Chihuahua Puppy Training Tips
So you’ve got an adorable little Chihuahua and now you are looking for Chihuahua puppy training tips to train her to do some cute tricks to entertain your friends and family. Besides, training is a great way to exercise your Chihuahua puppy and get out all that puppy energy.
If you stick to 20 minutes a day of training – even in 5 minute increments throughout the day – you can train your Chihuahua to do all sorts of adorable tricks.
Hop In
One of the fun parts about owning a Chihuahua is that they can fit into most any bag or box. You will want to train your Chihuahua to hop into her dog carrying bag, into your purse, into your beach bag, or even into a box. This is pretty easy to train. Have your bag or box open and toss a treat into it, giving the command “Hop in!” When your Chihuahua hops in to get the treat, praise her: “Good hop in!!”
One warning: Do not – even once! – close a bag or box on your Chihuahua and trap her inside. This will make her anxious about bags and boxes and make it very difficult for you to travel with her in the future.
Hop Out
Obviously after you’ve trained your Chihuahua to hop into things, you’ll also want to train her to hop out of them. This is accomplished in the same way you trained Hop In.
Shake Hands
Get down on level with your Chihuahua and say “Shake Hands” while taking the dogs paw gently in your hand. Praise her for allowing you to lift her paw. Eventually she will make the connection and put her paw in your hand when you give the command.
Wave
This is the next step after Shake Hands. Once your Chihuahua is trained to shake hands, use the command “Shake Hands Wave!” but hold your hand so it’s just a little out of your dog’s reach. Praise her for trying to reach your hand: “Good Shake Hands Wave!” With practice, you will eventually be able to cut the command down to Wave and have your Chihuahua raise her paw in the air.
Bashful
This is another cute trick to train your Chihuahua. Put your dog in a sit position and say “Are you bashful?” and blow air gently at your dog’s face. She will probably bend her head down and use her paw to wipe at her face. Praise this – “Good bashful!!” As you practice, you will be able to give the command without blowing in her face.
Circle Me
Start with your Chihuahua heeling next to you. Show her a treat and say “Circle Me” while using the treat to coax her to make a circle around you as you walk forward. (This will take some practice for you too!) You can train her to circle you in both directions and once she’s good at circling, have her weave between your legs between circles! If you both work on this together, it’ll be a pretty impressive stunt.
Patience Is Key!
As with all dog training, patience is the key to success. Train in small chunks of time and always make training a fun and happy experience for your Chihuahua. In no time, your adorable little dog will know a repertoire of cute tricks!
