15/03/2024
STORY OF THE DACHSHUND:
The Fascinating Past of the Badger Dog
Don't let the goofy wiener dog costume deceive you: Sandwiched between those fabric hot dog buns is a smart hunter whose size denies its ferocity.
At first glance, you can see why the Dachshund has earned the rather naive nickname of "sausage" or "sausage dog": long and low to the ground, this oddly proportioned hound might seem comically cute. But his name, which translates in German as "badger dog," tells a completely different story.
While Europeans had been using dogs to hunt those nocturnal carnivores that were maturing from at least the Middle Ages, it wasn’t until the late 17th century that the Dachshund began to take shape. While France and other European countries had their own versions of badgers hunting dogs, 18th-century German foresters and hunters began to reproduce their type consistently, paving the way for the breed we know today.
Understandably, the badgers didn't give up their skins without a fight. With their thick skin and skulls, and sharp teeth and claws, the badgers were well-prepared to defend against any intruder.
Creating a dog for such a specific and dangerous job required several dramatic modifications to the canine form. Dogs obviously had to have short legs to easily fit into the badger holes. Those legs had to be slightly curved around the chest. Also, they needed tight, compact feet to push the ground behind the dog as it digs for its quarry. A well-angled shoulder and upper arm allow for the range of motion required for this excavation, creating a prominent stamp and a prominent prototype, known as the "prow." ”
The list of must-haves – and nautical images – didn’t end there. The dog's chest box had to be long and well-developed, providing ample space for the heart and lungs to give the dog the resistance it needed to fight for hours underground. The "quill" or lower part of the chest, needed to extend far beyond the elbow, protecting internal organs from any sharp sticks or roots that stood out from the ground.
And since the dog had to face the badger head-on, with no room to turn around, his "end of business" was of equal importance: The prominent bridge bone over the eyes offered protection, and a strong, well hinge under the jaw with surprisingly large teeth let the Dachshund gives back as good as he has.
Trapped in tight tunnels, relying on his own wit, the Dachshund needed to be independent, bold and not a little combative. It's no wonder the Standard Dachshund describes these dogs as "brave to the point of recklessness." ”
ARE THE DachshundS OBEDIENT?
That underground bravery didn't fade away once the dog returned to the surface. The tales of cheeky Dachshunds reverberate through the centuries. The last German emperor, Kaiser William II, had two Dachshunds, named Wadl and Hexl. A writer at the time described the couple as “bitten, growled little brutes with jaws measuring half the length of their smooth bodies.” On a visit to Archduke Francisco Fernando of Austria-Hungary's country house, the two Dachshunds quickly sent off one of their beloved golden pheasants. It wasn't an international incident by order of the subsequent assassination of the same archduke, which triggered WWI, but close enough. (During the Great War, Dachshund owners called their dogs “freedom hounds” to avoid the anti-German sentiment of the time, just as German Shepherds were renamed Alsatians. )
It's no surprise that the same arrogance that makes the Dachshund a masterful badgers hunter doesn't make meaningless obedience.
"Being the owner of dachshunds, to me a book on dog discipline becomes an inspired volume of humor." Every prayer is a mutiny,” wrote author E.B. White about the impossibilities of persuading any degree of cooperation from his Dachshund, Fred. “... I would rather train a striped zebra to balance an Indian club than induce a dachshund to pay attention to my slightest command. When I address Fred, I never have to raise my voice or my hopes. He even disobey me when I instruct him in something he wants to do. ”
WHY ARE THERE SO MANY VARIETIES OF DACHSHUND’S?.
One of the most varied among purebred dogs – so much so that the Fédéracion Internationale Cynologique dedicates a separate group – the Dachshund comes in three types of coats. The softies are believed to be the original dogs. Theories offer a long list of possible ancestors - several pointers and terriers, as well as bloodhounds and Basset Hounds, who may have contributed to the Dachshund's particularly acute sense of smell.
Long hair is the result of selective reproduction of straight with variable layer lengths. The addition of rough-coated terriers long after in the 1800s led to hairs. Many speculate that the Dachshund's sometimes softer expression and temperament are attributable to this infusion of terrier blood.
Size is another area where Dachshunds differ. In the 1800s, a boom in Germany's rabbit population led to the development of the miniature Dachshund. In addition to standards and minis, the aforementioned FCI of Europe recognizes a third category of "Teckel", as the breed is called in Germany: the "Rabbit Dachshund", which is somewhere between the two. In the United States there are only Standard and Miniature Dachshunds, the latter are defined by their weight. But there's an informal middle point called a "tweenie" — a short form of "in between." ”
DACHSHUND’S TODAY
Despite their strong characters (or maybe because of them) Dachshunds are immensely popular, ranking 9th among American Kennel Club breeds in 2022. The list of celebrities who have owned them is seemingly endless: silver screen stars like Carole Lombard and Clark Gable; famous painters Pablo Picasso, David Hockney and Andy Warhol; newspaper tycoon William Randolph Heart - even infamous figures like Lee Harvey Oswald killer Jack Ruby, who in a moment had as many as 10, including a call from Sheba whom he referred to as his "wife". ”
Given their strong nature, Dachshunds don't benefit from being overly spoiled. One example of this is Obie, a Dachshund from Portland, Oregon, who was so deeply obese — at 77 pounds, more than twice the weight of the average standard Dachshund — that landed on the TODAY show in 2012.
So the next time you contemplate reaching for that hot dog costume with his mustard doodle stitched down his back, remember that in the opinion of your Dachshund, they would rather be the eater than the eater, in more ways than one.
