Raising Healthy Dachsund Puppies from Birth to Maturity

The first few weeks of a dachsund puppy's life are crucial for their development.

Dachsund puppies are born with their eyes closed, but they start to open them around 10-14 days old.

Puppies need their mother's milk for the first few weeks, and it's essential to keep them with their mother until they're about 4-5 weeks old.

Dachsund puppies typically weigh between 1-3 pounds at birth and grow rapidly in the first few months.

By 8 weeks old, dachsund puppies are usually weaned and ready to start their new homes.

See what others are reading: Sausage Dog Puppies

Start on the right paw with your Dachshund Pup, as recommended by leading trainer and behaviourist organizations.

Housebreaking is key, and it's essential to establish a routine from the get-go to avoid accidents in the house.

You'll want to establish a regular feeding schedule to help your puppy learn when it's time to go potty.

Training your dachshund puppy requires patience, consistency, and positive reinforcement. You can start training as soon as you bring your puppy home, and it's essential to make it a fun and engaging experience for both you and your puppy.

For more insights, see: Training Puppies 101

Dachshund puppies are intelligent and love to learn, but they can be stubborn at times. To overcome this, use the push/drop/stick method, which involves increasing the difficulty level of a task until your puppy masters it.

Socialization is key when training a dachshund puppy. You should expose your puppy to various environments, people, and animals to help them become confident and calm in new situations.

To train your dachshund to alert you when they need to go outside, you can use a toilet training bell or teach them to bark on command. This is particularly useful when you're in a different room or working and can't keep an eye on them all the time.

Every dog is an individual, and dachshunds are no exception. They have a unique breed-specific behavior, such as their loud bark, which is a result of their original purpose as hunting dogs. This means that barking is a highly rewarding behavior for dachshunds, so be prepared to work on this aspect of their training.

Here are some essential items you'll need to train your dachshund puppy:

Remember, every day is a school day for your dachshund puppy, and consistency is key to their development and training.

Accidents and cleaning are a reality of raising a dachshund puppy. They tend to go again in the same spots, and use the scent to do so, so once your dachshund has had an accident in the house they are likely to sniff out those same spots again.

You'll need a good enzyme-based cleaning spray to remove the smell and any stains of accidents indoors. Most good pet shops should sell this, and you can also purchase from online retailers too.

It's worth noting that even fully toilet trained dachshunds can still have accidents when they're unwell, or when the weather is particularly bad - dachshunds are notorious for hating the rain!

Accidents will happen, and it's essential to have a good cleaning spray on hand. Dachshunds, for instance, are notorious for hating the rain, which can lead to accidents in the house.

You'll want to buy an enzyme-based cleaning spray designed to remove smells and stains. These products are usually available at good pet shops or online retailers.

Dogs tend to go again in the same spots, so it's crucial to remove any lingering scents and stains. This will help prevent your puppy from sniffing out the same areas again.

A good product for this is the Simple Solution Pet Stain and Odour Remover. It's a great option for removing accidents indoors.

Using puppy pads can actually hinder the toilet training process for your dachshund, as it can lead them to think it's okay to go inside.

Puppy pads can also confuse your dog, making them associate soft surfaces like carpet with the pads, which can make cleanup and training more difficult.

We chose not to use puppy pads elsewhere in the house, as it didn't seem to work for our dachshund puppy, Rocky, and we didn't want him to learn to go inside.

Instead, we focused on consistency, watching for signals, and taking Rocky outside frequently to establish a routine.

This approach ultimately helped us transition to full toilet training with our dachshund puppy more quickly than if we had used puppy pads more.