Blog Archives - DORNDORF LONGHAIRED DACHSHUNDS

DORNDORF LONGHAIRED DACHSHUNDS

Mail from Cliff shrader

11/29/2012

[Tasha is Taya's sister. They turned six months old on Sunday.]

Tasha is pretty indifferent after we have killed and recovered a deer. She is interested in the tracking and after that is very passive toward the deer. She will lick on it some but as long as it isn't moving, she is content. If you grab the deer and shake it some, she gets pretty vocal and will bite it. My old hound Thibodeaux would attack the deer and would jump around never allowing you to catch him all the while pulling hair out of the deer. Boudreaux on the other hand (kind of reminds me of Owl and the groundhog) lays claim to the deer and will defend it aggressively.

Tasha did fine in obedience class last night. This class is not an AKC class but more of an everyday dog class. She will sit and/or lay stay for 30 seconds with me 30 feet away. She is getting pretty good. I was lax in training this past week and I could tell at class....even though the instructor says she steals the show! He probably tells all the dads that.

I am reminded, though, that Tasha has already evidenced some "possessing" of a deer when another dog was close by. It will be interesting to see the puppies behavior when they are older.

Good going in class! I'm glad that one of the sisters is learning some obedience!

jimmie's deer

11/28/2012

It was a fairly good size doe that my neighbor shot on my property this afternoon. Jimmie had already field dressed it and dragged it for a way in the woods. When he was walking back to his house to get his ATV and a line to drag it with is when I saw him 'cause I happened to be outside at the time. When he told me that he had a deer in the woods is when I ran in to put on a jacket. Taya was already with me, as usual, and I wanted her to see the deer.

Following Jimmie, we went down the ravine into the woods. I inspected the doe and ran my hand through her beautiful thick hair. Taya was mildly curious about the deer but for the most part was surprisingly uninterested. I thought she would investigate it and want to taste it, chew on it a bit but she didn't.

What she WAS interested in was the blood line that was there from Jimmie having previously dragged the deer about 50 yards. Taya was going from leaf to leaf licking the blood. She followed the scent line up and down. Jimmie remarked, too, on how she was interested in where he'd dragged the deer. But the deer itself she was not impressed with. Not scared (she came up to it okay), not excited, not sniffing, licking, or biting it, she just wasn't that interested. She pretty much acted like she has seen a dead deer every day so what's the big deal. haha! The blood on the other hand, and there was a decent amount of it, really drew her attention. Wouldn't you love to know what they're thinking sometimes!

Jimmie tied his rope around the deer's neck, I grabbed a front leg, and we heaved and pulled the doe straight up the ravine to the edge of the woods. Jimmie went to get his ATV which he'd parked by the pond and Taya followed him. When he started the ATV up, Taya ran back to me. Which was good because I did not want her running around in the tall grass while he was driving it. (Although I do think she would have stayed clear of it, still...) That was the thing that bothered her some, the ATV. It's a small old Kawasaki that makes a lot of noise. I was still standing by the deer and was holding Taya then when Jimmie drove up. Taya did not like the ATV coming right at us and up to us! But when he tied the deer to it and began dragging it across the field toward his house, then of course Taya followed him. Or should I say followed the deer. She did not continue following Jimmie once he left my yard and went onto his own place. I was happy that she knows where she belongs! She is such a good girl.

So, I would say all in all it was a good experience for her. Jimmie said that he would give me a couple of parts and some meat when he is done cutting his deer all up.

Later, since he doesn't have a computer, I helped Jimmie report and tag the doe online which was cool.

Critical mass: size in dachshunds

11/27/2012

Houston, we've had a problem here.

In fact, all across the United States, we've had a problem. A big problem.

There is no question that US exhibitors, breeders, and judges care about this breed.

The question that I find myself having to ask is - do US exhibitors, breeders, and judges KNOW this breed? Well, we are supposed to know! The information is available. And it is more easily accessible than ever before. Unfortunately, many statements being posted on the internet, and even published in magazines, is surprisingly misleading and simply not congruent with facts.

For all intents and purposes, two more questions underlie the one above.

1. Is the dachshund an earthdog? I really do not know anyone who would say no.

2. Is size important in the dachshund aka earthdog? Well now, here comes the dichotomy of all dichotomies. It is absolutely amazing how many LONG TIME exhibitors, breeders, and judges assert that it is not!

"A good dachshund is a good dachshund." Well, what makes a dachshund GOOD? In part, it is the ability to do the WORK of a dachshund. And not a thing about a dachshund's structure helps him "do the job" more than his size!

