Sometimes the small dogs are seen like toys - they wear their own accessories and are put in the handbag. But that's not doing Chihuahuas any favors, say experts.
Dortmund (dpa / tmn) - Bikinis, coats and shoes: If you want to dress your Chihuahua, you will find a large selection of clothes in mini dog size on the Internet.
The Chihuahua is considered to be the smallest breed of dog in the world. Big eyes look out of his round head, which together with his petite build make him look cute. But that is sometimes also its major disadvantage: "A Chihuahua wants to be taken seriously - just like any other dog," says Udo Kopernik from the Association for the German Dog Industry (VDH) in Dortmund.
You are doing a Chihuahua a disservice by dressing him up with clothes, says the expert. However, there is an exception for clothing in winter: there are Chihuahuas as short and long-haired dogs. "If it is a short-haired dog, a winter coat can be useful," says Kopernik. Above all, however, you should pay attention to functionality and buy it from specialist retailers, he advises: A Chihuahua doesn't need glitter stones.
Kopernik says that a Chihuahua may be a small dog, but it has a great personality: "A Chihuahua does not differentiate between itself and a Great Dane - it regards itself as equals." This is what Klaus Mergel from the Association of German Small Dog Breeders (VK), in which he is the breed supervisor for Chihuahuas, says: "The Chihuahua is not a fearful dog." He is more like a goblin who likes to be on the go and wants to be there everywhere. However, Mergel also points out that Chihuahuas are often person-related: "If you keep a Chihuahua together with your partner, he usually chooses one of the two people as his caregiver."
Overall, Chihuahuas are easy-care dogs, says Mergel. But it is important to train them just like big dogs. "Consistency is very important," says the expert who breeds Chihuahuas himself. Otherwise the dogs would have found out very quickly where they could assert themselves with the owner and make their own rules.
Mergel considers attending a dog school to be of limited use. Often they also offer puppy lessons. "But there are often large dogs there too." The risk of injury to a small Chihuahua is relatively high. Anyone who has experience with dogs can raise their Chihuahua on their own without any problems.
Ariane Ullrich from the Professional Association of Dog Educators and Behavioral Consultants (BHV) also advises caution when attending a dog school with Chihuahuas. "If there is no group of small dogs, individual training is sometimes more useful," she says. Not to train a dog means to simply "put it away" in situations in which its behavior is not desired, because it is so handy. "That is the dilemma of some small dogs because they are not taken seriously."
According to Ariane Ullrich, dogs that are treated in this way sometimes develop massive behavioral problems. "You shouldn't forget that Chihuahuas can also bite and that it can be very painful," says Ullrich. Especially when dealing with small children, owners should therefore be very careful with an uneducated Chihuahua.
Because of their petite build, Chihuahuas are prone to certain diseases, says Ullrich. This is especially true when certain minimum standards are not met in breeding. "It sometimes falls under the concept of torture breeding when dogs weighing less than 500 grams are bred in individual breeding lines."
Eye diseases are a problem with very small dogs. "The round head also causes breathing problems," explains the expert. The pointed muzzle causes problems with the teeth. "The smaller the dog, the more susceptible it is to diseases." Otherwise rather harmless diarrhea could damage the small body.
In general, when it comes to illnesses, Chihuahuas have to dose medication very precisely due to their low weight. "Otherwise poisoning is possible quickly," says Ullrich. Basically, however, Chihuahuas are very lively, funny dogs who make the same demands on their owners as all other breeds: "Attention, activity and a relationship with someone."