Chihuahua Information Center
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Severe Aggression Problems with a Chihuahua
First, we cannot stress enough, the importance of bringing an aggressive dog to the veterinarian for a full and complete checkup. There is a very strong chance that a Chihuahua in pain will be a Chihuahua that bites and behaves very aggressively. When a dog suddenly begins to nip, growl and bite the most common reason is because that dog is in some type of pain.
A dog will bite and growl when others are in his “area”, such as near his dog bed, eating area or resting area. Because when a dog retreats to his “area”, he will go to rest and try to deal with his pain. Anyone who then comes close will be perceived as a threat, as the dog is silently suffering.
A dog may be in pain because of an abscess tooth, a urinary infection and everything in between. Even if your Chihuahua just had a checkup, something may have developed from that time to now. So, it is absolutely 100% necessary to have your dog’s veterinarian perform a complete check up.
There is training for severe aggression problems that works quite well in these circumstances. However, please do not begin any of this training until you know that your dog is perfectly healthy.
To Begin
If your Chihuahua is completely healthy, the most likely reason that he is acting this way is because of a dog’s natural instinct to be the “alpha dog”. When dogs ran in packs, there always needed to be an “alpha dog”. There had to be 1 dog that was in charge. This is the nature of things.
Pet dogs also need to have an “alpha dog”. They have to know where their place in the home is. They need to know, “Am I the leader?” “Is she the leader?”. Without this being 100% clear to a dog, they may become very confused. As tension mounts and the dog does not know if he is in charge or not…the dog may then begin to test family members to see who backs down, who acts in charge and if anyone is going to challenge him to take his place.
In fact, most dogs who are convinced that they are indeed the “alpha dog” will be normally be very calm. Only when someone comes close to their food or their resting place will they then growl or bite to show that they are “king”.
This can usually be fixed with a type of training called Social Isolation. It only has a chance of working if it is followed exactly.
We suggest holding a family meeting. Explain to everyone in the household that everyone must join together as a team to help show the Chihuahua how to behave. This training must be followed exactly.
Trying to be the “alpha dog” is hard work and puts pressure and stress on a dog! And together, as a family, you are going to spend 4 days helping your dog. These days will be a teamwork effort to change your dog from a confused one to a dog that understands he is the family pet and does not need the pressure of being the “alpha dog”.
For this to work all family members should make every attempt to have 4 days in a row that they can stay home as much as possible. If this training works, your dog will revert back into a loving pet and the 4 days will be worth it all.
Day 1 and 2. Total and complete social isolation. Now, there is a very big difference between social isolation of a dog and physical isolation. Therefore, for this to work, your dog must be let out of the case and be allowed to roam the house as normal.
If the dog has tried to bite people in the home, no one should sit down next to the dog or put out their hand.
The dog must be completely ignored except for placing food on the floor for him and allowing him to go to the bathroom. This mean zero talking to him, never saying his name, and not acknowledging him at all. This also means giving zero attention to negative behavior. If the dog barks, no one must say “no”. The dog must be ignored to such a degree that he is virtually invisible. If you really feel that your dog may bite, you should tie him to a leash inside the home where he cannot reach anyone. But, it is best if he is allowed to walk around and get the very, very clear message that he is ignored.
If your dog nudges against someone for attention, no one should say “no”... they must act as if the dog does not exist and so forth. It is important that your dog sees all members of the family and is in the home among all of you…but being ignored completely.
A good sign that this training is going to work, is if your Chihuahua sleeps a lot more than normal on day 2. When a dog begins to think that perhaps they are not the “alpha dog”, they begin to relax. Pressure of having to be the leader starts to go away. A dog may sleep a lot more than normal.
Day 3. Begin the day the same as day 1 and day 2. However, each member of the family is going to take a turn calling your dog to them. This must be done every hour, for the first 4 hours. Each member should take a turn.
The person should call out to your dog to “come”. If your Chihuahua does indeed come over, they should pat him, say “good dog” and then walk away. It if very important for the person to walk away first and then go back to ignoring the dog.
If you dog does not come when called, everyone must go back to ignoring him immediately. In between the times of calling him over, complete ignoring must be done.
This will be done 4 times for those 4 hours. Then, at random times throughout day 4, all of you should choose a random time to call out to your Chihuahua. If he comes over, that person should then spend 4 to 5 minutes paying attention to the dog. This can be done by giving pats, talking to him, giving treats, etc.
Then, after the 4 or 5 minutes, that person must turn their back and walk away. This sends an unbelievably strong message to the dog and sets in place that the dog is not the “alpha dog”.
Day 4: Day four will set the tone for how the house is ruled and the “pecking order” of the house. This will show your dog how things will happen from this day forward.
Everyone should give attention to the dog… when they wish to. Any attempts of your dog getting attention should be ignored. You can take him for a walk, play with him, and pat him... but only when you initiate it.
For example, when your dog comes over for a pat, ignore him. Later, when you wish to pat him, call him over and pat him.
Day 4 Til Forever! A Chihuahua with a history of biting may need for things to run this way indefinitely. You can still have a loving, fun family pet. Your Chihuahua can be given tons of attention… but only when a human family member initiates it. If not, a dog can quickly go back to testing if he is the “alpha dog”.
If this 4 day Social Isolation training does not work, we would then suggest bringing your dog to a behavioral dog specialist. This is different than a dog trainer. A professional dog behaviorist will be able to determine much deeper what is causing your dog to be aggressive.
If all efforts fail, please do not surrender your Chihuahua to a shelter. Almost all dog shelters euthanize dogs anywhere from 1 to 3 days from when the dog is brought to them. Some still do this by gas and it is quite unethical and ghastly.
If your Chihuahua does not respond to the above training method and then does not respond to a behaviorist and you feel that you cannot handle the dog, it will be best to hand the dog over to a Chihuahua rescue group. Rescue groups will make sure that your Chihuahua is taken care of and lives as long of a life as he is meant to in a safe environment.
A dog will bite and growl when others are in his “area”, such as near his dog bed, eating area or resting area. Because when a dog retreats to his “area”, he will go to rest and try to deal with his pain. Anyone who then comes close will be perceived as a threat, as the dog is silently suffering.
A dog may be in pain because of an abscess tooth, a urinary infection and everything in between. Even if your Chihuahua just had a checkup, something may have developed from that time to now. So, it is absolutely 100% necessary to have your dog’s veterinarian perform a complete check up.
There is training for severe aggression problems that works quite well in these circumstances. However, please do not begin any of this training until you know that your dog is perfectly healthy.
To Begin
If your Chihuahua is completely healthy, the most likely reason that he is acting this way is because of a dog’s natural instinct to be the “alpha dog”. When dogs ran in packs, there always needed to be an “alpha dog”. There had to be 1 dog that was in charge. This is the nature of things.
Pet dogs also need to have an “alpha dog”. They have to know where their place in the home is. They need to know, “Am I the leader?” “Is she the leader?”. Without this being 100% clear to a dog, they may become very confused. As tension mounts and the dog does not know if he is in charge or not…the dog may then begin to test family members to see who backs down, who acts in charge and if anyone is going to challenge him to take his place.
In fact, most dogs who are convinced that they are indeed the “alpha dog” will be normally be very calm. Only when someone comes close to their food or their resting place will they then growl or bite to show that they are “king”.
This can usually be fixed with a type of training called Social Isolation. It only has a chance of working if it is followed exactly.
We suggest holding a family meeting. Explain to everyone in the household that everyone must join together as a team to help show the Chihuahua how to behave. This training must be followed exactly.
Trying to be the “alpha dog” is hard work and puts pressure and stress on a dog! And together, as a family, you are going to spend 4 days helping your dog. These days will be a teamwork effort to change your dog from a confused one to a dog that understands he is the family pet and does not need the pressure of being the “alpha dog”.
For this to work all family members should make every attempt to have 4 days in a row that they can stay home as much as possible. If this training works, your dog will revert back into a loving pet and the 4 days will be worth it all.
Day 1 and 2. Total and complete social isolation. Now, there is a very big difference between social isolation of a dog and physical isolation. Therefore, for this to work, your dog must be let out of the case and be allowed to roam the house as normal.
If the dog has tried to bite people in the home, no one should sit down next to the dog or put out their hand.
The dog must be completely ignored except for placing food on the floor for him and allowing him to go to the bathroom. This mean zero talking to him, never saying his name, and not acknowledging him at all. This also means giving zero attention to negative behavior. If the dog barks, no one must say “no”. The dog must be ignored to such a degree that he is virtually invisible. If you really feel that your dog may bite, you should tie him to a leash inside the home where he cannot reach anyone. But, it is best if he is allowed to walk around and get the very, very clear message that he is ignored.
If your dog nudges against someone for attention, no one should say “no”... they must act as if the dog does not exist and so forth. It is important that your dog sees all members of the family and is in the home among all of you…but being ignored completely.
A good sign that this training is going to work, is if your Chihuahua sleeps a lot more than normal on day 2. When a dog begins to think that perhaps they are not the “alpha dog”, they begin to relax. Pressure of having to be the leader starts to go away. A dog may sleep a lot more than normal.
Day 3. Begin the day the same as day 1 and day 2. However, each member of the family is going to take a turn calling your dog to them. This must be done every hour, for the first 4 hours. Each member should take a turn.
The person should call out to your dog to “come”. If your Chihuahua does indeed come over, they should pat him, say “good dog” and then walk away. It if very important for the person to walk away first and then go back to ignoring the dog.
If you dog does not come when called, everyone must go back to ignoring him immediately. In between the times of calling him over, complete ignoring must be done.
This will be done 4 times for those 4 hours. Then, at random times throughout day 4, all of you should choose a random time to call out to your Chihuahua. If he comes over, that person should then spend 4 to 5 minutes paying attention to the dog. This can be done by giving pats, talking to him, giving treats, etc.
Then, after the 4 or 5 minutes, that person must turn their back and walk away. This sends an unbelievably strong message to the dog and sets in place that the dog is not the “alpha dog”.
Day 4: Day four will set the tone for how the house is ruled and the “pecking order” of the house. This will show your dog how things will happen from this day forward.
Everyone should give attention to the dog… when they wish to. Any attempts of your dog getting attention should be ignored. You can take him for a walk, play with him, and pat him... but only when you initiate it.
For example, when your dog comes over for a pat, ignore him. Later, when you wish to pat him, call him over and pat him.
Day 4 Til Forever! A Chihuahua with a history of biting may need for things to run this way indefinitely. You can still have a loving, fun family pet. Your Chihuahua can be given tons of attention… but only when a human family member initiates it. If not, a dog can quickly go back to testing if he is the “alpha dog”.
If this 4 day Social Isolation training does not work, we would then suggest bringing your dog to a behavioral dog specialist. This is different than a dog trainer. A professional dog behaviorist will be able to determine much deeper what is causing your dog to be aggressive.
If all efforts fail, please do not surrender your Chihuahua to a shelter. Almost all dog shelters euthanize dogs anywhere from 1 to 3 days from when the dog is brought to them. Some still do this by gas and it is quite unethical and ghastly.
If your Chihuahua does not respond to the above training method and then does not respond to a behaviorist and you feel that you cannot handle the dog, it will be best to hand the dog over to a Chihuahua rescue group. Rescue groups will make sure that your Chihuahua is taken care of and lives as long of a life as he is meant to in a safe environment.
