Happily for your chihuahua, this is one section of our groom training course they probably don’t strictly need. Chihuahuas are usually carried everywhere in the groom shop, owing to their convenient size, and so seldom come face to face with scary tile floors.
Usually, the dogs who struggle with tile floors are big dogs. They walk into the shop just fine, but as soon as they’re faced with tile instead of carpet, they act like they’ve been placed on ice.
Unfortunately, if your pup refuses to walk on tile floors that means your groomer is either going to have to carry your dog everywhere or drag them—neither of which are a pleasant experience for anyone.
Sometimes It’s Not the Floors
Before we begin training for slippery tile floors, let’s start out with a quick trouble shoot on why your pet may be afraid of slipper floors. There are actually several reasons a dog may be reluctant to walk on them, or appear afraid, when they’re actually not.
If your dog has long paw pad hair, this hair can cover the pads of their feet that give traction. They suddenly have no traction at all, and the floor literally does act like ice for them. Excessively long toenails can also cause this. The dogs make matters worse by trying to ‘grip’ the tile by curling their toes into it and making the tile even more slippery.
If this is the cause of the problem, having the hair shaved on the paw pads, and the nails trimmed with the alternative cut line, may be all the changes needed to let your dog walk confidently on tile.
Another common reason dogs can suddenly become afraid of tile floors is pain. If they are developing arthritis, it can change how they walk, which can make them experience the floor in a different way. They may find the new angle they walk causes the title to be more slippery and makes them feel uncomfortable.
This is especially likely if your dog was fine with tile floors before but suddenly isn’t fine.
You can check for these basics by getting the dogs paw pads shaved and nails done. If the dog is fine on the tile floors once their pads and nails are done, it’s likely that this was the source of the problem.
If you know your dog has arthritis, treat the arthritis and see if your dog is magically better on tile floors. If they are, you can assume arthritis was the problem.
You May Be Able to Skip This If:
Many dogs aren’t afraid of tile floors and can walk quite normally on them. You probably know which camp your dog is in because when we desensitized our pups to water, we had to go into the bathroom at one point to get the pup acclimated to being near the source of water.
You may have found yourself skipping to this section, in fact, because your dog simply refused to enter the bathroom.
If your pup has swaggered boldly into the bathroom or kitchen and has no problems with the tile floor at the pet shop or other stores, chances are tile floors are not a problem for your dog.
Overcoming Fear of Tile Floors
When the is the problem, desensitizing the dog to different floor surfaces is the best way to resolve this issue. Take a moment and think about the different floors your dog has experienced before, and how they dealt with it. They’ve probably walked on:
- Asphalt
- Concrete
- Carpet
- Grass
- Linoleum
- Tile
- Dirt
- Sand
These are common floor surfaces, but they feel very different under the feet. Breeders who care about their puppies will often deliberately expose the pup to these different floor surfaces during their early learning period, so things are easier for you as an owner.
Even if your pup didn’t get the best start in life and never had this experience, that doesn’t mean they can’t get comfortable with new surfaces. You can make tile floors easier for them through working with it one paw at a time.
Finding Tile to Work With
You may be fortunate to have a tile floor in your house, such as a bathroom or kitchen. If you don’t, you’ll need to buy between 1-6 tiles from a hardware store to work with. 1 for a small dog like a chihuahua, 6 for a big dog.
Some big box stores won’t sell a single tile, and instead sell them in boxes. $75+ is quite a bit to spend on a single tile. You can save money, and get just what you need, by checking Craig’s List, Facebook Marketplace, and similar websites. Many people are selling an opened box or a tile or two for very cheap.
Although it may be tempting to work right at the groom shop where the problem is, or at a pet store that has tile floors, beware of trigger stacking. It’s difficult to learn something new in a highly distracting or exciting environment. Even if your pup is no longer afraid of many aspects of the groom shop, it’s hard to learn somewhere new. It’s best to start this off at home.
Interacting with the Tile
If your tile is in the bathroom, stand or sit a foot or so inside the door. Your pup is free to do what they please. Have some treats and encourage them to get as close to the tile as they are comfortable. If they’re really afraid of tile, this is probably going to be their toes lined up on the divider between carpet and tile.
Treat and reward this. Repeatedly reward this level 10 or so times and then end the session. Although it may not feel like you’ve accomplished anything, you’ve actually done quite a lot. You’ve established that the new training subject is flooring, that there will be treats, and that they have the option to leave.
The next day, repeat the same process. Do 10 reps of getting the dog to lean over the tile, as far as the pup is comfortable going. Then, pull the treat an inch back and see if they will go even one tiny step on the tile. Just one foot, or even one toe, is fine.
If they will, shower your pup with several “free” treats and praise lavishly. Go back to being right on the line 4-5 times, and then ask for that big reach of one step again. Once again, shower them with praise and treats if they can do it. If they can’t, that’s okay!
Cool down with 4-5 more treats right at the border and end the session.
The next day, warm up with 2-3 treats right at the border, and then ask for one foot in again. Vary between 2-3 border treats and then a big reach through the session. End after 5 or so rounds of this.
After these sessions are complete, start measuring your pups confidence levels. On the next day, do 2-3 warm ups at the border, and then for one paw in. How does your pup act? Do they boldly put that foot in? Do they seem hesitant? Tail low? Ears swept back?
If so, keep working until their confidence rises. If they’re stepping boldly on and maybe occasionally volunteer two paws, you can scooch back an inch and repeat the process with two paws. Work steadily backwards until your dog can walk all the way to the back of the bathroom and back without fear.
For those who are using tiles, the process is similar, except you’ll be making your own floor with the tiles. A small chihuahua can get all four feet on just one tile. A big dog might need 6 to experience tile on all four paws.
Loose tile has the benefit that you can set it out where ever your dog is most comfortable, such as the living room, and can be moved around.
Similar Posts:
- How to Shave Paw Pads
- Our Top Recommended Potty Training Products
- Water Desensitization, Part 3
- Overview of Groom Training Course
- Touch Desensitization: Feet
