Chihuahua Puppy Coming Home In 2 Weeks, looking for Small Dog Supplies On The Cheap

[Dakota9]

My son's new dog (well, kinda like a dog) is coming home in two weeks. We went to pick it out today from the litter. He got a nice brown male like he'd hoped.
Anyway, I'm on a budget and looking for anything as dirt cheap as I can get it.

It is essential I find a small crate. I don't know how you guys feel about crate training, but I'm sold on it, atleast until the lil guy get old enough to not chew and be a little less curious.

A small dog bed

Any small toys

Small dog bowls

small collar

Not really concerned too much with the visual condition of these items, as long as they have some usfull life left to them. The cheaper the better!!!!


LMK

Thank you

[MvM]

Originally Posted by Dakota9

My son's new dog (well, kinda like a dog) is coming home in two weeks. We went to pick it out today from the litter. He got a nice brown male like he'd hoped.
Anyway, I'm on a budget and looking for anything as dirt cheap as I can get it.

It is essential I find a small crate. I don't know how you guys feel about crate training, but I'm sold on it, atleast until the lil guy get old enough to not chew and be a little less curious.

A small dog bed

Any small toys

Small dog bowls

small collar

Not really concerned too much with the visual condition of these items, as long as they have some usfull life left to them. The cheaper the better!!!!


LMK

Thank you

I have a small crate for you. $10. You can get the black eggcrate then too. Shoot me a PM.

[Linda Lee]

Originally Posted by Dakota9

It is essential I find a small crate. I don't know how you guys feel about crate training, but I'm sold on it, atleast until the lil guy get old enough to not chew and be a little less curious.

It's a chihuahua. You can probably just use a Tupperware container.

[Dakota9]

Well, I still have some hamster stuff layin around, thought about just using that for the time being........ Or maybe an empty 20 gallon long, LOL


LOL, I'll get him one of those habi-trail balls to cruise around in, that'll keep'em outta trouble

[Linda Lee]

I get dog supplies at Pet Mountain. You can find some pretty good sale items there.

[twocute2b4u]

Dakota, read your PM.

[MrsMojo]

Crate training is an awesome idea!! I recommend all my puppy clients crate train. It helps the pup tp learn what you want, cuts down on mess, saves furniture/house/etc from damage, and keeps the puppy safe. I once lost a patient because it was loose and chewed on an electrical cord - if it had been in the crate while the owners were at work it would not have died. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with the pup! And the potty training!

[Linda Lee]

Originally Posted by MrsMojo

Crate training is an awesome idea!! I recommend all my puppy clients crate train. It helps the pup tp learn what you want, cuts down on mess, saves furniture/house/etc from damage, and keeps the puppy safe. I once lost a patient because it was loose and chewed on an electrical cord - if it had been in the crate while the owners were at work it would not have died. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with the pup! And the potty training!

could not agree more

crating an animal is not at all cruel confinement as some may think

our dogs love their crates -- it's their happy place

[NotiReef]

I am sold on crate training....it seems to calm a lot of dogs down as well.
Dakota also check out IKEA in Atlanta. They have some of the best stuff for CHEAP!! Dog bowls for less than a $1. Beds, toys, etc. are pretty cheap as well.

[Dakota9]

Originally Posted by MrsMojo

Crate training is an awesome idea!! I recommend all my puppy clients crate train. It helps the pup tp learn what you want, cuts down on mess, saves furniture/house/etc from damage, and keeps the puppy safe. I once lost a patient because it was loose and chewed on an electrical cord - if it had been in the crate while the owners were at work it would not have died. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with the pup! And the potty training!

I've heard, but not read, that Chihuahuas were hard to potty train. I once had a Jack Russell that was the most stubborn dog on earth. I'm hoping it isn't that bad all over again.

[seamonkeychar]

Chihuahuas can be stubborn, and they are waaaaay too smart for their own good, but they make great companions. I'm sure your son will love him! I have two at home, they're ten years old, so I'm sure I have tons of extra chihuahua sized stuff laying around. I'll check and see, and shoot you a PM if I find anything.

