The Dachshund Warrior’s Greeting and Awesome Facts about Wiener Dogs
When I came home, Keno, my mini wire-haired dachshund, greeted me with true wiener dog intensity. Like most energetic dachshunds, he rushed to me with his tail wagging in a frantic blur. Then, he dropped down on his forelegs to go into a low fighting stance. When I moved towards him, — surprise! — he rolled over to expose his belly and gaze at me with most intense puppy dog eyes ever! This got me laughing at my dog for being cute, clever, and for tricking me into giving him an immediate belly rub!
Going into a play-fight stance is not uncommon for dogs. However, this was definitely a favorite move for Keno. It got me wondering about dachshunds’ history and behavior so I began researching the topic.
Dachshund History & Facts
The dachshund, famously described by H. L. Menkin as, “A half-a-dog high and a dog-and-a-half long,” ( ) As effective badger hunters, even smaller versions were bred for hunting rats, rabbits, and other vermin. This is why we currently have the range of miniature dachshunds (11 pounds and under,) standard (between 16 and 32 pounds,) and “tweenie” (between 11 and 16 pounds.) ( www.dogquotations.com ) is an iconic breed. It is generally acknowledged that dachshunds originated in Germany in the 18th century when breeders bred shorter legged versions of the bloodhound to hunt badgers. The literal English translation of “dachshund” is “badger hound.” ( www.dogtime.com ) www.dogtime.com
Although bred for hunting, dachshunds are excellent house dogs. It helps that they are generally small and comfortable living in small-sized homes. However, dachshunds are prone to unhealthy weight gain that can lead to serious health issues. So, please take your house dachshunds out for regular walks! Because of their inherent curiosity and playfulness, it’s wonderful to take a dachshund to a dog park for exercise and socialization with other dogs. Let’s be honest, watching a dachshund sprint through the park at “maximum dachshund velocity” is a truly delightful sight to behold!
The breed known as the “teckel” in Germany and France, enjoys a strong association with Munich where it was chosen as the mascot for the 1972 Munich Summer Games. The multi-colored mascot named, “Waldi” represented the endurance, tenacity, and agility embodied both in the dachshund breed and in the Olympic spirit. A little known fact is that the marathon route for the Munich games outlines the shape of a dachshund! So not only was Waldi famous for being the first ever Olympic mascot, the distinctive dachshund shape influenced the layout of the event itself. ( https://www.olympic.org/munich-1972-mascot )
Keno’s Warrior Greeting
Now back to my dachshund Keno and the “doggie reasoning” behind how he greeted me. From our visits to the dog park, it was clear that Keno loved to play fight with his canine pals. Given the dachshund’s history as a hunting dog, a happy play fight is a positive part of dachshund life. Going down into his play fight stance to greet me was Keno’s way of saying, “Dear Human, you are a fellow warrior and worthy of a challenge to do dachshund battle!” Then by flipping into his belly rub position he said with body language, “I submit to you for you are my beloved master! Now give me a belly rub! And how about a TREAT OR TWO!!!!!!”
Sadly, my beloved Keno passed away last fall. He was 13-years old, which is old for a mini-dachshund. Fortunately, he was joyfully living life at maximum intensity right through his final weekend. After becoming sick, he died just one day later. His final gift to me, as a true dachshund warrior, was that when it was his time to go, he quickly passed away. He spared me the agonizing experience of having to euthanize him in order to spare his suffering.
Farewell, my Dachshund Warrior!
Thank you, Keno! During our time together, you rewarded me with unlimited love and joyful experiences that are now fond memories. Most importantly, you taught me about exuberance, tenacity, loyalty, playfulness, and the honor of receiving the dachshund’s warrior greeting.
If you enjoyed this article or would like to learn more about dachshunds. Please check out our cool infographic: “ Awesome Facts about Dachshunds (Wiener Dogs!) “
Originally published at https://pawtelligence.com on March 16, 2017.
