“The skin is soft in the smooth haired dogs, and like that of any other hound, but in the rough variety it is like that of the Otterhound’s.

“Colour, of course, is a matter of fancy, although I infinitely prefer the tricolour, which has a tan head and a black and white body.”

CHAPTER XXVII

THE DACHSHUND

Persons unfamiliar with the sporting properties of this long-bodied breed are apt to refer smilingly to the Dachshund as “the dog that is sold by the yard,” and few even of those who know him give credit to the debonair little fellow for the grim work which he is intended to perform in doing battle with the vicious badger in its lair.  Dachshund means “badger dog,” and it is a title fairly and squarely earned in his native Germany.

Given proper training, he will perform the duties of several sporting breeds rolled into one.  Possessing a wonderful nose, combined with remarkable steadiness, his kind will work out the coldest scent, and once fairly on the line they will give plenty of music and get over the ground at a pace almost incredible.  Dachshunds hunt well in a pack, and, though it is not their recognised vocation, they can be successfully used on hare, on fox, and any form of vermin that wears a furry coat.  But his legitimate work is directed against the badger, in locating the brock under ground, worrying and driving him into his innermost earth, and there holding him until dug out.  It is no part of his calling to come to close grips, though that often happens in the confined space in which he has to work.  In this position a badger with his powerful claws digs with such energy and skill as rapidly to bury himself, and the Dachshund needs to be provided with such apparatus as will permit him to clear his way and keep in touch with his formidable quarry.  The badger is also hunted by Dachshunds above ground, usually in the mountainous parts of Germany, and in the growing crops of maize, on the lower slopes, where the vermin work terrible havoc in the evening.  In this case the badger is rounded up and driven by the dogs up to the guns which are posted between the game and their earths.  For this sport the dog used is heavier, coarser, and of larger build, higher on the leg, and more generally houndy in appearance.  Dachshunds are frequently used for deer driving, in which operation they are especially valuable, as they work slowly, and do not frighten or overrun their quarry, and can penetrate the densest undergrowth.  Packs of Dachshunds may sometimes be engaged on wild boar, and, as they are web-footed and excellent swimmers, there is no doubt that their terrier qualities would make them useful assistants to the Otterhound.  Apropos of their capabilities in the water it is the case that a year or two ago, at Offenbach-on-Main, at some trials arranged for life-saving by dogs, a Dachshund carried off the first prize against all comers.