Dachshund Overview
Dachshunds (pronounced DAKS hund — never dash-hound) come in three varieties: smooth (shorthaired), wirehaired, and longhaired. In the United States, Dachshunds are either miniature (11 pounds and under as an adult) or standard (usually between 16 and 32 pounds as an adult). If your Dachshund weighs between 11 and 16 pounds, he’s called a tweenie. Other countries have a wider variance in the sizes. For example, in Germany, the official birthplace of the Dachshund breed, Dachshunds are identified as Standard, Miniature, or Kaninchenteckel, based on a chest measurement taken at the age of fifteen months.
No matter their size, Dachshunds are a delightful addition to any family, so they have ranked near the top of most popular dog lists since the 1950s. Their cute appearance and lively disposition have inspired many affectionate nicknames for the breed, including wiener dog, hot dog, sausage dog, Doxie, Dashie, and (especially in Germany) Teckels, Dachels, or Dachsels You can’t help but smile when you look at a confident Dachshund, proudly carrying his long, muscular body on short legs, his elongated head held high with a bold, intelligent look in his eyes.
Dachshund History
The Dachshund was created in Germany, where he was known as the badger dog, dachs meaning badger and hund meaning dog. Illustrations of dogs resembling Dachshunds date to the 15th century, and documents from the 16th century mention the “earth dog,” “badger creeper,” and “dachsel.” Badger wasn’t the Dachshund’s only prey. He was also used on den animals such as foxes and packs of Dachshunds trailed wild boar. Those early Dachshunds varied greatly in size.
The dogs used on badgers and boar weighed 30 to 35 pounds. Dachshunds used to hunt foxes and deer weighed 16 to 22 pounds, and smaller 12-pound Dachshunds hunted hares and weasels. For a brief time in the early 20th century, 5-pound Dachshunds were used to bolt cottontail rabbits. Known as the Teckel in Germany, the breed was refined over the course of many years by German foresters in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Dachshund Personality
The Dachshund is described as clever, lively, and courageous to the point of rashness. He’s bred for perseverance, which is another way of saying he can be stubborn. Dachshunds are renowned for being entertaining and fearless, but they want to cuddle with their people most. For many Dachshund people, this characteristic outweighs having to deal with the breed’s insistence on having his own way.
Dachshund personality can also vary with coat type. Because wirehaired Dachshunds have a terrier background, they can be mischievous troublemakers. Longhairs are calm and quiet, and Smooths have a personality somewhere in between. Some Mini Dachshunds can be nervous or shy, but this isn’t correct for the breed. Avoid puppies that show these characteristics.
Temperament is affected by several factors, including heredity, training, and socialization. Puppies with nice temperaments are curious and playful, willing to approach people and be held by them. Choose the middle-of-the-road puppy, not the one who’s beating up his littermates or hiding in the corner.
Always meet at least one of the parents. The mother is the available one. Ensure that they have nice temperaments that you’re comfortable with. Meeting siblings or other parents’ relatives is also helpful for evaluating what a puppy will be like when he grows up. Like every dog, Dachshunds need early socialization-exposure to many different people, sights, sounds, and experiences when they’re young.
Socialization helps ensure that your Dachshund puppy grows into a well-rounded dog. Enrolling him in a puppy kindergarten class is a great start. Regularly inviting visitors over and taking him to busy parks, stores that allow dogs, and leisurely strolls to meet neighbors will also help him polish his social skills.