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- Dachshunds: A Brief Overview
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*(This is by no means a perfect or end all on the breed,
if you would like more information there are some great books on the
breed)
What is a
Dachshund?
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Dachshunds are part of the hound group which were
originally bred to hunt badgers and other small game underground, hence
the long bodies and short legs. They come in different sizes, coat type
and colors.
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Anyone who has ever owned more than one dachshund knows
that each and every one have their own quirks, attitudes and temperaments.
Most, if not all dachshunds are stubborn in one way or another. If a
dachshund wants something, then they are going to do what he or she can
until she gets what she wants, whether it be sneaky or not. They can also
be manipulative. They can chew your favorite pair of shoes then with
their expressive, loving eyes and a wag of the tail, make you forget why
you are upset at them.
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The Dachshund breed is not for everyone and every family.
Like all animals in the animal kingdom, they like to be king or queen of
their domain and at times they think that they own "you" and anything else
around them. But a true dachshund home does not mind this as a trait of
theirs because the love, loyalty and protectiveness, they get in return
from their dachshund is more than enough to put up with their little
quirks.
What
sizes do dachshunds come
The sizes of dachshunds are: Standard, Tweenies
and Miniature
Standards are the larger breed weighing anywhere
from 20 pounds and up.
Tweenies are just now being recognized throughout
the world of dachshunds. They range in weight from anywhere between 12
pounds and up.
Miniatures can range from 8 pounds to 10 pounds on
average. There is no such thing as a "toy" dachshund.
What type
of coats do dachshunds have
The main coat types of the dachshunds are: Smooth,
Wirehaired and Longhair.
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Smooth coat dachshund is what most people think
of when they think of a dachshund or "wiener dogs".
The occassional bath and nail trip is all the grooming required on these
guys. Although they do tend to shed a bit more.
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The
wirehaired dachshund (looks like Scottie dogs) tend not to shed as
much as the others but they are also a little more work to groom. Some
people will do the bathing and the nail trimming themselves, others have
professional groomers do it because they may matte up if not bathed in a
while. Sometimes, people will have the groomers trim the dogs up,
other times they just have them completely shaved. We don't really
care to see that, but it does happen.
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The Long Haired Dachshund is by far the most
demanding for grooming standards. Their coats if not taken care, can become
tangled, messy and matted. This not only looks bad and
unhealthy it can actually make movement for the dogs uncomfortable if left
to become messy and matted.
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Recessive
long haired dachshunds. More than likely you have seen one of these
guys and not known it. This usually occurs when a momma or a daddy is
long hair and the other parent is a smooth coat. (Sometimes it doesn't have
to be either one, both parents can be smooth but carry the gene for long
haired meaning one of their parents were long haired.
Sometimes they can have an in between type of coat. They may have a
smooth coat, but some hairs may be extremely long and they may be sporadic
all over the body or only in certain areas of the body. We don't
believe that this is even a category as far as specific breeding, but they
do exist. On our site, they are not catergorized as recessive long
hair, and we don't usually point them out that way on our site, because they
usually do not look like a long hair, and to some people it just doesn't
matter. They are just smooth coats with longer hairs here and there.
These guys tend to shed alot. We don't know why but they do. But
they are groomed the same as a smooth coat. Now in rare situations we
may have a recessive long hair coated dog that looks like a dog that was
once a long haired dog, but has been either shaved or groomed and their hair
is short from it. But they are in actuality naturally like that.
Which means a majority of their coat is long and the minority of it is
smooth coated. These guys are rare, you don't see too many of them
around...but they are out there.
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Remember that all dogs and animals in general shed their coats.
This shedding may be worse during the times they lose their winter coats.
When people think of a dachshund they think of either a red
dachshund or a black and tan dachshund. These are only two of the vast
majority of colors that dachshunds come in.
Some of the colors are:
| Red-
This color varies from brown to a dark red, to a light red or even
something called a "Diluted red" which is almost an orange color.
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Black and Tan- This color is the standard black and tan that most people
think of. |
| Wheaten- This color is often used to describe a really light red
almost strawberry blond color. |
| Cream- This color can be from a dark gold all the way to almost a
white color |
| Sable- This color is pretty rare but they are out there. They look
black but and tan but upon closer look there is a red part of the coat as well |
| Wild boar- This color is often used to describe almost a "salt and
pepper" type coloring of a wirehaired. |
| Chocolate- This color is usually the same as the Black and Tan
coloring only with a chocolate or brown coat. |
There are so many different patterns in the coloring but a few are:
| Solid- obviously this is all one color. |
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Dapple- Dapples have spots and markings of different colors. Some
variations in color range from red, chocolates and silvers. |
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Double Dapples- double dapples are rare but unfortunately not rare enough.
Due to the greed and lack of knowledge some breeders have they breed two
dapple dachshunds which cause double dapples to be born. They are
usually born with most of their bodies being white, and may have spots of
the dappling on their bodies in different areas. They
often have light blue eyes, but can have brown and even at times, one blue
and one brown. As the dog grows older, his markings may even
change as the dappling may come out more as they grow up. Most
double dapples are genetically flawed. They can be born without
eyes, blind, small eyes, deaf or poor health which can result in high
medical expenses or even premature or early death for these little guys.
This does not necessarily mean all double dapples are born with problems,
but 9 times out of 10 they do have the above problems, which make them
less then desirable for owners. As with any dogs with a disability
double dapples that are born without their eyesight or being deaf are dogs
that need special homes as it takes work to work with them and their
disabilities. These dogs can live a normal and healthy life in the
right home. |
| Isabellas- Isabellas are a cream color and are rare, these coat
types usually have skin problems due to the breeding issues. |
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Blue- Blue dachshunds, like the double dapples are a genetic flaw.
They are born without hair on a majority of their bodies, which gives the
dog, a grayish blue color to the dog. These dogs often have skin
problems and health problems which may need constant attention. |
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Brindled- Brindled is a certain spotted or even striped pattern in the
dogs. |
| Piebalds- Piebalds are white with large colored spots (and usually
small lighter spots of the same color). Usually Piebalds are two colors,
example, black and white, or red and white. When bred together with another
piebald or dapple, they can produce the same effect as double dapples.
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