Did You Know That Chihuahuas Need Special Care to Remain Healthy?
If you have a chihuahua and it's the first time you've ever had one of these little guys as your pet and friend, there are a few things that you need to know about them in order for them to live a long, happy and healthy life.
One of the first things that you should do of course is make sure that your chihuahua has all his shots and any boosters that are needed and make sure that you ask your vet about control of fleas and worming treatments.
When you are looking for food for your chihuahua make sure to check the label of the bag or can and check to see if the very first ingredient listed is meat. The food should contain no less than 30% protein, no less than 20% fat and the fiber should be 4% or less. You should feed your little buddy three times a day in small portions. They prefer to eat this way, they really don't like a large amount of food just once a day.
You should make sure that your little guy is given a bath at least once a month and make sure that when you are giving him a bath that you try avoid getting water in their ears. They can easily get ear infections and you don't want to have to have him dealing with that.
Even though your companion is a small breed he still needs to be exercised like any other dog and it should be on a daily basis. They tend to have little, quick spurts of energy so you probably won't have to go on really long walks like you might have to do with some other dog breeds. Sometimes just romping around enough in your home or apartment could be enough. So if you don't take daily walks at least make sure to play with them for a short while in the house.
Collars really aren't all that good for the small necks of chihuahuas so it's always advisable that you get one of those little harness types for taking them on walks with. This will help prevent any damage to their trachea which can happen when they are using a regular collar.
It's important that when you train your little guy that you are gentle at all times and make sure that you get them use to kids and other dogs at a very young age, they tend to be fierce one family dogs and you want to make sure that they are taught to welcome others whom they don't believe is part of the family.
You little companion is one of the dog breeds that thrives best when they get a lot of attention and love from the human member of their family so it's really important that you pet them often and a lot.
They are also very sensitive to the weather, such as hot weather, which they love immensely and will want to be in it always, but they are extremely susceptible to heatstroke, so make sure they don't overdo their love for the rays of the sun.
On the other end of the weather scale, your chihuahua is very sensitive when it comes to cold weather and it is important that when you have him outdoors in weather with temperatures below 40 degrees that you have a sweater on him and you should probably never let them walk in temperatures below 35 to 32 degrees.
Things to be aware of with a chihuahua is that they will tend to have weaker knees than most dogs, they get colds really easy and tend to contract glaucoma easier than other dog breeds. Also, prepare to spend a lot of years with this little dog, their average lifespan is 18 years.
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