Possible Newbie

[NAUTIQUE]

I live in Kentucky and would have happily given large sums of money for Savannah Jane to be willing to potty on a pad this past winter. We had a LOT of snow, and when your little legs are only four inches long, a couple feet of snow can be a PROBLEM!

So they could have gotten totally lost in the 100" we had here in New England during Feb./March!

Love those wiener races!
How about this FlyBall competition I found:
https://youtu.be/FwVUGv605rc
Or the Agility competitions:
https://youtu.be/IOIBOavPQiQ
Too funny! They look soo happy doing it though!
That would be pretty cool to get involved in.

Yep, I think I'm getting addicted just reading about these little guys!

[Rae]

Um, yeah. That flyball video looks familiar. I'm thinking the third red is Peaches Wiener The Flying Sausage, followed by her brother Piper! Fur-kids of our moderator Tanya. Lisa, isn't that right? Peachy moves so fast it's hard to be sure.

[Alex's Mom]

Sorry I'm so late to this...pesky work . First of all, to our little corner of the universe. I'm Paula, mom to my latest two senior wiener rescues, Heidi (12) and Ferkel (13). We live just outside Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, and have been "enjoying" the same winter you have....with bells on. (In fact, we got another 15cm of snow on Tuesday ). Not much to add to all the great advice that's been given so far...totally agree that dachshunds are not good being left outside on their own for extended periods of time. They dig, and bark, and escape (been there ).

My for what it's worth, is that I've had one, two and three dachsies at various time over the last 31 years, and I think two is the optimal number, especially if you work, or are out for long periods of time...they keep each other company, and play with each other and it kinda takes the load off you being their sole source of entertainment. Plus there's a whole barrel of laughs in their little teeny tiny bodies . And they are VERY smart and VERY stubborn...not so much that they don't get things like potty training, sometimes they're just not sure why it applies to them, esp. in bad weather. If you have an outdoors enclosed space that you can train them to use the pee pad, that's perfect! They can also be litter-trained, but it's hard on their paws unless you use very fine litter. One thing you'll find is that they have very definite personalities. I don't know who told you that about separating siblings, but I'd be willing to have an argument with 'em...I've known a bunch of siblings that have stayed together, and just as in humans, they all develop their own little characters.

I can't wait to see pics and hear their adventures...buckle up! You're in for the best ride of your life .

[lotsadox]

Back issues tend to be genetic. You will hear of doxies who were overweight, ran up and down the stairs, jumped all over the place, and never had a problem... and there are those whose owners were extremely careful to keep them lean and restrict jumping, but the dog still had recurrent issues. But it's a good plan to keep them lean and healthy and give them regular exercise... and try to keep them from jumping excessively or off very high things onto hard surfaces (Angel had her first issue shortly after jumping over a dog gate onto a hard tile floor), or twisting unpredictably. They are wild little daredevils and believe they can fly.

And then you just cross your fingers and know what to do if the dog does show signs of a back injury.

I totally agree with this. I do try to keep mine from jumping and have ramps everywhere, but I've had a dog that was overweight and jumped and had no back problems and those that were crazy dogs (running, jumping, leaping, rough playing) with no back problems and the lean less active ones that had back problems. I think you just have to do the best you can and hope for the best with them. And, I also agree that knowing what to look for is very important. Having been thru back issues with 4 dogs now over the last almost 30 years, I noticed right away when Darby was showing signs of having problems. I had the vet do VOM on him right away and he's doing great now. There's a lot of info in the IVDD/Back Issues forum here.

I also think they would be perfect for trips in the motorhome. My husband and I have talked about renting a motorhome and taking some trips with ours when we retire. I think that would be awesome.

[oceangirls]

I don't know who told you that about separating siblings, but I'd be willing to have an argument with 'em...

Paula, it was actually Courtney... on a Facebook post. Her points and references were quite reasonable (Courtney usually makes sense ). I'll see if maybe I can find that post.

[lotsadox]

I forgot to say that. I've never heard that about siblings and from my experience it's not true. I've had 2 littermates that we kept together and they were very different. Neither was particularly dominant so that might make a difference. Also, they were never allowed to dominate one another. I just remembered that they were kept in one crate when they were small (they were my mom's dogs and she didn't want 2 crates) and then when we got them, we put them in 2 crates side by side and they were fine. But that is my only experience with littermates so . . .

[Rae]

My husband and I have talked about renting a motorhome and taking some trips with ours when we retire. I think that would be awesome.

you would kill Jimmy dead the first week. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[Ivan]

Hi and welcome. OOeee! Congrats on getting furkids. When will it happen?

You're gonna love dachshunds. Doxies are a real treat. Spunky, intelligent, trainable, mobile, and devoted. We prefer a pair o' doxies vs. just 1, cuz they're compact and they keep each other company, and they prefer to sleep together (same crate). Sweetie & I can enjoy a lapdog, both at once. They travel well, and love going on adventures. We take ours everywhere, in the car. Wiener dogs are not scary, so are well accepted wherever we go. Yes to Hug-a-dog harness for walks. Collar helps when training, but always loose leash, don't yank their necks. You gotta be on top of training them, always, cuz they can be stubborn. They're great when trained to fit into your lifestyle. And willing to learn. They are FOOD driven, so we keep a pocketful of (self dehydrated) meaty treats, for constant training rewards. We switched from TOTW to 100% raw meat (from grocery stores), and it's been awesome. Same cost, but lower vet bills & happier dogs. See http://www.rawfeddogs.org/rawguide.html and https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/rawfeeding/info for getting started. Our dogs are mostly indoors, but they only go potty outdoors (they ask to be let out). They have small bladders, so we let 'em out every few hours. They're perfectly fine outside in winter (even in Canada). We do shovel a backyard potty area if snowfall exceeds 6". We've never tried pee-pads. Welcome to DLC. Doxie knowledge here is vast. It's a great forum for all things dachshund.

[lotsadox]

you would kill Jimmy dead the first week. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

The trips would probably be limited to places we can go in 2 weeks or less. We'll start at a week and see how it goes

[Lisa]

Um, yeah. That flyball video looks familiar. I'm thinking the third red is Peaches Wiener The Flying Sausage, followed by her brother Piper! Fur-kids of our moderator Tanya. Lisa, isn't that right? Peachy moves so fast it's hard to be sure.

That IS Peaches Wiener and Piper Man