Saturday, April 12, 2014

Kid's and Chihuahuas

As a general rule, Chihuahuas are not suitable pets for children. Now I am not saying all Chihuahuas I am sure there are some that are kid friendly. The Chi breeders that I've known do not always allow Chihuahuas into homes with children. There is an exception unless there has been a Chihuahua in the home.

One reason is that Chihuahuas are so little that they can be injured really easy especially by children who may be rough housing or wrestling around and by accident, a Chihuahua can be seriously injured. I know of someone whose child accidentally knocked their Chihuahua off a chair. The Chihuahuas broken leg couldn't be fixed and had to be amputated or put to sleep.

Chihuahuas will nap just about anywhere and especially under things. They are burrowers by nature. I had one who tried to get under a wash cloth that dropped on the floor to take a nap. Be very careful where you sit. While helping with some rescue I remember someone whose Chi died in a recliner accident.
A drop to the floor is potentially deadly or can result in a bad injury. The Chihuahua when born has what is called a molera. The molera is just like a human baby's soft spot. As the Chihuahua matures with age just like a human their molera closes but on occasion this doesn't happen. A Chihuahua with a soft spot can be deadly especially if dropped and it falls on its head.

Crowded rooms and rambunctious children can make a Chihuahua nervous. On that thought it is a good idea to never try to corner a Chihuahua or chase one. This can insight them which is probably why the Chihuahuas out in Arizona are now known as terrorizing neighborhoods. If you wouldn't chase a pitbull or corner one then I don't recommend trying this with a Chihuahua either. Now a Chihuahua is about a hundred pounds lighter and don't have jaws that lock on but a they can do and have bitten in these types of situations.
I had Chihuahuas growing up and that is how I got a lot of bites by ours- chasing or trying to corner them.

In a good household with well behaved children yes- children can be taught to not manhandle a small Chihuahua which could lead to injury. If you have children and a Chihuahua it is a good idea to supervise when they are together. Now we have had a Chihuahua in our home since the 90's. My kids were old enough that we didn't have problems. Now we have grand kiddies and when the grand kids are visiting we crate our Chihuahua just as a precaution. She doesn't really care for kids and has never bitten them, but she tends to hide from them which causes them to want to play hide and seek with her. So she is crated.

This isn't about Chihuahuas and kids, but an owner should never leave a Chihuahua or any toy breed dog outside by itself. Many Chihuahuas have became tasty meals for birds of prey- owls, hawks etc...

Today is also National Pet Day not the day for the letter N or P but worth mentioning today. No matter what kind of pet you own treat your dog to a special treat today. Elizabeth is getting Frosty Paws. Lets not forget the millions of pets that die each year in humane shelters or those setting in shelters as we read this just waiting for someone to adopt and love them who won't get special attention or special treats today.


3 comments:

Sylvia Ney said...

Good post! New follower here. I'm stopping by from the "A to Z" and I look forward to visiting again.

Sylvia
http://www.writinginwonderland.blogspot.com/

Crystal Collier said...

I heard about that, national pet day. My hubby mentioned it. It seems like there's a national something-or-other pretty much every day of the year now. I can't remember if I'm supposed to be patting a best friend on the shoulder or talking like a pirate anymore. ;)

Unknown said...

This is all relevant information, not only to Chihuahuas but also puppies of larger breeds.

Dina Mom