The origins

The origin of the name “dachshund” is the fusion of the words “Dachs (rate) and” Hund “(dog), these are not clear and are lost in the mists of time.

Prehistoric traces of similar dogs were found a bit ‘everywhere and in Egyptian bas-relief, dating from around 2000 BC depicts two dogs lower limbs and the elongated body that, despite having straight ears are reminiscent of the dachshund.

In the book “the Venerie” dated 1561 is shown a famous engraving representing a group of long dogs, low intent to sniff and try to break into dens, incited by a hunter.

At the origin of the race there is a malformation pathology that inhibits the development of long bones. The disease is hereditary and perfectly compatible with life, this is not creating any health problem to the dog and it proved crucial for ancient man as irreplaceable “tool” to ferret badgers, hares and rabbits, necessary for their survival.

For this, in the Lex Baiuvariorum (VII sec.), the first legislation document of the Germanic tribes, there are very serious penalties commensurate to the killing of these dogs.

The man later took advantage of what nature offered by continuing to select subjects more suitable for hunting in the den and on the surface. He selected morphology, size and coat crossing different breeds to obtain the three strains that were the short-haired dachshund, the long-haired and wire-haired one.

Almost certainly the short-haired dachshund was the first selected and from it with successive intersections with the schnauzer and the Dandie Dinmont was born hard hair, while crossing the short-haired spaniel and the German one, was born the long hair.
It is, however, in more recent times that the dachshund can be framed more precisely.
The breed as known today is mentioned in “the manual of German hunter” of 1719. In Germany, the dachshund was in fact widely used to flush the prey and became a real star, he is considered the national dog, the mascot of the nation.
The first fans of the breed were the Rangers and the first important German breeding was just one of those fans, Wilhelm v.Dooke Osterode, who founded it in 1861.
Dachshunds appeared in the first exhibition in Berlin in 1883 and were judged according to the standard, first in history, written in 1879.

In 1888 was founded in Berlin the Deutscher Teckel club whose members were dachshunds Germans who were all standard size and mostly short-haired.

In Italy at that time were very few owners of dachshunds and even fewer farms. We know that in 1897 there was a farm founded by a Mr. Silva, however, you must get to 1937 to find the first documented breeding: the “Doghouse Bocca Bianca” in the province of Ascoli Piceno and the same year was awarded the first posted to Kodalmo, after which, in 1940 were added others.
During the period of the first world war there has been no news until 1948 with the resumption of the publication of “Canine Review” by ENCI.

By 60 years after the birth of the ABC, Friends Dachshund Club,breeding dachshund in Italy gained momentum and Italian breeders worked great selections so that it can be said that from 1970 to the present in subjects Italian exhibitions run the best bloodlines.