“If only we could get little dogs, we’d be golden.” This was the rallying cry of shelter workers in the 1990s, when big mixed breeds were flooding Bay Area open-admission shelters. The thinking was that any little guys would have eager adopters.
That dream became reality and then quickly turned into a significant challenge. In recent years, Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes have gained popularity. For some shelters like mine – the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA – they have raced past Pit Bulls as the most common breed and now account for 22% of all incoming stray and unwanted dogs. As I write this, 28 of our 45 adoptable dogs are Chihuahuas or Chihuahua mixes.
Popularity breeds popularity
Of course, as a breed becomes popular and the numbers grow, so do accidental litters and planned litters for profit – all of which compound the problem exponentially. These days, there aren’t that many backyard breeders selling Chihuahua pups (check-out Craigslist or your local want ads to confirm this), but there are plenty of people giving away these dogs and a lot of adorable and free puppies.
What happened?
Some like to blame the population explosion on Paris Hilton and others of her ilk, who parade pint-sized pups in $5,000 purses, almost as accessories. Of course, not everyone knows who she is, but Hollywood’s portrayal of Chihuahuas, in general, is certainly part of the problem. TV shows, commercials (“Yo Quiero Taco Bell”), and movies like Beverly Hills Chihuahua often don’t paint a realistic picture, the same way real-life Jack Russell Terriers aren’t all like Eddie from Frasier. As a result, many new owners have unreasonable expectations. So media plays a definite role… and then there’s real-life.
Kids and Chihuahuas
Many families get Chihuahuas and Chi mixes from friends or buy them from “backyard breeders.” They figure a small dog will be a great match for their small kids. In many cases, sadly, it’s far from a love connection. Some Chihuahuas tolerate kids and their rough petting, loud shrieks, sudden movements, and tail tugs. More don’t, but parents realize this too late, after a dog has nipped. Once that happens, they rush off to the nearest animal shelter to surrender the dog.
What’s the answer?
Shelters with loads of Chihuahuas are doing whatever they can to find new homes for them, and some very creative strategies are being employed. San Francisco Animal Care & Control has sent a few small groups of dogs on flights cross country to shelters that aren’t experiencing Chihuahua overpopulation. East Bay SPCA heads up Chihuahuapalooza, an annual event with participation from many shelters, designed to shine a light on the breed, promote adoptions, and make spay/neuter affordable.
My shelter is currently waiving the entire adoption fee for Chihuahuas and mixes and giving adopters $10 fun bucks to spend in our retail store. Challenging times call for novel, even wacky approaches.
In the end, though, organizations will not be able to adopt themselves out of this dilemma. There are simply too many little guys coming through the shelter intake doors.
A more effective “fix”
While finding a home for one unwanted Chihuahua is fantastic – and I know other shelters count their successes one at a time, like we do – sterilizing a Chihuahua is far better. Spay/neuter has a powerful ripple effect, saving one unwanted litter, then all the intentional and accidental litters those prevented pups would have had. You get the idea.
Thankfully, many Bay Area shelters are making spay/neuter more affordable than ever before and increasing community awareness of these services. This winter, a generous donor funded a program that enabled my organization to offer free spay/neuter surgeries for San Mateo and San Francisco County Chihuahua owners, plus an unusual incentive: a $20 cash bonus for getting the surgery done.
Celebrate the breed
Cheerleading can also play an important role in solving the problem, with organizations celebrating the tiny breed in their publications, gift shops, adoption lobbies, websites, and outreach events. Our “Chihuahua Nation” T-shirt sold out more quickly than any other clothing item in our retail history. It features a gold icon of a sturdy little Chi on a black shirt with these words circling the dog: love, play, bond, commit, adopt, spay/neuter, train.
It’s a safe bet that every open-admission shelter currently has several fantastic Chihuahuas or mixes – like Chin-pins, Cherries (Chihuahua/Terriers), and Chi-weenies (Chi/Daschunds) – available for adoption. People who know the breed love the loyalty, feistiness, portability, play, and smarts they bring to our lives. If enough of us seek out these dogs and follow the shirt’s advice, problem solved.
Scott Delucchi is Sr. Vice President, Community Relations, at the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA. He currently has one Chihuahua in his busy household, which also includes two small children, in-laws, an old Chow, and a Poodle mix.
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