If you’re like most Doxie owners, it’s likely that your dog doesn’t have a big yard to run around in.  Being small dogs, Dachshunds are more likely to spend their days cooped up in the house while their owner or family goes out.  This can make creating a potty schedule difficult.

Combining the use of crate and leash training can work wonders for Dachshunds.  If you have a new adult Dachshund joining your family or returning from a kennel while you were on vacation, you may have to reinforce potty training behavior.

One way to train is by using a crate during the day and incorporate a leash that isn’t too restricting when you are at home with your Dachshund.  Keeping your Dachshund locked up and unable to roam around all day is not really the best answer - but it is a part of the training process.

Begin the housetraining process as if your Dachshund were a puppy and schedule regular breaks for the potty.  Take your Dachshund outside when he is ready to eliminate instead of right after meals when puppy hasn’t had much time to digest.  You want to make sure that each trip is a meaningful one.

Start by devoting a whole weekend to observing your Dachshund on a leash when he is out of his crate so that you can learn the signs that he needs to use the bathroom.  Your Dachshund might act shaky or agitated and may even squat down.  Take these signs as your cue to take pup outside.

If your Dachshund does a good job and uses the bathroom the way you have hoped for, be sure to praise him for his efforts.  This type of positive reinforcement helps your puppy learn exactly what to do to make you happy.

Perhaps you were on vacation and your Dachshund had to stay in a kennel for a while.  During his stay he probably had to potty in the same areas where he ate and slept.  This behavior can hinder any previous housetraining accomplishments and may have made your Dachshund very sad and depressed.

Dachshunds really don’t like to incorporate potty space with living space.  Your Dachshund will need you to boost his confidence with his bathroom skills.

Older Dachshunds usually have more bladder control than a young pup.  This allows the older Dachshund to go for longer periods in between bathroom breaks.  If your Dachshund is constantly having accidents you may need to get him checked out.  He may have a urinary tract infection, diarrhea or some type of medical problem.

If you notice a sudden or drastic change in your Dachshund’s potty habits it is a good idea to take him to the vet for safe measure.  Potty problems can be a sign of something much more serious.

If it turns out that your Doxie puppy has a medical condition, take it easy with the potty training.  Your Dachshund needs lots of love and affection and may not be able to control his urges or be able to focus on them.  Keep your Dachshund on a leash when he’s not in the crate and keep a close eye on him for signs that he needs to potty while he is recovering.

You’ll find that a crate and leash are a magical combination for training your Dachshund dog!

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Are you considering adopting an adult Doxie dog? If so, congratulations!

Keep in mind that adding an adult Dachshund dog into your home demands as much effort from you and the family as does a puppy, especially when it comes to house training. Many folks make the mistake of thinking that just because the Dachshund is full-grown and may have been potty trained in one home, that he’ll just immediately adjust to your home’s elimination schedule, too.

That’s not realistic. The Dachshund has many adjustments to his new environment and doesn’t instinctively know that you don’t allow peeing on the floor - especially his prior owner didn’t mind or didn’t seem to care.

Don’t make the mistake of assuming that because he’s an adult Dachshund that he’ll just “know” what to do. Start with him as if he were a puppy and gradually teach him the routine of your home’s pet potty schedule.

You probably need to start with crate training or restriction to an indoor bathroom area. Then set a schedule for potty breaks. Adult Dachshunds are very picky about finding a potty place outside that’s apart from where they play, just as they don’t like to potty near where they sleep or eat.

Take your Dachshund outside in your yard and choose a spot for your Dachshund to go potty. The key is to bring the Dachshund back to that same exact spot on each visit outdoors so that he knows that is where he needs to go. Monitoring your Dachshund’s elimination patterns can help you devise the right schedule for potty breaks as well.

It is also important to set a schedule for feedings in the morning and in the evening. Your Dachshund may have never been on such a set schedule before so this will take some time for adjusting. You may have heard the common saying, “you can’t teach an old Dachshund new tricks”. In truth, age does not matter, it is consistency that counts.

Your Dachshund may have also come from an abusive household. Even things like yelling or smacking the Dachshund with a newspaper could have caused your pet a lot of fear. This is why you need to be patient and build the Dachshund’s confidence so that he understands your intentions and can make adjustments without being afraid.

Many accidents will occur in the house so be prepared to clean up after your Dachshund and move on. You can’t just assume that training a grown Dachshund will be a piece of cake compared to training a puppy. Both young and older Dachshunds will need time to adjust to new surroundings. You have to be firm while you are training but show a little affection so that your Dachshund knows the benefits of good behavior.

Finally, older male Dachshunds have a tendency to mark their territory by peeing on things. It is an instinctive behavior which can be greatly improved by simply having the Dachshund neutered.

