Is it even possible to housetrain a chihuahua?

pinkspore

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#61
Thanks for the suggestions! He's not actually marking, he squats to pee and empties his bladder. I think I've seen him hike a leg maybe twice in four years. It's not "dirty puppy syndrome" either, he won't go in his crate and avoids beds and toys that have been peed on.

Before I started crating him 24/7 he would occasionally pee on rugs and dog beds, and pooped in the house at least once a week. We have all hard floors, and I removed and tossed all the rugs and beds that had ever been peed on. We've been mostly rugless for a while, but my bigger dog and foster dog really need to have soft beds to lay on. Ru was going into their crates and peeing on their beds.

Constant crating when he can't be sitting on my lap appears to be working. I haven't had the vet check him out yet because the quote for the tests was $500 . Given that he also poops freely in the house, and appears to be able to hold it when other options are removed, it's a bit steep. I could knock about $40 off that price if I managed to collect some chihuahua pee, but it's remarkably difficult to get something under a 6" dog when his unit is basically touching the ground. So far I've only managed to make him leery of cutting boards.

I've sen him wake up from a nap on the couch or a pillow, stretch, and then pee right where he had been sleeping. He will also pee on his stuffed toys and then later be visibly unhappy that said toys have pee on them. While it could be a UTI or bladder stones, I suspect that he's just...not as smart as dogs who know better than to pee on their stuff.
 

pinkspore

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#62
I finally saved enough to have Ru tapped like a keg and...he has a UTI. Possibly crystals. Two weeks of antibiotics and then he goes back for a recheck. The vet reports that it is incredibly difficult to get pee out of a dog this tiny.

Thanks everyone for convincing me to get him checked, maybe someday we will actually achieve chihuahua housetraining.
 

Izzy's Valkyrie

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#63
I finally saved enough to have Ru tapped like a keg and...he has a UTI. Possibly crystals. Two weeks of antibiotics and then he goes back for a recheck. The vet reports that it is incredibly difficult to get pee out of a dog this tiny.

Thanks everyone for convincing me to get him checked, maybe someday we will actually achieve chihuahua housetraining.
Glad you got him checked and now he's on the road to recovery. Tango is house trained and will outright refuse to go in his crate. It's weird that Ru was peeing where he liked to also sleep.

Hopefully it's all uphill from here!
 

k9krazee

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#64
Glad he's on the road to recovery & hopefully more reliable in the house -- I imagine he's been quite uncomfortable for quite some time!
 

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