Hundreds of dachshund owners gathered July 13 with their pets in tow at Fred Fuller Park near Downtown Kent for the 25th annual Northeast Ohio Dachshund Picnic.
The event, which organizers said is one of the largest dachshund gatherings in the country, provided the opportunity for community members to celebrate the breed through costumes, contests and games. Dogs were dressed up in all sorts of outfits, including singer Taylor Swift, lobsters in a crawdad boil, bees and cowboys, posing for pictures in a miniature Oscar Meyer Wienermobile.
The event started in 1998 with a few friends gathering in a backyard in North Royalton, and has grown to include hundreds of dogs and owners every year, said Brian Geiger, the picnic's organizer. The largest gathering took place in 2016 when an estimated 1,000 people and 750 dogs attended, he said.
Geiger, like many attendees, said he fell in love with the breed at first sight.
“They were the coolest little dogs in the world because they were small but had such personality and they're just a bundle of fun,” he said.
Canton's Chandler Miku agreed, adding that there's so much he loves about these dogs.
“They're my kids, so they're wonderful dogs," he said. "They just love to cuddle, love their owners. They're just a good breed and they're just unique looking. I mean, come on — the short, stubby little legs.”
Rising in popularity
Festival-goers do not seem to be alone in this view as dachshunds are consistently one of the most popular breeds in the country. That popularity seems to be on the rise as dachshunds, also known by their fans as wiener dogs, sausage dogs, doxies and weens, are the sixth-most popular dog breed in 2024, according to the American Kennel Club. That is their highest ranking in two decades.
The dogs come in two sizes, miniature, which are 12 pounds and less, or standard, which weigh between 16 and 32 pounds. The dogs also have one of three coats — short hair, wire hair and long hair.
While they are small dogs with short, little legs, the dachshund was originally bred in Germany some 600 years ago to hunt badgers. In fact, their name means "badger dog" in German.
This may help explain their outsized personalities. According to the AKC, dachshunds are "smart and vigilant, with a big-dog bark," adding that "they make fine watchdogs. Bred to be an independent hunter of dangerous prey, they can be brave to the point of rashness, and a bit stubborn."
Krista Williams, an AKC trainer who has owned and shown dachshunds for several decades, agreed.
“Dachshunds can be stubborn," she said. "A lot of times, they are a little difficult to train because they think they're in charge, and sometimes they are."
This big personality may play a role in the breed's reputation for aggressiveness as the American Temperament Test Society, which assesses dogs’ aggressiveness, ranks dachshunds as the third-most aggressive breed, after chihuahuas and basenjis.
However, Williams said behavioral issues can be easily addressed.
“They're phenomenal family dogs if they're properly socialized and if they're properly handled," she said. "You don't want a child picking them up by the middle of their back. Don't pick them up with their backs bent. Pick them up two-handed.”
Canal Fulton's Sue Greening, who sports a tattoo on her arm of Rosie, one of her previous dachshunds, said she wouldn't have any other type of dog.
“I've always been a lover of the dog, the dachshund," she said. "It's kind of like potato chips. Once you have one, you got to have more. I'm at six and that's it. That's the limit.”
This is due, in part, to how loyal and loving they are, Greening said.
“They'll give you their full heart and all their love," she said. "They're there with you all the time. They're one of the most devoted dogs I've owned.”
