9 Month Old Chihuahua Brothers

Question
I have read through your previous answers and they were great.  I still need your assistance though.  We have two 9 month old Chihuahua brothers.  Due to several reasons, we decided to puppy pad train them.  They do urinate and poop on the pad at times.  They are gated in the kitchen when we are not home.  We come home to find the puppy pad shredded (even though we purchased a pad holder to prevent shredding) and they have messed all over the kitchen.  They also eat their poop and smear it all over while doing so.  (Our vet recommended adding meat tenderizer to their food to help prevent them from doing this..didn't help.)  They will even do this if we are in a different room while home.  The first problem we have is trying to determine which dog is doing what.
We have started keeping them in the kitchen except for when they sleep in the crate at night.  As soon as we let them "free" in the house, they instantly urinate on the first thing they see.  (I will try keeping them on a leash as you suggested, but they will still do this as you are standing there with them.)  I would love nothing more than to let them be free in the entire house and be part of our family.
Lastly, they are sweet natured to us (two adults and two children), not to strangers.  We try to socialize them with as many people as we can, but they take a long time to warm up to our company.  I am more concerned about them fighting each other.  One is more dominate and starts the fights.  They get so bad, we will have to pull them apart.  I am worried that they will hurt each other if we are not there to stop it.  (We can pull them apart mid fight and they will not be aggressive to us.)
They have not been fixed yet, but we plan to do so as soon as the funds are available.  I am sure that will help, but what can we do in the mean time?  We love them, but are very frustrated!!  Please help!

Answer
The sooner you can have them neutered, the better. The hormone testosterone has been linked to aggression, and once the dogs have reached sexual maturity (which they may already have done, being that they are a small breed), it can take up to 6 months for all that testosterone to exit their system once they are neutered. Testosterone can also contribute to marking behavior (lifting their leg on things).

I would recommend that you keep them in separate crates when you are not there. That will solve the puppy pad shredding problem, keep them from fighting with one another, and it *should* also keep them from pottying and eating it or making a mess. Make sure they go to the bathroom before you crate them.

The point to keeping them leashed when loose is so you can immediately stop them if they start to go to the bathroom, and take them straight outside, or to the pee pad or whatever.


As far as socialization goes, chihuahuas are pretty well known for being 'one person dogs,' that are loyal to their family, but suspicious of everyone else. The main thing is that you should not force anyone on them. Let THEM approach your visitors, and tell your visitors to ignore them. That means no looking at the dogs, no touching the dogs, and no talking to the dogs. If the dogs begin to act aggressively, correct them for it; don't tell them it's okay and pet them or pick them up.