Carino and Pepito continue to grow although Pepito at 2.9 pounds is growing at a slower rate than Carino, who weighs 4 pounds. Pepito can be frisky but tends more to live in Carino’s shadow. They love to meet new people and have been the subject of many photos. They are shown here today on my mat and prayer cushion waiting for Yoga students to start filing in to play with them before class starts and they get relegated to their stroller.
Housetraining is an ongoing challenge and is requiring me to rethink my former strategies with big dogs. I do not believe Chihuahuas are untrainable; there are only owners unwilling to put in the time to be consistent and persistent. If an owner is working full time, I can this would be challenging but not impossible. I am fortunate in being able to take them wherever I go, even out of town to teach Yoga classes.
My current plan consists of taking Pepito and Carino outside every two hours or as close to that as I can manage. I have been conflicted about allowing them to free time to run and play in the house. They seem to have so much fun, but the minute I get distracted, one or both invariably pees or poops on the floor somewhere. New plan includes restricting free time to 10 minutes at a time twice a day and staying with them every minute—although that can be difficult with two to watch. Other times are spent in their “house” or their large playpen with their squeaky toys. It sits next to my sewing machine so they can watch me when I am working. The playpen is 2 feet wide x 4 feet long with high cloth and mesh sides, so they have plenty of room for playing, sleeping, eating, and drinking. I am also keeping the bedroom door closed during their free times to prevent their absconding under the bed. They do have a couple of potty patches with plastic grass in the house because I thought perhaps they need to be aware of these in case of inclement weather. I don’t know if this is a good idea or one which confuses them.
So far coming when called is a work in progress. Pepito is the more reluctant of the two, but he loves peanut butter and will often come closer if I have a little dab on my index finger. Carino is more assertive. Both show some rudiments of understanding the “Sit!” command, but we have along way to go. Leash training has not been successful at all, but again it is a work in progress.