Good luck with housetraining your new adult Doxie!!!

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Two quick tidbits showcasing Dachshund lovers and their businesses:

First, meet Pamela Ruckelshausen, an owner of 4 miniature Dachshunds and inventor of the 1st ever Dachshund faucet (you read that right!)

“There is no other manufacturer that I am aware of who has ever produced a faucet even remotely similar to the Mia Princessa,” says Pamela Ruckelshausen founder, manager and chief human officer of the company.

Ruckelshausen has worked at a plumbing and electrical company for 18 years. Her inspiration for creating this product was her 4 Miniature Dachshunds: Mia, Rucks, Will and Brownie. She says that she named the company in their honor and elected them as the honorable president and vice presidents. As the chief human officer, Ruckelshausen assists her Dachshunds in running the company.

Second, stop by Dog Art Today to wish Dachshund-lover Moira a happy birthday on her website. Moira’s producing some wonderful dog artwork and products, and of course we love the Dachshund items the best!

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One of the most popular questions from many new Dachshund owners seems to be “what is the best method for Dachshund housetraining“?

Opinions vary greatly. Some favor crate training, some paper training, and some other methods.

The best way of housetraining Dachshunds in our humble opinion is to use the schedule-based method. This means setting up and sticking to a schedule for potty breaks.

Just remember to be patient in your expectations, as Doxie housetraining will take time and effort, usually from several weeks to a few months, until your Doxie will learn their routine.

You can help your Dachshund know when it’s the right time to go potty by repeating that routine consistently.  When most people wake up, they usually go to the bathroom soon afterwards.

It’s no secret that your Doxie will need the same thing! So do your dog a favor and don’t dilly-dally…take your Dachshund out as soon as you’re up and moving. Just think that she has been holding it all night, and how you might feel if that were you!

This morning potty break should be short. Next, allow your Dachshund to eat breakfast as you’re getting dressed and ready for the day. Next, take your Doxie out for a potty break once you’ve had your breakfast and are ready to go out for the day.

Ideally, your Doxie has had enough time since their breakfast for the food settle, and if so he will be ready for potty before you leave for the day. If you have a Doxie puppy, you’re going to need to plan a mid-morning and mid-afternoon break.

For those who work or are out of the house most of the day, find a family member or friend or dog-walker to take care of the mid-morning and mid-afternoon breaks for you. Just be sure that whoever does this follows the housetraining schedule you have created down to the letter. These potty breaks should be short, under fifteen minutes for sure, and should not be confused with play time.

For dinner time, use a similar housetraining schedule This means taking your Dachshund out as soon as you get back to the house. Try to feed your Doxie dinner at the same time each day.

Your goal is to feed your Doxie early enough in the evening such that he has time for the food to digest and be ready for a potty break before going down for sleep. And you’ll want to follow the same pattern and schedule for housetraining the next day, and the following day, and so on.

You can make notes on the times and potty breaks for your Dachshund. We’ve even seen people make a simple checklist of the Doxie’s schedule and post it on the refrigerator for the whole family. This involves the whole family in housetraining your Doxie as well as giving you a more accurate view of your dog’s potty needs.

When your Dachshund completes his potty break, remember to give him praise and affection. You can offer a Doxie biscuit, but it’s not necessary. He’s just as happy with your approval. Instead of the old training methods that punish a Dachshund for making a mess in the house, you take the more effective positive approach to show him approval for getting the job done during a scheduled potty break.

Since your Dachshund wants you to love him, he will be willing to try his best to please you. Just don’t make it difficult.  If you’re running late and miss his potty break, clean it up and get back on track without scolding him. Your Doxie depends on you for many things, including staying on target for housetraining. He doesn’t want to mess in his space - or in yours - so help him do the right thing by sticking to a schedule.

Hope this gives you some food for thought when dealing with Dachshund housetraining! We find that this method produces the best long-term results as well as keeping your Doxie happy & healthy.

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Are you having housetraining issues with your older Doxie? If so, you’re not alone. I’ve known several Dachshund owners that have been surprised when their previously perfectly potty trained Dachshund suddenly “fell off the wagon” and made a huge mess in the house.

“There’s no way that my Doxie forgot their training!” is their most common reaction.

And it’s natural if one thinks there must be another cause for the mess, such as a broken pipe or a faucet left on…until the moment when the Dachshund is caught in the act!

It’s typical, after a lot of screaming and disbelief, for the Dachshund to be quickly banished out-of-doors. But the truth is that such harsh and fast action can actually have a negative impact on a mature Doxie. That’s because most often it is a medical or psychological cause involved that requires some treatment.

The medical reasons will be covered first, since the majority of cases can be traced to that cause, rather than the psychological. It is important that the reasons for such behavior be pointed out and thoroughly checked before any retraining techniques are instituted.

