The Dachshund Breed Standard
According to the Dachshund Club of America
Group: Hound
General Appearance - Low to ground, long in body and short of leg, with
robust muscular development; the skin is elastic and pliable without
excessive wrinkling. Appearing neither crippled, awkward, nor cramped
in his capacity for movement, the Dachshund is well balanced with bold
and confident head carriage and intelligent, alert facial expression. His
hunting spirit, good nose, loud tongue and distinctive build make him
well-suited for below-ground work and for beating the bush. His keen
nose gives him an advantage over most other breeds for trailing.
NOTE: Inasmuch as the Dachshund is a hunting dog, scars from
honorable wounds shall not be considered a fault.
Size, Proportion, Substance - Bred and shown in two sizes, standard
and miniature; miniatures are not a separate classification but compete
in a class division for "11 pounds and under at 12 months of age and
older." Weight of the standard size is usually between 16 and 32 pounds.
Head - Viewed from above or from the side, the head tapers uniformly
to the tip of the nose. The eyes are of medium size, almond-shaped and
dark-rimmed, with an energetic, pleasant expression; not piercing; very
dark in color. The bridge bones over the eyes are strongly prominent. Wall
eyes, except in the case of dappled dogs, are a serious fault. The ears are
set near the top of the head, not too far forward, of moderate length,
rounded, not narrow, pointed, or folded. Their carriage, when animated,
is with the forward edge just touching the cheek so that the ears frame
the face. The skull is slightly arched, neither too broad nor too narrow,
and slopes gradually with little perceptible stop into the finely-formed,
slightly arched muzzle, giving a Roman appearance. Lips are tightly
stretched, well covering the lower jaw. Nostrils well open. Jaws opening
wide and hinged well back of the eyes, with strongly developed bones and
teeth. Teeth - Powerful canine teeth; teeth fit closely together in a scissors
bite. An even bite is a minor fault. Any other deviation is a serious fault.
Neck - Long, muscular, clean-cut, without dewlap, slightly arched in the
nape, flowing gracefully into the shoulders without creating the impression
of a right angle.
Trunk - The trunk is long and fully muscled. When viewed in profile, the
back lies in the straightest possible line between the withers and the short,
very slightly arched loin. A body that hangs loosely between the shoulders
is a serious fault. Abdomen - Slightly drawn up.
Forequarters - For effective underground work, the front must be strong,
deep, long and cleanly muscled. Forequarters in detail: Chest - The
breast-bone is strongly prominent in front so that on either side a
depression or dimple appears. When viewed from the front, the thorax
appears oval and extends downward to the mid-point of the forearm.
The enclosing structure of the well-sprung ribs appears full and oval to
allow, by its ample capacity, complete development of heart and lungs.
The keel merges gradually into the line of the abdomen and extends
well beyond the front legs. Viewed in profile, the lowest point of the
breast line is covered by the front leg. Shoulder blades - Long, broad,
well laid back and firmly placed upon the fully developed thorax, closely
fitted at the withers, furnished with hard yet pliable muscles.
Upper Arm - Ideally the same length as the shoulder blade and at right
angles to the latter, strong of bone and hard of muscle, lying close to
the ribs, with elbows close to the body, yet capable of free movement.
Forearm – Short; supplied with hard yet pliable muscles on the front
and outside, with tightly stretched tendons on the inside and at the back,
slightly curved inwards. The joints between the forearms and the feet
(wrists) are closer together than the shoulder joints, so that the front
does not appear absolutely straight. The inclined shoulder blades, upper
arms and curved forearms form parentheses that enclose the ribcage,
creating the correct “wraparound front.” Knuckling over is a disqualifying
fault. Feet - Front paws are full, tight, compact, with well-arched toes and
tough, thick pads. They may be equally inclined a trifle outward. There
are five toes, four in use, close together with a pronounced arch and
strong, short nails. Front dewclaws may be removed.
Hindquarters - Strong and cleanly muscled. The pelvis, the thigh, the
second thigh, and the rear pastern are ideally the same length and give
the appearance of a series of right angles. From the rear, the thighs are
strong and powerful. The legs turn neither in nor out. Rear pasterns -
Short and strong, perpendicular to the second thigh bone. When viewed
from behind, they are upright and parallel. Feet - Hind Paws - Smaller
than the front paws with four compactly closed and arched toes with
tough, thick pads. The entire foot points straight ahead and is balanced
equally on the ball and not merely on the toes. Rear dewclaws should
be removed. Croup - Long, rounded and full, sinking slightly toward the
tail. Tail - Set in continuation of the spine, extending without kinks,
twists, or pronounced curvature, and not carried too gaily.
Gait - Fluid and smooth. Forelegs reach well forward, without much lift,
in unison with the driving action of hind legs. The correct shoulder
assembly and well-fitted elbows allow the long, free stride in front.
Viewed from the front, the legs do not move in exact parallel planes,
but incline slightly inward. Hind legs drive on a line with the forelegs,
with hock joints and rear pasterns (metatarsus) turning neither in nor out.
The propulsion of the hind leg depends on the dog's ability to carry the
hind leg to complete extension. Viewed in profile, the forward reach of
the hind leg equals the rear extension. The thrust of correct movement
is seen when the rear pads are clearly exposed during rear extension.