Why is it, pray tell, that so many of us talk and act like dachshund size is totally irrelevant, when it is COMPLETELY relevant! I tell you this thing, there is not a badger or fox hunter in the world who will say otherwise.

This longhaired bitch is one of a mother/daughter pair of bitches that is regularly and successfully used to hunt the European badger (aka Eurasian badger) in Finland. Guess how big she is and hold that thought. We will come back to it.

Please see below each of 20 different earths, nearly all entrances. Entrances! If a picture is worth 1000 words, then maybe we can consider this little album a virtual encyclopedia on earthdog size. All photos were taken by me in an 11 hour badger hunt with three men, another woman, and three standard longhaired bitches in Finland on August 10, 2010. Earthwork photos are not unique. There are many like them on the internet. But, ahem, apparently American dachshund enthusiasts are not looking at them!

Note that with one exception I have not included photos with badgers or the evidence of the taking of badgers. The singular purpose of this post is to give the reader clarity, in pictures, on what seems to be a very muddied (ha!) concept of earthdog size. I sincerely hope that it helps do that. If not, well I tried. I really tried!

20 reasons why dachshund size is important

1st of 2 photos of the same den

2nd of 2

1st of 3 photos of the same hole

2nd of 3

3rd of 3

1st of 3 pictures of the same entrance

2nd of 3 - This is as narrow as it looks

3rd of 3 - She gets in

"Good girl" for a good day's work!

Size of the longhairs in the photos?

deer harvest - day 53 comparison

11/27/2012

Stats are for my county which is Perry County, in southeastern Ohio.

Bucks
2012 471
2011 358

Does
2012 394
2011 327

Button Bucks
2012 105
2011 94

Total increase so far this year from last: 24.52%

The end

11/27/2012

Sage, the third and final female in the Dorndorf S litter was spayed yesterday. Her owner just did not want to have puppies - and that was known when she acquired Sage.

Nevertheless, knowing that Sage is spayed has not been an easy pill to swallow.

It is the end of eight continuous generations of Dorndorf bitches, or the "bottom line" on all of our pedigrees.

Our very first bitch, CH Dorndorf's Dana v Bricken, was obtained at nine months of age from a kennel in Texas in 1972.

Dana was the mother of

1. 1973 CH Dorndorf's Andrea L (Winners Bitch at DCA in 1974)

Angel was the mother of

2. 1981 CH Dorndorf's Ericka L CD TT

Ericka was the mother of

3. 1983 Felda v Dorndorf L CD TD TT

Felda was the mother of

4. 1986 DC Grissel v Dorndorf L CDX TD VC

Grissel was the mother of

5. 1990 ABS15 FC Ilsa v Dorndorf L

Ilsa was the mother of

6. 1998 ABS6 FC Marta v Dorndorf L JE LH

Marta is the mother of

7. 2002 DC Nadja v Dorndorf L SE CG

Nadja is the mother of

8. 2009 Sonic, Sage, and Seiko v Dorndorf

Nadja, owned by Stan and Tina Knoll, produced three litters numbering 1, 2, 3 puppies, all females. Of these six offspring, one is dead and four are spayed. The one remaining intact Nadja daughter is Tina Knoll's ABS3 FC Bob's Babe von Knobydox. On the distaff side, then, though not a Dorndorf bitch, it will be up to Babe to carry on. She was bred to Owl in May this year but did not become pregnant. Our plan is to try again in the spring. Wish us luck!

One thing that I have learned from all this is that it is ultimately unwise for a breeder to put all of her eggs in one basket. Yes, it worked just fine for me to have only one producing female at a time for 29 years (!) but...

Here's to Owl x Babe puppies in the spring.

Seiko and Sonic . September 2009 . Photo by Tina Knoll

Taya six months old today

11/27/2012

[Taya is Tranevang's MA Tayatax, bred by Lise-Lotte Schulz, Denmark.]

Happy Six Months Birthday to Taya, to her sister and brother Tasha and Thor who are also living Stateside, and to their three littermates overseas!

Photo of Taya last week after a romp in the field

The calendar I like so much that I use it

11/26/2012

My 2013 Helderberg Seasons calendar came today. By Jolanta Jeanneney Photography, the photos are even better 'in person!'

Besides the wonderful nature photos, the superb quality of the materials used by Cafe Press is the same as last year. And they ship the calendar very well, too. It arrived without bends, wrinkles, or even corners the least bit stubbed.

I am plugging the calendar because I like it. Jolanta, thank you.

