Often incorrectly perceived as a laid-back member of the low-maintenance toy group, the iconic Wire Haired Dachshund is an independent, fearless, often stubborn hunting dog and unmistakable in appearance. Keep reading for our list of things you should know about this delightful breed!

Before purchasing a Wire Haired Dachshund puppy keep reading to ensure this breed is right for you.

wire haired dachshund
cute little dachshund puppy on white background

1. There Are Several Kinds of Long Haired Dachshunds

Long-haired dachshunds come in two different varieties – the smooth long-haired kind (officially known as the long-haired dachshund) and the wire haired dachshund, which has a course and more ‘wiry’ coat. The long-hair gene is recessive, so you need two long-haired parents to produce long-haired dachshund puppies.

2. Wire Haired Dachshunds Do Shed (but they don’t need much grooming)

The wire-haired dachshund is considered to be a moderate and seasonal shedder, meaning they shed their coat 4 times a year as the seasons change. Generally, wire-haired dachshunds are considered fairly low maintenance and only need grooming once or twice a week and nail clipping monthly, although you may want to get your dog hand-stripped (or learn how to do it yourself) as this is considered the best way to look after a wired coated dog. The wire-haired dachshund has little to no body odor, making them an ideal house dog. The best kind of brush for normal grooming of a wire-haired dachshund is a slicker brush like the one below. Despite its scary appearance, the slicker brush is actually very gentle as the pins are designed to avoid the skin and work through any knots and tangles. For hand-stripping, you will need a special comb – like this one.

3. They are Fierce Hunting Dogs (despite their size)

Contrary to the popular perception as an apartment dwelling and cafe-visiting pocket pooch (currently ranking as #12 on the list of most popular dog breeds), the wire-haired dachshund was originally bred to be independent and fierce hunters with a strong prey drive, able to hunt and kill badgers many times their size. The modern dachshund still possesses these hunting characteristics, with the AKC breed standard describing the ideal dachshund as “clever, lively and courageous to the point of rashness”. This makes them unsuitable pets if you have other small animals such as rabbits, guinea pigs, or chickens as they are likely to chase and possibly harm them. Wire-haired dachshunds aren’t always the most reliable around children and should be supervised around children they don’t know. Toys like the Hide-A-Squirrel pictured below are perfect for entertaining the dachshunds hunting instinct!

4. Wire Haired Dachshunds Come in Different Sizes

 The wire-haired dachshund comes is shown in two sizes, standard, and miniature. The miniature dachshund is interestingly not a separate classification, like in many other breeds, but there are show classes for those dachshunds under 11lb/5kg and over 12 months of age. The standard dachshund usually reaches 16lb/8kg – 32lb-16kg when fully grown.

5. There are Recommended Health Tests

Wire-haired dachshunds are typically a healthy and hardy breed, however, it is important to check that the breeder performs the following heath tests on all their breeding dogs, as these are conditions that have been identified as problematic in the breed:

  • Patella Evaluation
  • Ophthalmologist Evaluation
  • Cardiac Exam

Once you have purchased your puppy we highly recommend using Embark to check for any genetic health issues. Even when the puppy has health tested parents some conditions can occur that aren’t present in the puppy’s parents and testing your puppy allows you and your vet to take preventative actions to ensure your puppy’s health. You can use the code CAMP50 to get $50 off!

6. Wire Haired Dachshunds Come in Many Colours (and double dappled is bad news)

 You might be used to seeing dachshunds in the commonly found colors of red or black and tan, but they actually come in 15 different colors! Colors found in the breed include black & cream, black & tan, blue & cream, blue & tan, chocolate & cream, chocolate & tan, cream, fawn (also called Isabella) & cream, fawn & tan, red, wheaten, wild board, black, chocolate and fawn. In addition, they can have various marking combinations including brindle, dapple, sable, brindle piebald, double piebald and piebald.

wire haired dachshund
A dapple dachshund

The AKC breed standard for dachshunds is very strict and outlines anything outside of the listed ‘colorways’ is grounds for disqualification and are particularly tough on the pied variations, which aren’t allowed to have blue eyes or more than half of their head covered in white markings.

A double dapple dachshund

Additionally, the unique ‘double-dapple’ pattern is discouraged as double-dapple puppies are significantly more likely to suffer from the following health problems:

  • Blindness
  • Deafness
  • Partial blindness or partial deafness
  • Abnormally small eyes
  • Malformed eyes
  • Malformed ears
  • Missing eyes
  • Missing ears
  • Congenital eye defects

The Kennel Club and the Dachshund Breed Council class the double dapple colour as “unacceptable” due to the health risks that accompany it, and double dapple Dachshunds are not eligible for registration with the Kennel Club as pedigree Dachshund dogs.

7. Wire Haired Dachshunds Can Be Hard to Train

Due to their history as an independent-minded hunting dog and their intelligence, the wire-haired dachshund can be often stubborn, so they can be challenging to train, especially when it comes to potty training. They love to give and receive attention and do best with positive, reward-based training. They are sensitive little sausages and will not react well to harsh commands or punishment so you need to be prepared to have patience and consistency. Dachshunds have an excellent sense of smell as well as a strong prey drive and because they were bred to stay focused and follow a trail with fierce dedication if they are busy with something more interesting they may not always pay attention to you. It’s important to do lots of early socialization and obedience training to ensure you have a well-behaved companion.

8. They LOVE to Sleep Under Blankets

Wire-haired dachshunds and snuggling under blankets – name a more iconic duo! For some reason, dachshunds ADORE sleeping under blankets so we recommend getting your puppy a cave bed like the one below.

9. A Wire Haired Dachshund Puppy Costs Around $2000

An ethical breeder will charge the same price for all puppies regardless of color or sex. If a breeder is trying to charge you more for ‘first pick’ of the litter, registration papers, or for a certain color it’s a massive red flag you are dealing with a puppy mill or commercial breeder. Learn more about finding an ethical puppy breeder here.

10. They Usually Live a Long Time

Wire-haired dachshunds are typically healthy and hardy hounds, as their heritage suggests. A well-bred and well-cared for wire-haired dachshund is likey to live between 12-16 years of age.

11. You Should Buy your Puppy from an Ethical Breeder (or breed specific rescue)

Contrary to popular belief buying a puppy from an ethical, registered breeder is no more expensive than a pet shop or backyard breeder – and you will probably save a significant amount of money over time as you are much more likely to be purchasing a healthy puppy with no inherited health conditions. If you are looking to buy a wire-haired dachshund puppy the best place to start is on the AKC Puppy Finder site. Never buy a puppy from sites like Craigslist, or even on Facebook unless the breeder can provide you with proof of AKC registration and all the relevant health testing results.

12. Keeping your Wire Haired Dachshund Trim is Very Important

Although wire-haired dachshunds are usually healthy, they are prone to slipped discs in their spines and other spinal issues due to their elongated back. To prevent disc damage to the dachshund’s long back, you must be vigilant about keeping him from becoming overweight and always monitor his activities to avoid back injury. Using a puzzle feeder like the one below is a great way to extend his mealtimes and ensure he isn’t overeating while keeping him entertained.

13. You’ll Probably Want to Get Him Some Stairs

In order to prevent spinal injures in your wire-haired dachshund you will need to be very careful about him jumping. Even jumping short distances can cause irreparable damage to his delicate spine. Buying a set of doggy stairs can help prevent injury and still allow him to snuggle in bed with you – after all, we know there is no better hot water bottle than a dachshund!