The smallest of the dog breeds, the Chihuahua is a dog that is lively, affectionate, loving, and entertaining. This is a dog that loves to both give and receive attention, he will follow you everywhere around the house and loves nothing more to cuddle up on your lap while you're watching TV. Intelligent and eager to please, the Chihuahua is very responsive and playful. However, it is important to remember that the personality of Chihuahuas can vary, and whereas some may be very confident and friendly others may be reserved and stand offish. The Chihuahua usually gets very attached to his family and he can have a jealous streak if he feels he isn't the centre of attention and another pet or person is getting more attention than him. The Chihuahua gets along well with older, gentle children and will tolerate other pets when properly socialized with them.
Early and continued socialization is important in order to ensure that your Chihuahua has a stable and even temperament, and the genetic temperament of the parents of your Chihuahua will often determine how he is likely to turn out. Many Chihuahuas do have very outgoing personalities, and are very inquisitive and surprisingly bold for their size. Sociability with strangers will again depend upon the personality of the individual dog, but many are reserved and wary around strangers. The Chihuahua does bark to raise the alarm is something is amiss, and this makes him quite an effective watchdog. He has a high learning rate but a stubborn attitude at times, which makes him best suited to those with some experience of dog ownership.
Copyright JennifursChihuahuas 2008