Most Dachshund owners know that the aging process of their Dachshund will manifest itself in a gradual loss of hearing, followed by diminished vision. Squeezed somewhere in between, signs of arthritis might show up, decreased in appetite, more frequent naps, and other tell-tale signs which may become evident. What is not widely known is that toilet training is one of the first things to go!

Since this is not widely known, it’s understandable that Dachshund owners think that his Dachshund has forgotten potty training, is not as smart as previously thought, is lazy, or has turned into a sneaky little dog. The truth is that this behavior is more likely the first sign of the inevitable aging process. In fact, as your Dachshund gets older, the muscles of the bladder gradually lose their control, much like older human experience.

In the male, the aging process can also cause the prostate gland to enlarge, and this will produce an inflammation which will cause him to urinate often. Kidney diseases occurs in about 76% of Dachshunds over eight years of age. When a Dachshund ages, there is a gradual degeneration of kidney tissue with a weakening of the kidney function.

Older Dachshunds need to drink 2x the amount of water that Dachshund pups to fight off these kidney problems. It’s little wonder then, with such increased water consumption comes the need for more pees.

Unlike their younger days, mature Dachshund dogs will need to potty a lot more often. It’s common for the dog to make itself clear by going to the door, ringing its bell, etc. And it’s also common for owners to miss their Dachshund’s signs because they’re used to how things used to be.

The Dachshund then has only one choice and ends up peeing in the home. No doubt the Dachshund is just as unhappy as you when things come to this. In such cases, shaming and scolding will only make the situation worse, especially if the Dachshund tried to communicate, only to have his communication fall on deaf or inattentive ears.

Stay tuned for the more articles to help you with your older Dachshund!

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The American Kennel Club recently released its annual list of the most popular dog breeds in America, and our beloved Dachshund came in seventh place!

Here’s their ranking chart, which shows the trends in popularity over the last four years.

While the Dachshund may be the 7th most popular dog breed in America, it’s the most popular and beloved dog breed here at UltimateDachshund.com!

(BTW, this is a good opportunity to refresh yourself on the official AKC breed standard for the Doxie, lots of good info on our delightful dog there)

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As we get 2008 started (Happy New Year by the way!), I wanted to step back a bit and look at the amazing changes we’ve seen in Dachshund training over the years.

Smart Dachshund owners know that the best bet is to start training a Dachshund puppy from day one so that he can learn proper manners as he grows into adulthood. Puppies that are not trained in this manner end up learning all of the wrong stuff and their owners wonder why they cannot seem to get their dogs to behave as they age.

Many years ago, dog training methods were significantly more punishment oriented, using harsh and negative reinforcement methods to train Dachshunds. Trainers typically required all puppy trainees to be at least six months old. The reason was partly due to the fact that such physical correction protocols used could not be done with dogs that were too small (a big issue with Doxies of course) or too young.

What was ironic and ineffective about dog training in the old days is that by the time most Dachshund puppies are six months old they are mentally stubborn enough to ignore commands and are altogether tough to train.

Evolution To Today’s Better Training Methods

Over the last 20 years or so, the dog training profession has embraced more friendly and loving training tactics for their puppy clients. Most trainers now start training Dachshund puppies that are as young as 8 to 10 weeks old. They are typically enrolled in socialization classes and puppy kindergarten (called “Puppy One” here at our local dog training facility).

Positive training is now used instead of the old-school methods of negative reinforcement. Dachshund puppies are taught to walk politely on the leash. They learn the basic commands of sit, stay, lie down, and come. In addition to these simple instructions, other useful techniques are learned such as training your Dachshund to wait, how to relax, give and take their paw, and polite greeting. The methods used are much more positive and based on rewarding good behavior rather than punishing poor behavior.

These Days, Dachshund Owners Are More Involved With Training

Another interesting aspect of raising Dachshund that has been noted over the last couple of years is that more and more dog owners have taken it upon themselves to train their puppies. It used to be more of a service performed by trainers for dogs…the trained dog would be taken, trained and then returned to the owner.

This is partly due to the fact that so many dog training publications and manuals have been written. Modern dog training programs are based more and more on scientific principles and psychological studies of animal behavior and temperament. For example, Dachshund owners have learned highly effective, positive reinforcement training programs such as clicker training and luring, the preferred methods of the trainers here at UltimateDachshund.com.

Clicker training involves the use of a small mechanism that makes a clicking sound when pressed. When a Dachshund hears the sound it will associate the click with whatever reward you give him. This tells the animal that something good is coming and he should repeat whatever behavior or action you have been teaching him.

