by Marina Stein

Created on: March 17, 2009   Last Updated: December 02, 2009

In honor of my two beloved dachshunds, Lucky and Starky.

Don't let the appearance of that small and somewhat ridiculous dog with short legs and long body fool you. Dachshunds are working dogs bred in Germany centuries ago to hunt badgers and foxes. They go into the burrows to get the animals, and nobody is there to help them there. Thus dachshunds are very independent dogs and are fully capable of making their own decisions.

If you have more then one dog, a dachshund will most definitely take the position of the leader of the pack. Nothing is more amusing then to watch the little "wiener" dog ordering your golden retriever around but be careful not to find yourself (and the rest of your family) at the bottom of the pack too. You need to establish the right hierarchy from the very beginning of your relationship meaning that you need to discipline your cute little dachshund puppy.

Dachshunds are very active, attentive to their surroundings, curious and full of mischief. The desire to dig is in their blood so they will dig into your garden and will destroy your begonias. At every given moment they need to know what is going on in every corner of the house. They bark at everything that moves. It is very common for these dogs to get vindictive and make a pool on the floor if they think they are not treated fairly. They are very territorial as well so if you decide to get a puppy later keep in mind that if the puppy makes a boo-boo somewhere in the house your adult dachshund will follow the trait just to be sure that he (or she) is still in control of the given territory.

Quite often dachshunds have problems with their backs because they are so long. In this case they will need a surgery and the cost of the treatment can go up to several thousands, besides, they will need a few weeks recovery period during which they are confined to a cage and will require frequent walks and cleaning. Also they are very prone to become overweight and an overweight dachshund is a very sad sight indeed.

With the right training dachshunds are very enjoyable and devoted dogs. They protect their owners up to their fullest abilities, and those abilities should not be diminished. The old adage "It is not a size of the dog in a fight but a size of a fight in the dog" was created, no doubt, to describe dachshunds.

Your dachshunds sleep with you in bed crawling under the blankets, rolling themselves in a tight ball and keeping you warm during a cold winter night. They meet you after a challenging day at work with the eyes full of love, barking and jumping all around you on their short funny legs, sometimes as high as your chest. They lick your face and nip you by the nose. They sit next to your chair looking at you with those big pleading black eyes until you give up and feed them that forbidden piece of chicken. They join your children in their games. They give you their undivided love and, if necessary, they don't hesitate to give their life for you

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