Do Chiweenies Bark a Lot?

Chiweenies are little dogs that have interesting characteristics that make them endearing as home pets. However, their barking tendencies have been talked about a lot.

Because Chiweenies have a mix of the energy of dachshunds, also known as sausage dogs and the curiosity of Chihuahuas, they usually bark a lot and are very expressive. They love to go everywhere with their owners. When inactive, they try to exert their energies by barking. 

What are Chiweenies like and their characteristics? 

The Chiweenie is what is known as a designer breed. It is the result that is obtained by crossing two dogs of different pure breeds with the intention of creating a dog that contains the best of each of the original breeds.   

In this case, the Chiweenie is the product of the cross between a chihuahua and a dachshund. This crossbreeding was made for the first time in the late 1990s with the intention of correcting the spinal problems suffered by dachshunds. 

They have elongated, pointed ears like Chihuahuas, and elongated bodies with short legs like Dachshunds. Their small size makes them quite comfortable for their owners to transport them.   

In adulthood, they weigh between 2 and 4.5 kg and can measure around 20 cm high. Their life expectancy is around 15 years. 

There are two types of Chiweenies, the short-haired ones and the long-haired ones. Short hair is the most common and is ideal for people who suffer from allergies. Neither type requires a lot of coat care and both need protection if they live in cold climates. 

The Chiweenie has several hereditary health problems such as low blood sugar or hypoglycemia, which can lead to more serious problems. 

They are ideal for small families or people who live alone since they usually develop very strong ties with only one or two people. Also, they are not the best choice when you have young children. 

These types of dogs are fairly easy to train, which can help control their tendency to bark. But it is necessary to start training them as soon as possible. 

Getting your Chiweenie to stop barking 

Getting your Chiweenie to stop barking is not going to be an easy task. But here we are going to explain the main causes of why they bark so much and what you can do to reduce or even eliminate it from their daily behavior.   

The barking of the Chiweenie can be funny at first. But when time passes and it becomes excessive, it is annoying and irritable. The barking is high-pitched and probably repetitive during all stages of the day. 

Before you despair, we are going to carefully analyze the reasons and how to get your Chiweenie to stop barking. 

Why Chiweenie bark a lot and how to stop this 

Before taking any action that could be harmful to him, or make the situation worse, let’s find out why it barks incessantly.  

They bark as a result of their natural and breed characteristics 

First, as earlier mentioned, Chiweenies are a crossing of two breeds that are known to bark excessively. So, a crossbreed of the two breeds is expected to produce chronic barkers.  

Chiweenies are mini, agile dogs that need a lot of activity. If they do not get some activities, they could fall into continuous boredom and bark for no reason during the day.  

Bear in mind that for your Chiweenie to stop barking, punish it and at the same time reward it when it stops, but always with the guidelines that we explain below. 

The barking out of boredom 

Your Chiweenie is likely to bark out of boredom, whether alone or not. As we have already mentioned, these mini dogs are very active and need a lot of daily activity. That means that they usually need long walks.  

For your Chiweenie to stop barking when it is alone or when it is bored, it is necessary to satisfy its needs by giving it some games or activities to do most of the time.   

You can give it a puzzle to solve or make it play the food game where you have to hide its foods and let it look for them. If you don’t have such entertainment, it may bark out of boredom. 

The Little Dog Syndrome 

The smaller the dog breed is, the yappier it is! Small breeds have one small downside, and it’s their physical appearance.   

Small dogs feel vulnerable and small in front of larger dogs. The same thing happens to humans when we are in front of a person of 2 meters with big and impressive arms. 

So it is very common that when a small dog approaches a large one, it barks in an uncontrolled way and you may not stop it. Getting a small dog to stop barking in front of a large one is not a one-day task.  

The best way is to treat it like a puppy and let it get close, smell it, explore, and know that the big dog is not going to do anything to it. The Chiweenie will know that nothing is wrong with getting close to a larger one and that there is no danger for it and its owner. Therefore, it will gain more confidence.  

Otherwise, when you separate the dog or pull the leash so that the bigger dog does not approach it, this creates fear in the dog and it will try to defend itself by barking. 

When and how to scold the dog 

Knowing when and how to scold your dog will be the basic piece for your Chiweenie to stop barking. If your goal is to get it to stop barking, scold the dog when it does this. However, at the same time, reward it when it stops barking.  

Sometimes, it is not good to scold if the dog gets confused and does not know exactly what is happening. Whenever it barks, you should scold it. 

The ways to punish your dog may be different. The most common is by loudly raising your voice with the command word (we will talk about these words later). If you are at home, you can lock it in a darkened room when it starts barking. And then reward the dog when it stops barking. 

Another way is with a punishment collar. Although we don’t recommend this (since these collars are used for training), the collar can be a specific and effective measure at some point in its training.  

You must take into account that if you punish the dog in an aggressive or injurious way, you can achieve the opposite effect to the intended. You can even incur a criminal offense of mistreatment of animals. 

What words to use to stop your Chiweenie from barking 

Like most dog breeds, you can use the word of negation, “No!” to warn the dog that its action is improper. This is a command word that we could perfectly use to tell the dog to stop barking.  

But the problem is that when we use this word for everything, the dog may not distinguish between the No! of “don’t eat” and the No! of “don’t bark.”  

We cannot use a word for everything, since dogs understand far fewer words than we do.   

To stop your Chiweenie from barking, use another more specific and concrete command word. With these words, the Chiweenie will understand exactly what it is and associate that word with barking. 

For example, you can use the word “shut up”, “silence”, or “stop.” This is the way that we can get the dog to associate the word command with what it is doing, knowing that by refusing to stop, it will receive a punishment. 

Pampering and kisses 

Aside from its masters, the Chiweenie is one of the most important creatures in the house, if not the most. So pampering the dog, hugging, kissing, and playing with it is what will hold it back the longest.  

However, to stop the dog from the act of barking, you are likely to overprotect it by overindulging in caressing and pampering the dog. You will have to find a balance between that by using the anti-bark commands when the dog starts again. 

Letting your dog sleep on the bed or get on the couch are actions that make it more territorial. Avoid that, or choose when you want it to go up there. 

Letting the dog climb on your laps, sleep in the same bed with you, sit next to you while you eat, or when you hold it in your arms when he barks; are actions that we must avoid. This increases the dog’s control of territory and will invade yours little by little. You must choose when you want the dog to go up, not when he wants. 

Conclusion 

Do Chiweenies bark a lot? Yes, they do. This is mainly because of the characteristics of their parents (the chihuahua and the sausage dogs are prone to barking). Also, Chiweenies are energetic dogs that, when bored or inactive, exert themselves by barking.