My Chihuahua is Aggressive! {Expert Advice from 2 Pros}

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Do you share your heart and home with a Chihuahua? This pint-size pooch is the love of many but several of our readers have written to us with a frantic plea: my Chihuahua is aggressive! We’ve turned to both a professional dog trainer and an animal behaviorist for help!

My New Chihuahua is Snapping at My Family

It takes time for new dogs to feel at home–but reader Ayanna is having immediate problems with a new Chihuahua. Dog trainer Alecia Evans, the former host of the award-winning GrassRoots Aspen TV Series, has advice!

Dear Alecia,

I just brought home a 5-month-old Chihuahua on Thursday and he was fine at first but now he is snapping and growling at my husband and two kids, ages 4 and 11. How do I get him to stop? Do you think he is still getting used to them? He does not do that to me at all. – Ayanna

Hi Ayanna,

What a great name!  My sweet beloved Arctic mix shares your beautiful name. I found out it means: Eternally blossoming flower.

Congratulations on your newest family member.

From his age, I am assuming he has not had too much trauma in his life. So we will proceed from there to give you a couple of ideas.

Several things could be going on here.

1. He could have been excited at first thinking it was a fun day trip now he is realizing he is not
   going to be with his doggie family.
2. Did anything happen that would make him feel insecure or uncertain of himself?
3. If you had to guess does his aggression seem like its anger or fear?

Chihuahuas are little dogs with big personalities.  Often times you will see them acting out looking aggressive but they are actually fearful and they tend to prefer one person in the family over others in the beginning- usually the person feeding them and they see them as theirs and try to protect them. 

Many times when people get Chihuahua dogs because they are so little people think they don’t need training. 

Every dog on the planet, no matter what size, knows a proper and clear  chain of command is essential for a harmonious pack that functions together. This happens with clear, consistent boundaries, that the puppy understands and accepts your “yes’s” and your “no’s”.

Most often a little dog may feel overwhelmed if there is a lot of activity going on and needs a safe place, sometimes in your arms where he can feel snug and secure. 

He may feel overwhelmed at how much bigger your husband seems to him or how high energy your kids may be so barking at them and trying to nip is his strategy for keeping them away.

If he attempts that what I would do is hold your puppy in your arms in a bit of a snug hug, which does not allow the puppy to squirm, when the puppy learns he cannot squirm he relaxes. 

When he relaxes he is present and calm and from here it would be wonderful to do 3-5 minute intervals of training where you can now help him focus his mind on you while building his confidence that he can handle anything, still listen to what you need him to and you will take care of him.

By refocusing his attention, this also shows him that what he is perceiving as a threat is not and he can better handle himself within the situation.

I suggest you start with these basic training intervals by teaching him sit, stay, come and leave it (one lesson at a time during the 3-5 minute sessions). 

I would rather you break them down into different times during the day and stay consistent with that, this way you are maintaining consistency and clarity with your pup all day long thus making training a natural part of your lives and way you are together.  And as you do these sessions, invite your husband or your children in to work with the puppy along with you.  If the puppy gets barky, simply pick him up, and start him over again.  It’s ok to go slow and less is always more.

There are many great basic training videos out there.  If you would like, I will be happy to send you the Walk In Sync™ 7 Basics Commands for you to work with.  I would begin here with these basic steps to get your little guy back on track.

You are lucky in that he is only 5 months old so you don’t have a lot of baggage to undo just some boundaries to set with him.  Remember to keep all your sessions light, fun and praise him for the good job and effort he is putting in.  I would also consider putting him in a front clip harness that assists in his walking with you not leading the walk.  I love my Walk In Sync™ System to assist aggression and fear issues as it works so fast. 

Wishing you major success!  Let me know how it goes.

Paws Up!

Alecia Evans

My Chihuahua is Aggressive to Bigger Dogs!

Our next reader question involves a Chihuahua who is ready to pick a fight with larger dogs. We’ve turned to Dr. Diane Pomerance, an animal behavior specialist and an expert on topics such as deciding which puppy is best for your family, how to pick out a rescue and on healing from the loss of a pet, for her advice.

Dear Dr. Diane, I have a behavior question about my 2-year-old Chihuahua. He is a great dog but one of his drawbacks is that he nips and is aggressive towards bigger dogs.

He is only 6 pounds, and he enjoys playing with dogs around his size or dogs that are puppies because they play but with bigger dogs he tends to bark frantically.

When I bring him up to greet them, he wags his tail but nips at their faces. It is very embarrassing especially when people pull back their dog and walk away.