Luring training is simply using food such as a dog treat, or even a toy, to induce the dog to display a specific behavior in order to follow the lure in hopes of getting the reward. I call it an “ethical bribe” and it is one of the single most effective motivations for training your Dachshund! It’s a part of all of our training programs.

As you can see, quite a bit in the last 20 years!

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As a fellow Dachshund lover, I just wanted to wish you and your Doxie a very happy holiday!

My Dachshund will be a big part of our family’s celebrations on Christmas tomorrow morning.

May 2008 be a wonderful year for you, your family and your darling Dachshunds!

Best wishes,

Michelle and Allen

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Dachshund training with leashes is very important but often neglected by new Dachshund owners. The process of getting your Dachshund used to being on leash is fairly simple and just takes a little bit of your time. Trust me, this small investment of properly training your dog to walk politely on his leash will pay high dividends in the near future! There’s nothing more embarrassing than a Dachshund who is out of control on the leash in public.

Leash Training Questions

I get plenty of questions from new Dachshund owners that ask me about leash training. They want to know what type of leash is best, what type to avoid, how long they should walk their dog, and most often, how to get the Doxie to stop pulling.

Here are some FAQs for training your Dachshund with a leash. Remember, there is no one best way to do anything so when it comes to dog training, whether it involves leash training or another type of training. One important point…negative dog training is not recommended and highly discouraged!

Here are a few basic leash training FAQs:

1. How much “rope” should I allow the leash to extend when walking my Dachshund? According to most dog trainers, your Doxie does not need anymore than 5 to 6 feet of distance to roam when you are walking him. This is plenty of room for you to keep control of the situation, while at the same time giving your dog a chance to sniff out interesting areas along the way.

2. What type of material should the leash be made of? If you go to most pet stores you’ll find that the majority of leashes for sale are made of nylon. In terms of positives, nylon is easy to wash and comes in all kinds of pretty colors. However, they will burn your hand if the dog suddenly pulls and the leash moves through your fingers.

My recommendation is to use a leather leash. In fact, a 6 foot leash made of leather is the perfect size and material. It will last a long time and you will not experience any type of burning sensation if it is pulled. The grip is firm and your control is increased. The cons are leather leashes are hard to clean and are typically a bit more expensive than nylon.

3. What about using metal chain leashes? Metal chain leashes are practically indestructible and will last a very long time, but just like nylon material, a chain leash can hurt your hands if the dog yanks hard and your grip slips. In fact, the injury could be much more severe than a nylon burn. For a small dog like a Dachshund, I think a metal chain leash is unnecessary.

4. How wide should the leash be? Approximately ½ inches to ¾ inches is best. Try to avoid heavy, bulky leashes.

Good luck with training your Dachshund with a leash!

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Micro-chipping your Dachshund could easily be compared to insurance – you will be very glad you did it but you hope you never have to use it!

There are a couple basic forms of identification that we recommend for each and every Dachshund – collars/tags and microchips. Think of these as “low tech” and “high tech” solutions to ensure your Dachshund’s safety and to allow you to feel secure knowing that you’re protecting your dog.

When it comes to your dog, and especially your Dachshund who is small in size, you never know when they might accidentally slip out the back door…and having proper identification can mean the difference between getting your lovable Dachshund back into your arms, or losing him forever!

What Are The Best Forms Of Identification For My Dachshund?

Here are the two types of identification that we recommend to help identify your Dachshund if he or she was ever to become lost:

1. Basic Tags and Collars: Collars and tags are inexpensive, highly effective and can be obtained quickly. There are an endless number of options available for collars and tags for your Dachshund — you can order metal or plastic tags that have your Dachshund’s name, your address and phone number imprinted on them, and then attach the tag to the dog’s collar.

This form of identification is also easy to spot and anybody who sees your Dachshund running loose outside can simply look down and check to see what family he belongs to.

Unfortunately, tags can also be easily removed or torn off. If your Dachshund somehow loses his collar and tags then there is very little chance of getting him back. And sadly there are also unscrupulous thieves out there who will be more than happy to see a Dachshund roaming around by himself and will remove its collar in order to take it home.

2. Microchips: They sound very “high tech” and fancy, but in fact microchips for dogs and other house pets have actually been around for quite a while! Microchips are our second recommendation for each and every Dachshund.

Here’s how it works… A very small microchip is surgically implanted into your Dachshund underneath the skin and generally in between the shoulder blades. The chip’s size is no bigger than a grain of rice…amazing, isn’t it?!…and this small chip contains all of your contact information. This information is also stored in a national database. The chip’s information can be read by a special scanner, and these scanners are often available at many veterinarian facilities and animal shelters.

Sounds pretty high-tech, but it’s actually quite common…and it could mean the difference between getting your Doxie back and heartbreak. So we recommend you microchip your Dachshund today!

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