[Dakota9]

Originally Posted by seamonkeychar

Chihuahuas can be stubborn, and they are waaaaay too smart for their own good, but they make great companions. I'm sure your son will love him! I have two at home, they're ten years old, so I'm sure I have tons of extra chihuahua sized stuff laying around. I'll check and see, and shoot you a PM if I find anything.

Great!!!!!!!

Let me ask you, as an experienced owner of the breed. Is it true that they tend to get cold very easily? I realize that just being small and lean that generating body heat could be an issue, but some people have told me that this breed can become hypothermic in what we'd consider moderate temps.. I was somewhat concerned about this because I'm a miser with the theromostat in the winter time, and the hardwood floors dont help.

Thanks for shedding any light possible..

Dakota

[Acroholic]

We are on Shelties 3 and 4 right now, and all our dogs have been crate trained. Nothing better, IMO.
Dave

[seamonkeychar]

They do get cold, mostly due to their small size, but they won't be absolutely freezing at room temperature. As a puppy, you'll need to watch him to make sure the temperature (either heat or cold) isn't too much for him. You might also want to make sure you feed multiple small meals a day, because as puppies, Chihuahuas are too small to regulate their blood sugar levels properly. My two chihuahuas are fine as far as temperature goes though. And if they aren't they will just find a warm lap to climb into.

[Dakota9]

Hm, I didn't think about the heat as well as te cold....... I'll consider this. Thanks!

Any other tips foe a newbie of the breed?

I'm all ears!

[MrsMojo]

My clients do tell me that Chihuahuas are hard to potty train - but all small dogs seem to be harder than the big dogs. I completely agree with multiple small meals a day. I have seen several small chihuahuas come in in emergency situations because their blood sugar has dropped to low. I recommend keeping a tube of Nutrical (a sugary calorie supplement that you can get from the vet/breeder) and using it a couple times daily to prevent a problem. Make sure that the pups vaccines stay up to date - for some reason this breed is prone to parvo - so I usually recommend no contact with dogs that you dont know until they finish their vaccines. NO trips to Petsmart or dog park or other places where lots of dogs that you dont know would congregate until vaccines are done - they are breeding grounds for diseases like parvo. YOu can always PM me if you have questions or need advice.

[seamonkeychar]

Nutrical is a good idea, I've used it before for a Chihuahua puppy that I fostered (he was 6 months old and weighed 1 pound, he needed the help!). Heat is something you need to watch, these puppies are so small that they really can't regulate their own temperatures.

As far as anything else on tips, it's mostly just common sense. Crate training is a GREAT idea, it will keep him out of trouble and give him a safe place to go if he gets overwhelmed (being so small, it's easy for lots of visitors at once or other situations to just be too much). As far as potty training, the worst part for me has always been the fact that such small animals can't go up and down stairs easily. If you have stairs to the outside, you'll have to carry him up and down whenever you take him out, at least until he gets big enough to do it on his own. I've found that this means that you have to be very vigilant, since he'll be relying on you to go out. That is the hardest part. Chihuahuas are very intelligent, so he should learn quickly (if he's not being stubborn). Good luck!

[Dakota9]

Thank you guys for all this great advice, I anticipated issues arising from this breed's small size. Some of these things I have never thought about

[cfrank84]

ive had a few chihuahuas and mine have always had constant access to food ie i leave the dish out all the time.. they pick at it when they want food and scratch the door when time to go out most of the time.. but a "pee-pee" pad is left out just in case :-p i have also found they dont do the shakey shake thing most chihuahuas do and i attribute it to the having food when hungry as opposed to getting fed at certain times... just my 2 cents! and congrats on the new addition to the family

[cfrank84]

oh and i forgot to add mine loves to wear clothes.. my grandma got the clothing trend going and after wrestling and getting nipped when i took away her first sweater she is rarely not clothed unless she undresses herself.. usually when its a lil warm in the apt (going back to that"they are too smart for their own good comment :-p)

she also has her own blanket that she likes to have in a ball and she crawls into the middle and just sticks her head out to keep an eye on things.. ive seen lots of chihuahua's that have the same behavior from my friends dogs