I understand that he is smaller so he feels the need to show the other dog who is boss but I would really like some advice on how to help him accept other dogs without being aggressive.

I am just starting clicker training to teach him how to come so if it would help to incorporate the clicker I am open to any suggestions! I also spray him with water and he doesn’t like that but when I do it he will stop the behavior but it doesn’t seem to make the behavior go away in the long run.

It is very common for certain breeds of dogs to respond in precisely the way your Chihuahua does. I would simply keep him away from larger dogs or utilize a gentle leader when taking him out for walks. It is nature to behave this way. However, you can make an effort to reward/praise him if and when he responds favorably to a big dog.

If you haven’t already done so, take your dog to obedience training classes and consult with a dog behaviorist to determine if his behavior can be changed. Your instructor may be clicker trained and may be able to help you use this method to help you alter your dog’s behavior.

Good luck!!!

My Chihuahua Snaps at Me!

Does your Chihuahua snap at you? If so, you share the same problem as reader Jackie. Alecia Evans provides her advice:

Dear Alecia, My Chihuahua older Chihuahua has started snapping at me. What is going on? Jackie

Dear Jackie,

I am going to make a recommendation outside of training based on your dogs and the issues you are having.

Chihuahuas tend to have Napoleon complexes, not necessarily because they are mean but because they are small and often scared so they figure the best defense is a good offense.

So before working with training your dogs I would recommend they have some body work.

Massage, Chiropractic or even Reiki will allow you to see if they have any pain or fear anywhere and will provide them with the safety of their bodies being touched so that they can release their past issues and relax a little more so they can then focus on training.

Take heart, these issues can be changed it will just take a little different of an approach.

You can look on the AHVMA.org site to see if there is a holistic veterinarian in your neighborhood and ask them for recommendations.

Paws Up!

My Chihuahua Bites Me!

Our last reader question comes from Veronica whose Chihuahua isn’t just snapping–but has actually bitten her. Alecia Evens provides some recommendations:

Dear Alecia,

Hello, I have a 3-1/2- year-old female Chihuahua. For the most part she’s very sweet and well adjusted. Every so often though, she shows a little bit of that “Chihuahua attitude”. Usually it’s just a growl, but occasionally she’ll snap at me and she’s even bitten me a couple of times. It wasn’t enough to break the skin, but she definitely meant business. She’s done this since she was about a year old, and only when I do something to obviously annoy her, like take something from her she shouldn’t have, or pet or pick her up if she’s really tired. So I don’t think it could be a symptom of some kind of medical issue. It only happens a couple of times a month, but it’s still a couple of times too many. I’ve always practiced positive reinforcement with every other aspect of her training, but I’m at a loss on how to go about it with this issue. I usually just say “no” in a stern voice, but that hasn’t helped. Is this just something that goes with the territory of owning a Chihuahua, or can it hopefully be corrected? I also have a four-month old Chihuahua and so far she’s sweet as can be. Do you have an tips for making sure she stays that way? 🙂 Thank you so much for your time. I’ve had her since she was 11 weeks old, so I don’t think it’s a result of past abuse or neglect. There are no children in the house and Juju and Elly are the only two pets. –Veronica

Dear Veronica,

Ay Chihuahua! Little dog with a big attitude. When a little dog exhibits aggressive behavior it is generally from one of three things: fear, dominance or insecurity. Biting is never acceptable unless being attacked and the dog needs to defend itself.

While I am a Positive Reinforcement trainer sometimes we have to up the volume because our dogs are just not getting it.

This is a little tricky because I will ask you to do something only if you feel comfortable doing it that is a skilled trainer move but I sense you have the quickness and fin

ess to handle it. When she gets aggressive, you are going to immediately get her by her neck scruff in one fell swoop keeping her front feet off the ground. Remember you are not choking her with her collar you are getting her by her scruff just like her mom would.

She may try to turn and bite and she probably will scream a little and make a fuss so make sure you have a good hold and are prepared to not let her go until she moves herself through it without letting her slip out.

Protect yourself but allow her to move through her emotional drama until she gets it out and gives a big sigh. Once she gives you the sigh, put her down and walk away.

When she comes up to you pat her and walk away and let her come to you again at which time you can give her a treat. If she does it again, repeat the above process. You may need to do this 3-4 times until she knows you will no longer accept that behavior but you will see a huge shift in her level of respect for you.

Only do this if you feel confident you can keep you safe, you can do so with clarity and confidence and be firm but not angry. Also consider using the Walk In Sync™ System to walk her it will give her more confidence while lessening her need to dominate.

Paws Up!

Alecia

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