I just purchased a 2 month old male chihuahua pup ive named tank. i was hoping by joining this site that you yes YOU could maybe help me out..ive never raised a pup on my own and im in need of a little advice..like maybe a eating and sleeping schedule and just some general advice from all of you who know what your doing and even if you dont hit me up i dont know what im doing..he's going to his first vet visit on saturday so hopefully i have a healthy happy pup but i would love to hear anything from anyone..thanks alot- Laura

Congrats on the new puppy!  I thought that the Chihuahuas for Dummies book was pretty good.  A good place to start, anyway.  I'm sure others here are much more knowledgeable than me (since I am new to chi puppy ownership, too) and will be able to make more recommendations. 

Hi and Congratz on your new puppy! Just like you, I have had my first experience in raising a puppy. My chi is now 7 months old and I think, (I hope o_O) I've raised him well. I'll do my best to share with you about what I did as he grew up.

I got Echo when he was 9 weeks old. So tiny and nervous at meeting me for the first time. After getting him, first thing I did was to stop by my local petstore on the way home. The breeder was nice enough to give me a list of essential items needed. Like, food, crate, treats, food&water bowls, etc. I also recommend in getting food supplement and corn syrup. Chi's tend to be finicky when it comes to food, (mine is anyways) and they are risk at hypoglycemia (low  blood sugar). I use food supplement, when I notice my chis lack of apetite and use corn syrup only in emergency case, when I notice signs of hypoglycemia. Syptoms vary, but signs to look for are inactiveness, shaking, unfocused and sad fornlorn look on its face, eventually leading to staggering, falling down, and having seizure and spasms. Chis usually outgrow risk of falling into hypoglycemia around after 4months. Just keep in mind that your chi is fed, not playing too much as to using up all of his energy.

I've tried following guidelines as to feeding my chi according to labels on dog food or what i read on web and from what my friends told me. But I have a chi that is very finicky as to what he eats, so all that I could do was to make sure he ate enough, giving food supplement as needed. But, chis should be fed three times, atleast twice a day when they're growing up. Then you can gradually cut down to once a day. They should eat when you eat as to they don't get the habit of bothering you and begging for your food. Its not matter of when you should feed your puppy, but making sure that he eats. Just set times throughout the day and maintain that time when you feed your puppy. In regards to feeding comes taking him outside to take care of his business. I'm not sure what your plan is to potty training him. Whether it be indoor or outdoor. I've only had experince in outdoor potty training, but I'm sure you can ask others or do some web browsing to find info. on indoor training. Its not really that hard. Mistakes are to be expected from young ones as they are getting used to their new homes. All that you can do is to take him out as frequently as possible. Since their body is so tiny, its obvious they have small bladder and won't be able to hold for long times. I read somewhere that, age of chi x 2hrs = need to pee. Basically, if your chi is 2months old, you need to take him outside every 4hrs. This might apply to older dogs, but not the young ones. I'd recommend takng him out once every hr, (I know that sounds harsh and not possible sometimes, especially when your sleeping). Just take him out as much as possible and espcially when he is done eating and when he wakes from his nap or sleep.

All-in-all, maintain schedule you set for your chi. Puppies sleep thoughout the day, so its not important as to when he should sleep. Just make sure he gets plenty of rest.

Ugh.... I'd like write more, yet all the stuff I got in my head is all jumbled up. Sorry, if any of the stuff I wrote don'tmake sense or if I jumped around too much, or leaving you with lack of imformation. lol

But, bestest luck with Tank and congratz again!

Congrats on the new puppy! Chi's are a joy and I sure hope you like a companion that sticks close to you- as these tend to do.