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I Thought Dachshunds Love Snow

Dachshund Luke thinks it is just cold rain

We all know that Dachshunds hate the rain but I had heard that they love the snow.

I was so excited this morning to see our Spanish village covered in a layer of beautiful snow. When Dachshund Luke emerged from under the blankets (2 hours after us) I grabbed the camera and we headed out of the door.

Dachshund Luke had done his happy dance to my magic words “Do you want to go for a walk” but skidded to a halt in our doorway looking annoyed with this cold white stuff that had invaded his driveway. Ok, I just thought he was unsure of what to do with the snow so scooped him up and marched outside.

I gently lowered  him to the ground. He sniffed the snow, shivered and then lifted each foot as high as he could – which is only about 3 inches – then begged to be picked back up – by jumping at my leg leaving tiny wet cold patches on my jeans.

We tried this a few times but he was not amused.

He is now back inside and after wiggling on the sofa is happily snuggled back under the blankets in our bed.

Maybe I will try again later but I think Dachshund Luke is one of those Dachshunds that just thinks snow is cold rain.

Does your Dachshund like the snow?

Dachshund Luke Holiday Video Happy Holidays Everyone

Dachshund Luke rocking to Elvis

Dachshund Luke And Kitty Kat Find The Sun

Hunting down the sun in the winter 

Dachshund owners know that their Dachshund is always somewhere close by. Therefore, it was an odd feeling when I stood up and realized I did not have a nine-pound Dachshund sleeping up my sweatshirt. Odd.  

He was not under the blankets in bed either. Even odder. We had not lit the fire yet, so he was not snuggled on his cushion… 

Umm, I knew he was not outside since it is too cold for him to spend any longer than necessary shivering in the garden. In a slight panic, I tried to remember the last time the front door had been opened. Is he wandering the streets of Spain, perhaps following a mule? 

No such excitement for Dachshund Luke, you see the clouds had parted enough to let a ray of warm sun hit our open back door. 

There he sat with Kitty Kat soaking up what little winter warm Spain could throw their way.  

Dachshund Luke will do anything to find a bit of warmth – even forgo my sweatshirt to enjoy the sunshine.

Dachshund Recipes Please! What Are You Cooking Tonight?

 

What's this? I thought you were cooking tonight!

Hello Dachshund lovers,

Due to popular demand from my friends, the wonderful people who adopted our fosters, and Dachshund lovers I am in the middle of putting together a Dachshund recipe ebook.

WOW am I crazy? Maybe it is a lot of work but…

I got fed up of searching for home cooked meals that Dachshunds love. Now dont get me wrong there are a lot of interesting dog food books available but they are either complicated, full of unobtainable ingredients or just not suitable for our little Dachshunds. I know that there are some wonderful Dachshund lovers that visit my site everyday, who care about their Dachshunds and know that what they eat affects their health and lifespan. We all know the dangers of commercial dog foods as evidence by all the recent recalls!

So, Dachshund lovers – What are you cooking for your Dachshund tonight?

What do I want?

I am looking for Dachshund recipes that have been tried and tested on Dachshunds to be included in my new ebook

What do you get?

If I include your recipe you will get a big blue link to your website or blog PLUS a free copy of the ebook!

How do you submit your favorite Dachshund recipes?

Please email me at luke@dachshundluke.com 

Include recipes – pictures would be great! (you can submit as many as you like)

The link to either your Dachshund blog or website that you would like included.

Please do not add them here – the comments will get way too long!

 This is a great way to help other Dachshund owners keep their Dachshunds healthy.

Any questions? Please email me luke@dachshundluke.com

 Thanks to those that have already sent me great recipes! Please keep them coming!

Does Your Dachshund Like The Cold Weather?

With their thin coat it is not suprising that Dachshunds feel the cold! Dachshund Luke is already shivering and he is in Spain. The temperature has only dropped a few degrees and already he is shivering and wants to spend his day either snuggled under blankets or secure and warm inside my sweatshirt.

So looks like I am going to spend from now until the end of winter with Dachshund Luke living inside my sweatshirt – does not make it so easy to move around the house, however his warm little body is comforting and keeps me snug too!

How does your Dachshund deal with the cold weather?

Is Dog Food Safe For Our Dachshunds

Well Dachshund lovers ever since Dachshund Luke got very sick from eating those cute little individual cans of dog food and the dog food recalls I have been swinging towards homemade.

About three years ago Dachshund Luke ended up very sick and needed an emergency operation. He had a blockage and food was not getting into his stomach – which was full of bile. We thought we were going to lose him, but luckily after a seven day stay at the vets (and a big bill) we were able to bring him  home and nurse him to health.

In some pictures of Dachshund Luke (they are all over the internet!) you might have noticed a little bald patch on his back – that is where they inserted a drip. He has a scar running the whole length of his belly. But he is still one proud Dachshund and thinks he is the bees knees.

The vet warned me against feeding him commercial food. His little belly could not take it any more. He also said that it is quite common among Dachshunds and other small breeds and that he has seen an increase of food related allergies – often just suddenly appearing.

Of course lots of Dachshunds can eat anything without ever getting sick but Dachshund Luke is now on a strict diet of Prescription food and homemade.

Since we have had a little more time on our hands lately I have been doing further research on dog food – I have written a rather long article (sorry! but there is a short video you can watch). It breaks down the ingredients on the dog food labels.