Weights

11/26/2012

Because she is a puppy, I have been weighing Taya every week.
Today, since it has been quite a while that I weighed the males, I weighed all four dogs.

Nexus, 10.5 years old male, weighs 20.2 lbs / 9.1 kg
Owl, 8 years old male, weighs 18.2 lbs / 8.2 kg
Viljo, 2.5 years old male, weighs 20.2 lbs / 9.1 kg
Taya, 6 months old female, weighs 15.8 lbs / 7.1 kg

From the AKC Standard as revised in 1992 -
Weight of the standard size is usually between 16 and 32 pounds.

From the FCI Standard -
SIZE AND WEIGHT/ IMPORTANT MEASUREMENTS:
Weight: Standard Dachshund up to about 9 kg.

Photo is Nexus who was V rated by DTK judge Wolfgang Trumpfheller.
Not ALL American-bred Standard longhairs are giants!

Do you believe in magic

11/25/2012

CH Von Schaafmeister's Do You Believe in Magic
May 13 2007 - November 25 2012

Written by his owner, Wendy McQuiston, Red Oak, TX
Reprinted with Wendy's permission and hope that it may save another newborn from being needlessly put down. Wendy, my condolences. I know there is a hole in your heart.

Timothy was born to DC VS Endless Summer Nights JE (Naughty) and DC VS Impossible Dreams (Magic).

His was a special litter (aren't they all?) because it was sired by my "heart dog Magic" when he was 10. There were 2 red boys and one B&T girl in the litter. Magic cloned himself with the two red boys and Naughty cloned herself with the one B&T girl.

When Timothy was born, my heart fell because before he was dry, I realized that his back legs were on........backwards. There's no other way to explain it except to say that the kneecaps faced the wrong way and it was so OBVIOUS that it was a serious birth defect. My heart fell. But I decided right away to let him live and to reassess the situation as he grew. If he was in pain as he grew, I could put him down later. In the wee hours, as I was awaiting the end of the litter being born, I emailed a few friends. I was very distraught over the limb deformity, needless to say. About 6 am, I received a phone call with a friend SCREAMING into the phone, "You didn't OFF that puppy did you?". "No, I didn't" was my response to her. Oddly enough, just the week prior, we'd been discussing the very awful but needful topic of WHAT to do in the wee hours of the morning if you do have a puppy born who needs to be put down. At that time of the morning, you're stuck with an emergency clinic and they're simply NOT going to know how to put down a new born puppy. So this friend told me what her vet had told her and how to do it. She was terrified after our discussion that I'd "offed" him. No, not for something that clearly wasn't causing him any distress......... as he had immediately scooted over to his Mom and started nursing. Anyway, the friend explained to me that she'd had 4 puppies born that way and that they all straightened out on their own. I tried to explain to her that these legs were BACKWARDS and surely wouldn't straighten on their own. But they did. Within 24 hours they were already better. Within 72 hours they looked completely normal. It is possible that Timothy's "mission" on earth was to save future puppy lives by my spreading the word about his "miracle" recovery. I've told Tim's story to numerous breeders and veterinarians. FEW have ever heard about it. Even worse were the ones who had a rather sick look on their face; I suspect they'd seen a puppy like this and put it down. Of course, his "deformity" is how he earned his name. My weird mind started calling him "Tiny Tim" early on. As he grew and became a wonderful, elegant dog, it became "Timothy".

Timothy finished his bench championship pretty quickly. He enjoyed showing but more than that, enjoyed the one on one "Mom time" and meeting new friends. He especially loved his "Aunt Cathy". In fact, he showed better if his "Aunt Cathy" was there. I think he even showed better for her than he did for me. They always had a special relationship.

Timothy had a rather "unusual" bark. He didn't fully open his mouth when he barked so his bark sounded "muffled". It was cute, unique and unfortunately for him, so distinct that it was always obvious when he was the one barking. No blending into the mob of barking fools for Tim.

Timothy's start in the field was a little slow but one run in Saint Louis was so memorable. It's one of the few runs I really remember. The one judge had already "blown Tim off" and wanted him picked up. The other judge (for whom I'll always hold a special spot in my heart) kept waving off the other judge and was watching Timothy. You could SEE the dog's mind racing as he tried to figure it out. You could see him sniff, get excited, go a little off track, realize that he'd lost it and come back to the line. He was moving very slowly but he was very methodically working it out. He worked his way half way down a "lane", made the turn to the left and was still working it out. He lost it when the rabbit jumped to the right, off the lane and into the brush. Timothy just couldn't figure it out but he wasn't willing to give up. I was SO excited to watch him figure it out. It doesn't matter that he didn't get a placement or a ribbon.........it was just exciting to watch him using his nose, doing what his ancestors from so long ago had done and GETTING IT. Timothy had gotten to the point where he was READY for field trial season and we were looking forward to it this winter.

