I Need Help!

[daniellecaro]

Toby is my 5 month old male Chihuahua. I haven't taken him to puppy classes, even though I promised I would. Now he is too old for puppy classes, and I really need to start training him. He has a number of problems that I need to set straight. Here they are:

- Potty training is a huge one. Right now he's being taught to use newspaper/potty pads, and I can see some progress but he still has tons of accidents. I am not sure if I should start crate training him now since he has all of his vaccinations.

- He bites hard! I don't think its aggression but it sure gets out of control. I'll try to cuddle with him on the couch but all he does is bite me. When I give him a toy, he ignores it and he goes right back to biting me. Its not just when we're cuddling either, its all the time.

Any advice would be great!

[ferJenna]

Sounds like you need to put him in his place. When he bites you, give him a firm "NO!" or a command like "No bite!" and put him on the ground. Keep doing it until he learns biting is NOT ok.

Why would you not crate/kennel train him for reasons of vaccinations?? I'm really curious. Crate training is great to start right away. Shots or no shots.

[tiffers]

Puppy classes aren't the only classes out there. You can enroll him in training regardless of age.

[katiem]

My Rottie was one when I put him in obedience, as long as they've had their vaccines they are good to go, and it sounds like Toby needs the classes.
I also don't understand why having his vaccines means you can't crate him?

[daniellecaro]

Well living in such a suburban area like I do, we generally don't have much of a backyard. I happen to have no backyard, so the only way I could take him out to go to the bathroom would be to put him on a leash. With the millions of other dog walkers in this city, I fear Toby might catch a disease, so to be on the safe side I waited until he got all his vaccinations to start walking him. Crate training is all about crating them in their beds until they go out to the appropriate area, right?

[tiffers]

I understand about the not wanting him out in public without some protection. However, crate training is your best bet. There are MILLIONS of websites on the internet about crate training, and I feel like you should search for one that best helps you. Not everyone learns the same or trains the same. Also, the biggest issue people have with crate training is the 'tough love' aspect. Most owners feel like they're being mean or the puppy is lonely...and that's not it, puppy knows that if puppy cries...owners come in with positive reinforcement by taking puppy out of it's crate.

You'll need to keep your puppy in the crate all night, only taking him out at scheduled times to potty. Then, when you're not watching him...or you're not home...in the crate he goes. No if's, and's, but's, or maybe's. You'll have to be strict and tough...and when he potties outside like he's supposed to...you praise him like there's no tomorrow. It's strict praise not punishment that helps them learn.

I'm sure other's will have more information on behavior and training than I, so keep checking back.

[mynameislola]

It seems to me that you want to teach your pup a few things: not to bite so hard, not to bite, how to cuddle, and some potty training.

My Sparky Chihuahua is going through all that. First he was taught bite inhibition which is how hard to bite. This usually gets taught by siblings and parents of the pup. I was Sparky's third home by the time he arrived here at approx. 8-10 weeks old and he missed out on learning that from other dogs.

This is how I do that. Decide how hard is too hard a bite. Let the dog bite you just until it reaches that point, then you yell OW! at the dog and remove your hand from the dog's mouth as you break eye contact. Do not pull your hand out but instead give it more of a twist. Those teeth are sharp, lol. With Sparky, breaking contact for a second is enough time. After three hard bites he goes in his pen for at least fifteen minutes.

If you want to teach both at once, when you offer your hand to the dog, say Bite, and Good Bite when it bites you. After a while of that you can teach No Bite. My Italian Mastiff pup is learning that, but with toys instead of hands.

On the potty training, the easiest way for me to potty train a pup is to get a crate and a portable fence and create an area for the dog where it's OK for it to go potty and never let it anywhere else inside unless leashed to an attentive person. The portable fence can be adjusted so the dog has only access to its crate and a tiny pit of area covered by a pad.

Sparky's crate is metal with a floor liner and designed for dogs up to 75 lbs. The portable fence, also metal, is attached to the sides of the crate. Inside the crate is an electric whelping mat so he stays warm. The space inside the crate was adjusted so he had a very small area at first. Once he realized he needed to leave the crate to potty he got more space.

There is a picture of his set-up on his Photobucket account.

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee298/sparkletonchihuahua

The only way Sparky will cuddle is if he is almost asleep or he has a chewie made of some dead animal part. Just keep putting the toys back in the dog's mouth. Putting a harness on the dog and holding onto it can restrict access to your fingers and face.

Beginner classes are available for dogs of any age. I would observe one before signing up. Some are good with small groups of dogs but lose it when it comes to crowd control.