We Survived the April Blogging Challenge

The A-Z is over and I am happy to say that we survived the month of April and the blogging challenge and

I hope to continue to bring more Tails of the Chiwawa. Happy Cinco de Mayo and many thanks to those who stopped by during the month of April to read the posts here.

Time for some Zzzz's and Some Chihuahua 101

Today is the last day of the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. I would really like to be doing what my Chihuahua will be doing today. Getting some Zzzzz's. Add in the fact that it is still raining here and they are calling for rain all day. Oh yeah I'd love to go back and curl up on the bed with the Chihuahua and just sleep, sleep, sleep. Unfortunately it isn't like that especially if she wants some kibble in her food bowl.
When I said come on Chihuahua lets celebrate the last day of April and the blogging challenge with a selfie I get this look

She is thinking No mas selfies! Yo quiero sleep pleeeze. I know that look all too well when her beauty sleep has been disturbed. So we are going to say thank you for visiting Tails of the Chiwawa during April and leave you with some Chihuahua 101 compliments of Animal Planet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHX2xul3WEk

Yappy Little Breed of Dog

The Chihuahua has earned the title of being a yappy dog because they will bark and everything and anything. I have often joked that is why they have those big ears that stand up. The ears are little radar sonars. I say that lovingly. Elizabeth is probably the first Chihuahua that I have owned that didn't bark at everything. When she does bark it is something worth checking out.

I had one Chi girl who I swear had me convinced that my home was haunted. She would walk around growling not all of the time, but there were occasions. What spooked me was when it was just me and the dog and she would walk into a bedroom growling or the time she ran back the hallway barking and growling like she was chasing something. A friend then told me how dogs can see things we can't so I was about a phone call away from calling in the ghost busters.

Chihuahua An eXcited Breed

There is really no X word that I could find to describe the Chihuahua so today I am pretending with the word X-cite or eXcite. Google spell check hates both of them. It doesn't take much to X-cite the Chihuahua.

I've seen them chase their tails and spin in circles at the sound of the car keys.

When they hear the sound of the dry food going into the dish each morning.

When they know it is snack time. Trust me they know when it is snack time.

We had one that if you said, Where's the cat? She would run to the back of the couch to look out the window.

Squeaky toys. It doesn't matter where she is at in the house. Squeak the toys and she will come running.

Words can x-cite a Chihuahua. I have never figured that one out. Words like corn, where's the cat and the numbers of seven and sixteen can make them do a happy dance.

We had one who got x-cited just to see the vacuum cleaner. It wasn't really the good kind. The minute I rolled it out she would start growling and running around and the minute I turned it on she would chase and bite at it. I often wished I got that excited about vacuum cleaning.

And especially you can X-pect an X-cited Chihuahua when you come home after a long day at work!

What X-cites your pet?

The Chihuahua and Weight

The Chihuahua breed of dog is not  a very active breed of dog. While some dogs like to work and run and play, the Chihuahua would prefer to just lay around and sleep. Weight can be a big issue with this breed of dog because of their inactivity.
The key is to not overfeed them. I do have a self feeder but it isn't filled and is only down from the time I leave to go to work until I get home. My Chihuahua gets a little soft food mixed with hard food at dinner time and she gets a treat before bedtime.

A lot of people tend to over feed them with giving them table food. We feed our girl while we are eating. She is less likely to set up pretty and beg at the table which is why we do that. An overweight Chihuahua can develop problems with their patellas (knees). It also isn't good for their heart to be overweight.

A Chihuahua who has been neutered or spayed or an older Chihuahua tends to just want to lay around. My Chihuahua is spayed and she isn't what I would call old..er (Chihuahuas can live into the teens) she is seven so she is middle years.

She goes on walks with us and when we are outside, she is outside to try to keep her a little active. She weighs six pounds which is the normal weight for a Chihuahua.

Going to the Veterinarian

My Chihuahua's least favorite place to be is at the vets office. I don't blame her. Going to the doctor for me is a little blood pressure rising too. She gets this look like she is thinking, please take the cat next, please take the cat next until it is her turn which she recognizes. The minute I stand with her she knows and tries to climb up to my shoulder. She knows! She hasn't been a sick dog so I know she knows she is at that place that is going to poke her with pins and needles. It shows on her face. I have to carry puppy paste with me just to go to the vet because she stresses out so bad. Stress can cause a Chihuahuas blood sugar to drop which is what the puppy paste is used for.

I have a very submissive Chihuahua who gets nervous in many situations. She has never bitten or snapped even when getting shots. She however gets a look like her feelings just got hurt. The new vet tech there recently came in to give her shots with a muzzle in her hand. I am thankful the vet was still in the room and told her that she wouldn't need the muzzle. I think just putting it on would have stressed my girl out more than getting that little prick from the needle.

All Chihuahuas are different and I had one of those Chihuahuas who had to be muzzled for the veterinarian. That was the three pound Chihuahua that it took six people to give a pill to. I also had one that was allergic to the lepto in the vaccine. Within seconds she developed lumps all over her head, the sides of her mouth and face- a sign of an allergic reaction in a dog. She had to get the vaccine w/o lepto.

Chihuahua health is very important. They can suffer from things like low blood sugar, collapsed trachea to the more major problems of luxating patellas and mitral valve heart problems are just a few of the problems with this breed of dog. Each breed a dog has different health problems associated. Vet care is important not only with the Chihuahua, but with other breeds as well.

U Words Describing My Chihuahua

I figured there would be at least one letter that stumped me and go figure it is the letter U. I did come up with a couple of U words that describes my Chihuahua.

First the letter U can be found in the word, Chihuahua. Chihuahuas are Uber cute, Chihuahuas prefer sleeping under the covers and will often try to get under everything and anything. Be very careful. A Chihuahua jumping up or down off of something high can easily injure their patellas. My Chihuahua behind the baby gate will jump up and down like a little jumping bean when she wants attention. She can set up to beg. She can also stand up and wave both paws and does this when she thinks she isn't getting all of the attention. Owning a Chihuahua is a lot of responsibility. They pretty much want U around them 24/7. If U set they want to be on your lap. They are the most loyal of all breeds of dogs. They may be little but they have a huge heart. If they think their owner is in trouble they will protect. Some are so protective that if setting on their owners lap will not let anyone else touch the one they love. That is probably why they get mistaken for being snippy because they will grown and get snappy. Sorry I know you don't have to tell me, this post is pretty lame.