As you know I love Dachshunds and expecially Dachshund Luke so please take a look and get informed at Dachshund Dog Food Can Cause Sickness And Allergies

Where is the above link taking you? To the home of Dachshund Luke 

Dachshund Needs A Bath

Dachshund Luke is not a water fan so bath time can be a little bit of a challenge for all of us.

Over the years I have learnt not to mention the word ‘Bath’ anytime in the same month as I plan to bath him! He knows if hears ‘Bath’ then he will not go anywhere near the bathroom for weeks.

Luckily he does not need to be bathed that often BUT he loves to roll in anything dead, smelly, or unmentionable.

Most of the time we can get away with using a wet cloth (often mixing warm water with a little vinegar) – he is so tiny after all and a dishtowel is big enough to cover him.

BUT every now and then, however wet that cloth may be it just will not be enough to remove the latest ‘rollin good time’.

So my husband and I do the secret motion for bath time (Dachshund Luke has not learnt it yet) and the fun begins……

Click here to find out -  How To Give A Dachshund A Bath 

 

www.dachshundluke.com - Yes Dachshund Luke has a website!

Dachshunds Know When A Toy Is Missing!

Does your Dachshund know when a toy is missing?

Dachshund Luke does – he checks all his toys at least once a day to make sure they are accounted for. He also loves to play ‘find it’ – toy hide n seek. Well today, there has been an unplanned ‘find it’ – the missing ball that he will not find, but keeps looking for.

It all started when Dachshund Luke bounced a ball out the back door, down the steps and onto the balcony. He has been taught not to go down these steep concrete steps (we carry his out) but enjoys bouncing the ball down there and us throwing it back to him.

I am not good at throwing so never should have attempted to throw the ball from our balcony up 3 steps into our doorway. The doorway the Dachshund Luke was standing in anticipaticion, waiting for his ball.

I threw it without thinking and the ball caught the corner of the door, bounced in front of Dachshund Luke’s nose and then dived over the balcony. Plummeting 2 stories, bouncing off our car and coming to rest in the barranco – a weed filled shallow river that runs around the village and only flows when it rains hard.

Dachshund Luke thought we were playing ‘find it’ and began searching for the ball. He searched for nearly an hour then started to bark at us – he wanted his ball back!

We did look in the barranco but the long weeds, and the goat tied up next to it prevented a result. We knew we somehow had to distract Dachshund Luke so that he would stop the hunting and then barking cycle.

No other ball would do. A long walk didn’t do it.

Then I remembered the giant shirt ball video at http://kalyxcornucopia.blogspot.com/ home of a Dachshund called Baxter. I wondered if we too wrapped a ball up in a couple of towels then stuffed it all into a t-shirt (knotted together) would this distract him?

I worked – he loved the ‘giant shirt ball’, shook it, and dug at it for 40 minutes. Then laid down exhausted and is currently sleeping with Kitty Kat.

Thanks Baxter! Now we just have to hope that when he wakes up he will not remember his missing ball.

Dachshunds Can Drown In Swimming Pools

Hi Dachshund lovers,

Hate to be bringing up such a horrid subject but I wanted everyone to remember Dachshunds can and do drown in swimming pools.
Never leave them alone near a pool or body of water even if yours is a good swimmer.
They could easily fall in – or just fancy a swim and jump in – and then find they cannot get out again.
Look at their little legs, most swimming pools are too difficult for them to reach the sides.

I know of a Dachshund that sadly died this month – his owner said that he often went for a splash around when they were swimming. However, this time he jumped in when he was alone outside and could not get out.

Tips if you have a pool:

• Think about installing a fence around  your pool (some states in the USA this is compulsary)
• Cover your pool – If  you have a cover and your Dachshund will be outside alone then please use it.
• Inform ALL family members and visitors of the risk of your Dachshund not being able to get back out of the pool.
• Get a kids paddling pool for them to play in – especially if you Dachshund loves water.
• Get them a life jacket to wear when swimming – these are also come with a handle on top so it is easy to scoop your Dachshund up.
• Make sure your Dachshund understands a Stop command – No! Stop! and obays it – training, training! If they understand and react your Dachshund will be safer from danger.

Dachshund Luke added Dachshund Life Jackets to his  Dog toys and Supplies That Dachshunds Love site – Click Here to have  a look.

I found this site when looking up training and liked the free video
Online dog training video that is worth looking at.

Our little Dachshunds are precious but also have a mind of their own. Know where your Dachshund is and train him to come back when called.

Training a Dachshund – Because They Are Small

OK, it seems that I have had many new Dachshund owners telling me that they do not feel it is necessary to train a small dog - because you can pick them up!

While it is true that they are easy to scoop up and removed from trouble this is not training them – quite the opposite – they are training you!

These intelligent little ones soon learn that whenever they do a certain thing (bark, dig holes, chew the furniture etc) they are held in the nice arms of their human. What more can a Dachshund want? Do you think they are going to stop this bad behavior? NO.

Dachshunds need to be trained with positive reinforcement – when they do something right – and a sharp NO when they do something wrong. Please no hitting or scaring them.

Hundreds of Dachshunds end up in shelters every year because their owners failed to train them correctly. Their behavior may be cute as a puppy but will soon get old. You owe it to yourself and your Dachshund to get them on a short fun training program.

“Train your Dachshund – do no let him train you.”

Information on training your wonderful Dachshund the easy way:

How To Potty Train A Dachshund 

How To Potty Train A Dachshund Puppy

Trainer To The Stars Answers Your Questions – Free Video