soon have another male Chi joining our family, and I have been trying to convince my husband to let me adopt a tiny female rescue who has been in foster care for so long. She is terrified of everything you but I think our quiet home and lots of patience would help her to come around eventually! My husband has softened a little, (he's really concerned that she would cost us a small fortune in medical care) but I want my Dali to be more friendly and used to other dogs so as not to traumatize any new dogs in our home. Sent via DroidX2 on Verizon Wireless™ -----Original message----- From: Joan Croft <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Mon, Mar 5, 2012 05:15:49 GMT+00:00 Subject: RE: [Chihuahuas] One person dog Besides Desi, Dolly only likes one other dog…a little Maltese across the street named Sonny. When Mandy comes over here, Dolly’s alpha dog takes over and she will only once in a while even sniff Mandy. This time, Desi is protecting his sister and when Mandy comes and Dolly is screeching, Desi is doing it also. After about 5 minutes they all like each other. Dolly & Desi want to be by me, and Mandy just wanders around…and I cannot give her the one-on-one attention that she gets at home with two parents. I am just one person and this makes three dogs, so I guess it would be like my neighbors having six dogs at a time. I have had to train Mandy to wait her turn for treats, and am trying to teach her not to jump up on me when I am standing…this so that if I watch her when my back is worse, or after surgery, she knows not to jump on me. I wish they would all play together. Mandy runs down the side of my yard whenever I let her out and she runs to the gate (solid iron) and barks. I have to call her back, but that doesn’t work so I have to go towards her to get her to get back in the back yard. The side of the house that Mandy runs down and barks is the same side that would be on my house side of her yard. I really am not in the bedroom or bathroom at that side of the house to hear if she is barking, but if I am outside in the front, I frequently hear her barking by the gate. I guess these are behaviors that are OK with her parents, but I have to make sure that Dolly & Desi don’t learn them, and I have to keep the alpha order of my pack and she doesn’t like to be last for anything. She actually goes ballistic if we are walking (when I used to walk with Judy) when she sees a bigger dog…but I have noticed that she starts to cry and wimper loud and then Judy picks her up…which I know is just letting her know that she can do that all the time. Dolly & Desi are on the ground unless there is a dog running towards them. They are brave little ones, but I do know when it is necessary to pick them up. When someone comes to repair something, both of mine will bark and bark, and I have to tell them that ‘this is the man who is going to fix the refrigerator, and he is OK to be here.’ Then I just tell the person to say hello to them and they run back to whatever they were doing before that. But there is a difference between the protective barking and the barking which is not for any specific reason. From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Cindy Sent: Sunday, March 04, 2012 8:00 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [Chihuahuas] One person dog Hi everyone, I have been reading about Ann's concerns about a one person dog. My Cooper and Dali are very much just for my husband and I. Since our children are all grown and moved out it is usually just me home with them. It took Cooper almost a full year to even go near my husband, he finally will jump up to sit with him but he still can be nervous with both of us. I try to socialize them; we go for walks, talk to people,I take them shopping, to a dog play group etc. They still will not allow anyone to reach down and pet them and children totally freak them out. If someone comes to my door they immediately go nuts barking and then if someone comes over they will bark and chase after the visitor every time he or she makes a movement. I have tried to get them calm before allowing someone in the door, but they escalate as soon as they see someone in the house. It seems to work best if I can get the person to completely ignore them and I keep correcting them. I would so love them to be normal friendly dogs! They do OK at the dog group, it is a small indoor area supervised by two trainers. I took them to the dog park for the first time last week, my female Dali, acted very aggressively to any dog that entered the area. She would run at the dog barking and actually went to nip at a poor submissive Boston Terrier's back leg. I of course corrected her and after a while she just ignored the other dogs. But it definitely makes her immediately disliked by the other dog owners and I can't blame them! I have heard how all of you seem to have friendly and well adjusted dogs, so I'm assuming it is me doing something wrong! I read everything I can get my hands on about dog behavior, try to keep them well exercised, we walk twice a day most days of the week, so any ideas would be much appreciated! Cooper has improved over time but Dali is very nasty to other dogs who try to be friendly! Thanks for any advice! Cindy
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