"Can you handle her?" I asked Mark who does obedience training of the fiercest dog such as the Rottweiler. I wanted Mark to be hands-on and learn how to restrain this dog. It should be nothing difficult when he is 100X bigger. Hands-on experience under my supervision would be easier for him to learn.
"No," Mark had decided firmly. "I don't want to be bitten." Sharp white canine teeth can tear the flesh of one's fingers and Mark was not going to risk it.
What to do?
"Actually, all you need to do is to wrap the Chihuahua's head loosely with a towel," I said. "I can then vaccinate and microchip her from behind the head. Most likely, she will bite the towel or just keep quiet." From September 1, 2007, all new Singapore puppies needed to be microchipped and licensed. The penalty for disobedience to government orders would be a fine of $5,000. It was no small change.
Mark brought in one big thick cotton bath towel and started covering the face. It seemed to be out of proportion in size for such a small breed. I meant a face towel would do.
The Chihuahua turned and twisted as the maid held her and nothing could be done.
"No need to use the towel," the lady suggested. "The Chihuahua will not bite my maid. She bites only men. At home, she would bark at my husband or son when they go home. Then she runs away to hide under the bed before they can touch her. Why?"
That was a surprise to me. "Most likely she had been abused by a man or boy during her fear imprint period and hated all male members of the human race. She was reared by a home-breeder.
"It will not be the home breeder," the lady said.
"Maybe it is a naughty boy trying to pull her tail or cause her pain and fear," i guessed. "Now, all men are enemies."
"How do you solve this problem?" the lady asked.
"Ask Mark," I said as this was an opportunity for Mark to gain a new client.
"No, ask Dr Sing," Mark declined.
I explained, "Maybe Mark does not want to provide free advice. Dog obedience training is his bread and butter and love."
I could not command Mark to dispense any advice if he decided not to. Much depended on his mood too. Here, I was stuck as the lady looked at me for help while Mark talked to the dog.
This was just a vaccination and microchipping session and not dog counselling.
"Talking to the dog in a low friendly voice to gain her trust is one way to stop her biting," I said. "But your husband and son need to spend time like 5 minutes 4x day doing it."
"They are quite busy," the lady shook her head after considering my impractical advice.
"Any ideas?" I asked Mark but he remained silent. The Chihuahua had been biting male family members for the past 3 months if they wanted to pat her head.
"Well," I said. "The positive reinforcement training method is the best way as in all other aspects of training the puppy."
The lady was perplexed as to what was positive training.
I said, "Basically, the dog is rewarded with a food treat, praise or playtime for performing what is required of her."
The lady asked, "You mean my maid gives the dog a food treat for not barking or biting at my husband and son?"
"No, no," I said. "Your husband or son gives the reward."
"How do they do it? The Chihuahua barks at them when they come home and runs away quickly to hide under the bed!"
"What a clever little rascal", I thought. "Now I have a problem."
I said, "In this case, fence up an area behind the main door so that she cannot run away to hide. When your husband or son comes home, she can bark at them. They give a firm command "No barking" but do not touch her. This is repeated for many days. If she stops barking, offer a food treat.
The lady did not comment but it was "easier said than done."
"You know," the lady said, "The Chihuahua will greet my maid in the morning and pees a bit of urine on the floor. She pees a bit whenever my daughter or I pat her too."
"This is a submissive urination behaviour!" I was surprised that this dog could exhibit fear aggression towards the male members and submissive behaviour towards female members of the family. Dual personalities like Dr Hyde become Dr Jekyl.
I said, "This dog will turn on her back and expose her belly for you to stroke," I said.
"Yes," the lady affirmed and laughed. "If we don't stroke her belly, she will use her paws to hook our hand to do it."
"Well," I said. "If you don't stop this behaviour, she will pee lots of urine as she grows bigger. The bigger the dog, the more urine is peed. The apartment will be most smelly."
"What to do?" the lady asked and answered her question at the same time, saying "When I ignore her, she would not pee a bit of urine."
"The best way is by not petting her or touching her when the maid gets up in the morning."
"Bangun...tidak ..." the lady gave her instructions in Malay to the maid. The maid understood that she must not pat the dog in the morning.
It is believed that if you building self confidence in a submissive puppy while she is still impressionable, the urination will stop. Avoid greeting her when coming home or touching her. Avoid loud commands. Take her out to meet people and other environmental situations like noisy roads etc. With a proactive approach while this puppy is young, the submissive urination behaviour may disappear.
As for the biting of the male of the Homo Sapien species, a positive reinforcement training program carried out persistently at 5 minutes 4 times a day for many days, for example, will help.
This Chihuahua is unusual in that she has a "split personality" just like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in the story written by Louis Stevenson. Most submissive urination dogs are females and do not bite people!
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