Rear feet do not reach upward toward the abdomen and there is no
appearance of walking on the rear pasterns. Feet must travel parallel
to the line of motion with no tendency to swing out, cross over, or
interfere with each other. Short, choppy movement, rolling or
high-stepping gait, close or overly wide coming or going are incorrect.
The Dachshund must have agility, freedom of movement, and
endurance to do the work for which he was developed.
Temperament - The Dachshund is clever, lively and courageous to the
point of rashness, persevering in above- and below-ground work, with
all the senses well developed. Any display of shyness is a serious fault.
Special Characteristics of the Three Coat Varieties - The Dachshund is
bred with three varieties of coat: (1) Smooth; (2) Wirehaired;
(3) Longhaired and is shown in two sizes, standard and miniature.
All three varieties and both sizes must conform to the characteristics
already specified. The following features are applicable for each variety:
Smooth Dachshund -Coat - Short, smooth and shining. Should be neither
too long nor too thick. Ears not leathery. Tail - Gradually tapered to a
point, well but not too richly haired. Long sleek bristles on the underside
are considered a patch of strong-growing hair, not a fault. A brush tail is
a fault, as is also a partly or wholly hairless tail. Color of Hair - Although
base color is immaterial, certain patterns and basic colors predominate.
One-colored Dachshunds include red and cream, with or without a
shading of interspersed dark hairs. A small amount of white on the chest
is acceptable, but not desirable. Nose and nails - black.
Two-colored Dachshunds include black, chocolate, wild boar, gray (blue)
and fawn (Isabella), each with deep, rich tan or cream markings over
the eyes, on the sides of the jaw and underlip, on the inner edge of the
ear, front, breast, sometimes on the throat, inside and behind the front
legs, on the paws and around the anus, and from there to about one-third
to one-half of the length of the tail on the underside. Undue prominence of
tan or cream markings is undesirable. A small amount of white on the
chest is acceptable but not desirable. Nose and nails - in the case of black
dogs, black; for chocolate and all other colors, dark brown, but self-colored
is acceptable.
Dappled dachshunds - The dapple (merle) pattern is expressed as
lighter-colored areas contrasting with the darker base color, which may
be any acceptable color. Neither the light nor the dark color should
predominate. Nose and nails are the same as for one- and two-colored
Dachshunds. Partial or wholly blue (wall) eyes are as acceptable as dark
eyes. A large area of white on the chest of a dapple is permissible.
Brindle is a pattern (as opposed to a color) in which black or dark stripes
occur over the entire body although in some specimens the pattern may
be visible only in the tan points.
Sable – the sable pattern consists of a uniform dark overlay on red dogs.
The overlay hairs are double-pigmented, with the tip of each hair much
darker than the base color. The pattern usually displays a widow’s peak
on the head. Nose, nails and eye rims are black. Eyes are dark, the darker
the better.
Wirehaired Dachshunds - Coat - With the exception of jaw, eyebrows,
and ears, the whole body is covered with a uniform tight, short, thick,
rough, hard, outer coat but with finer, somewhat softer, shorter hairs
(undercoat) everywhere distributed between the coarser hairs. The
absence of an undercoat is a fault. The distinctive facial furnishings
include a beard and eyebrows. On the ears the hair is shorter than
on the body, almost smooth. The general arrangement of the hair is
such that the wirehaired Dachshund, when viewed from a distance,
resembles the smooth. Any sort of soft hair in the outercoat, wherever
found on the body, especially on the top of the head, is a fault. The
same is true of long, curly, or wavy hair, or hair that sticks out irregularly
in all directions. Tail - Robust, thickly haired, gradually tapering to a point.
A flag tail is a fault. Color of Hair - While the most common colors are
wild boar, black and tan, and various shades of red, all colors and patterns
listed above are admissible.
Wild boar (agouti) appears as banding of the individual hairs and imparts
an overall grizzled effect which is most often seen on wirehaired
Dachshunds, but may also appear on other coats. Tan points may or
may not be evident. Variations include red boar and chocolate-and-tan
boar. Nose, nails and eye rims are black on wild-boar and red-boar
dachshunds. On chocolate-and-tan-boar dachshunds, nose, nails, eye
rims and eyes are self-colored, the darker the better.
A small amount of white on the chest, although acceptable, is not
desirable. Nose and nails - same as for the smooth variety.
Longhaired Dachshund - Coat - The sleek, glistening, often slightly wavy
hair is longer under the neck and on forechest, the underside of the body,
the ears and behind the legs. The coat gives the dog an elegant
appearance. Short hair on the ear is not desirable. Too profuse a coat
which masks type, equally long hair over the whole body, a curly coat, or
a pronounced parting on the back are faults. Tail - Carried gracefully in
prolongation of the spine; the hair attains its greatest length here and
forms a veritable flag. Color of Hair - Same as for the smooth Dachshund.
Nose and nails - same as for the smooth.
The foregoing description is that of the ideal Dachshund. Any deviation
from the above described dog must be penalized to the extent of the
deviation keeping in mind the importance of the contribution of the
various features toward the basic original purpose of the breed.
DISQUALIFICATION: Knuckling over of front legs.
