Chihuahua

History

Bred thousands of years ago in Mexico, the Chihuahua is a small and fierce breed. Unlike many other breeds we know today, the Chihuahua was never used in a negative way; this breed was a sign of royalty and upper class as soon as it existed. Today, we are able to have them as our companions whether or not we are royalty, and for that, we are grateful!

Appearance

In general both males and females measure 6-9 inches in height and weigh 2-6 pounds in weight. This breed is very small and fragile, and should always be treated as such. This breed has a small round head, aslo known as an "apple head", with a narrow muzzle forming into a scissor bite. Their two large, triangular ears stand firmly up on the top of their head. Their perfectly round eyes are typically hazel, dark brown or black in color. This breed has a single layer, short hair coat that should always demonstrate a healthy shine. Their tail is tiny as they are, thick at the body and tapers down thin by the end; the tail can be relaxed towards the ground in some dogs, or curled upright towards their back. This breed is available in all colors and color combinations.

Temperament

Notorious for their "small dog syndrome", the Chihuahua is a very large personality, within a very small body. This breed knows what it wants, and when. The Chihuahua breed is extremely loving, affectionate, and confident with his or her owner and family members within the home. This breed is a magnificent watch dog breed as they will bark the second they hear or see anything abnormal. Early socialization is key for this small breed to accept outsiders, however you should not expect them to greet everyone friendly even with that, as this breed is typically not very social with outsiders. This breed does fairly well with potty training whether it is outdoors or on potty pads inside of the home. Chihuahuas can be very treat motivated, making training a bit easier. Be sure to set rules and boundaries within the home at a very early age with this breed, as they can become very demanding and bossy and need to be aware that they aren't the ones in charge within the home. This breed should be walked once daily and have play time within the home as well. If you have other dogs within the home, make sure you include them within the daily walk, as a "pack", as this will help maintain proper balance within your home and the dogs. Please note that this breed can experience seizures and other health issues when not fed properly or often enough. They need to have access to water and kibble throughout the day. Positive reinforcement training methods only.

Grooming

This breed requires daily brushing and bathing when needed.

Special Notes

Please note that this breed needs to be within a proper fitting harness and leash at all times while outdoors, or within properly installed fenced area with you. The dangers of Hawks picking up your small dog are very REAL, as well as other wild animals harming your small Chihuahua. Please fully educate yourself about the Chihuahua and their daily needs and requirements to ensure this is the proper breed for your family. Do not add this dog to your household unless you are able to provide life long physical and financial care for your new family member. All dogs originate from wolves (Canis Lupus). Each breed of dog was originally created by mixing different breeds together in an effort to bring forth certain characteristics. Once a breeder has created acceptable “breed characteristics” within their bloodline and these “breed characteristics” have shown to be reliably reproduced in the offspring for three (3) generations, the bloodline may be upgraded from the category of “foundation stock” to “pure-bred”. The same “pure-bred” breed standards vary from different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders. Dog DNA testing companies can have accurate results for a specific bloodline of a small colony of dogs. However, there are tens of thousands of different bloodlines in the world which have not yet been tested for marker baseline results by Dog DNA testing companies as of 2017. For this reason Dog DNA testing companies do not guarantee the 100% accuracy of their breed lineage results and will also show different marker results for the same pure-bred breed in different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders.