Potty Training
 
     Good potty training starts with the breeder. As soon as the puppies are climbing out of the bed to eliminate, they are ready to begin good potty habits. No matter which room in our house is being used as a safe momma and baby place, a potty pad is placed on the floor directly in front of the bed. As the puppies come out to use the pad, I clean up the poo and leave the dime sized urine for 24 hours. Every morning, I dispose of the old pad and replace it with a clean one. Every day, I evaluate the location of highest usage section of the potty pad. When the puppies are eliminating towards the outer edges of the pad, I move the pad about one foot away from the bed. As an average, I move the potty pad about a foot each week. Puppies like to be clean if given the opportunity.
 
     At about five to six weeks, the puppies are fast growing, and wandering boldly. This is when I introduce the exercise pen. This is not only to control where the puppies wander off to or where they can choose to go potty. It is also to ensure the safety of the puppies before they learn the "Golden Chihuahua Rule." What is the Golden Chihuahua Rule, you ask? "Move when it's coming at you." This is quite possibly the most valuable lesson a Chihuahua will ever learn in its life. How you set up the exercise pen is just as important as your puppy learning how to use the items in the pen.
 
     Be sure to set up this way: with the food, water, bed, blankets, chewys, and toys at one end. Then place the potty pad on the other end. I anchor the pads edges under the panel of the exercise pen so mad, dashing puppies are a little less likely to be tempted to chew on loose edges. Always place the potty pad at the end furthest from where you are most likely to reach in to pet or pick up your puppy. You don't want your puppy to jump up and down in the potty place just before you snuggle him close to your face and chest.
 
     This exercise pen is now, "Home Base," and is where the puppies will spend all unsupervised time until they reach about twelve weeks. When the puppies are running free, I put up a baby gate to keep them from being tempted by forbidden potty zones like, dark hallways or unoccupied bedrooms. This helps to keep the puppies within my line of sight at most times. I am right there when they start to get that look that is tell tale of potty time. In a positive, happy voice, I announce, "Potty Time." This focuses their attention on me so I can talk them into following me to an appropriate place to potty. If they try to go where they are, I scoop them up (nicely) and rush them to the potty pad. Regardless of what happens, you must praise your puppy when you get to the potty pad. The potty pad is a happy place. Punishing your puppy at this point will only bring about negative results. Worst of all, he may start hiding his potty, making it even more difficult to train properly. The less stress you have in potty training, the better it is for you and your puppy. Focus on the positive, and be quick to clean up the negative.
 
     When your puppy has had a full course of puppy shots, it is time to start introducing out side elimination. This is also the appropriate age to start crate training. Crate training can be very helpful in determining physical ability verses behavior problems. Instinctively, animals will choose to eliminate somewhere other than their beds. When a puppy is of an age fifteen weeks or older for females, and approximately seventeen weeks or older for males, they should have developed enough muscle to hold it for eight hours or a little longer. If a puppy goes potty in the crate more than a couple of times in a row, this is an indication they are not quite ready for crate training or they need to be let out more often than eight hours until they trust that you will let them out at the appropriate time.
 
     Here is where your own discipline plays a detrimental role. Upon rising, you must first take the puppy potty. Depending on your puppy and your situation or choice of where you want your puppy to potty is whether you take him to a potty pad or directly outside. Some puppies who have been trained to use a potty pad, will need you to place a potty pad in the new outside place for a few days to learn the new habit. Once you say, "Potty on the pad," or "Potty outside," a few times they will understand this new routine and go readily on command.
 
     Praise your puppy every time they do something good. An occasional treat is an appropriate reward for learning new, good behavior. Remember to be sparing with treats... "Not to exceed 10% of the total diet."
 

     Walking on a Leash
 
     Chihuahuas are a very Small Dog Breed. Because of this small size, they are of course, a bit more fragile than most other breeds of dogs. For this reason, and this reason alone, I recommend using a harness to walk your Chihuahua rather than a collar. In the case of eminent danger, you can quickly pull your Chihuahua to the safety of your arms without worrying about possibly hurting their neck.
 
     Not all Chihuahuas immediately take a liking to wearing a constrictive item of any kind. In fact, most do not. Consistent grooming is essential to the acceptance of wearing a harness or if you so choose, dog clothes. This is why I think it is best to introduce these items during a grooming session. Have the harness laying on your lap or table where your Chihuahua can sniff it, getting over any strange ideas about this new object. When your Chihuahua is either very interested or has lost interest if he was scared, touch or pet your Chihuahua with the new harness. Gently rub it around on his body, telling him he is a good boy. Use a soft reassuring voice to help them relax and accept this new item. Place the head opening over his nose and use a petting motion to slide it over his head and ears. Scratch his favorite spot while lifting his leg through the leg opening. Fasten the clasp around his middle and do not let go of your Chihuahua. He may be just fine, or he may start flipping around like a fish out of water. You need to keep him safe and quiet for only a few minutes. Only when he is calm, remove the harness in the same gentle manner used to put it on. Praise your puppy for a job well done. Regardless of how the first session went, you must repeat this training exercise to place emphasis on the fact you will put the harness on, and you will take the harness off. A lot of dog training is built on considerate repetition, praise, and trust.
 
     When your puppy has completely accepted the idea of wearing a harness, it is time to introduce the leash. At first, you should hold your puppy in your lap, applying only gentle resistance to his pulling. Let him put a small amount of tension on the leash line so he can feel the pull. Pet him and assure him this is all ok. When you feel your puppy is happy, relaxed, and can pay attention to you, stand up while holding your puppy. Give him kisses, or what ever he likes best, and place him on the floor. Immediately step forward about four or five steps, saying, "Come on, (your puppy's name)"... "Come on." After the steps, immediately pick up your puppy and give him praise. Your puppy may not really walk but, may be sort of "dragged" along behind you. This is fine and correct as long as you remember to be firm but, very gentle. If you hurt your puppy, he wont be learning to come along on a leash, he will learn that the leash hurts, and he wont like that or learn his lessons properly. The reason you walk out immediately is, you want to show your puppy what the point of the task is without allowing him to fight the lesson. You try to omit the opportunity for bad behavior, only allowing the desired positive result. For the first few lessons, repeat this exercise only a couple of times. You always want to end lessons on a positive.
 
     Eventually, your puppy lessons will become longer and you will find your puppy is happy to walk around on a leash. Try a 50 / 50 split of the time you spend telling your puppy where to go and the time you let your puppy tell you where he wants to go. This keeps your lessons fun and interesting to your puppy and is sure to make him excited when he sees you holding the leash in your hand. To him, this is adventure time.