Alas, life had other plans. In the spring of 2012, he had a lump come up on the side of his neck. The vet tried to take a needle biopsy but nothing came out. It wasn't sore, didn't bother him and we were on the fence about what to do. The vet and I thought it was a salivary gland. Of course, now we now it was a lymph gland and that we made the wrong call. In June, Timothy became very ill and stopped eating.

He lost 5 pounds in about 7 days. We were out of state at the time and I'd hope to make it back home to our vet but he became so sick, so fast that I had to go to a vet there. After blood work, she was fearful that he had liver cancer. We made it home and went immediately to a canine Oncologist. He narrowed it down to either Lymphosarcoma or histiocytic sarcoma. Neither diagnosis was good. In addition to the lump on his neck, he In addition to the lump on his neck, he was full of internal tumors. The histiocytic sarcoma was completely, totally NOT treatable. The Lymphosarcoma, in the vet's words was "treatable, not curable". I heard his words as if they were coming from a distance and it took quite some time for them to sink in. The bottom line was that with treatment, MAYBE a year of life after treatment, without it, weeks. It was as if I was paralyzed. I couldn't make a decision. Adding to the dilemma was the cost. It would cost at least five thousand dollars. I hate for cost to be a factor in a dog's care but that's quite a lot of money.........especially when it wasn't going to save him. He was terribly ill and needed to be put down if we weren't going to do the treatment. But neither my husband nor I could bring ourselves to get in the car and make that painful drive to the vet. The oncologist gave him the first injection, just to make him feel better and it was miraculous. Within 24 hours, he was feeling good and eating. Then I heard from a friend that she has a dog who is 5 years post treatment for Lymphosarcoma. With that hope and a dog who was acting and feeling normally, we began treatment. The oncologist told me that it was a miracle that my friend's dog was alive 5 years later and not to expect another miracle. Privately, I thought, "guess we'll show him". Within just a few treatments, the lump on his neck disappeared and the internal tumors all disappeared. The oncologist was surprised at the quick response.

For the most part, he sailed through his treatment. Even the treatment that was supposed to make him vomit and have diarrhea didn't do so. One drug would make him not eat for two days afterwards. But we kept him plumped up so that those few days didn't drag him down. He loved his extra food and got so fat that I had to cut him back some. Timothy LOVED going to the Oncologist's office. The staff there loved him. They were constantly telling me how much they loved Timothy. They decided that I should give him to them and that he could go home with one staff member per night and spend his days at the clinic being loved on. They told me that he got carried around and if he WAS in his cage that invariably, someone had their head in there, loving on him. On treatment days, he was bouncing at the front door, eager to go. I thought we had our Timothy back.

He was in week 19 of 25 weeks of treatment when he stopped eating, clearly didn't feel good and had white gums. I hoped that it was just a temporary set back. When the vet called me, he said that the cancer had come back with a vengeance. He was full of internal tumors again and the fact that they'd come back during the treatment was an even worse sign. The oncologist wanted to do some more testing to see if it was the Lymphosarcoma or the histiocytic sarcoma but I could not see the sense of that. We were treating as if it was the Lympho and the Histio wasn't treatable at all. So figuring out WHICH one made NO SENSE at all to me. He said we could go to Plan B which was a different drug, injected every 3 weeks but even at that, it was not going to save his life. Considering the fact that the tumors were all back, in the middle of treatment, Plan B just didn't seem sensible and we decided to stop treatment. I wish I had a magic bullet that would have saved his life but this particular cancer is deadly. My friend's dog is the ONLY dog I've heard of who has survived this particular cancer.

Sadly, we knew that Timothy's battle was over and that the cancer had won. We brought him home and tried to prepare ourselves to take him to the vet for that final trip. I've had many dogs in my life. Dachshunds seldom give up and die. The vast majority of them have to be put down. I've put down MANY old Dachshunds. While it's hard, it's a gift I can offer them when they are at the end of their life and it is time. This, however, was harder, impossible, really. While we were trying to find the courage to make the trip, our pet communicator told us that Timothy wasn't really ready to go yet. He knew that he was dying and wasn't afraid but wasn't ready yet. He wanted a couple of days to sleep in the sunshine. We offered him anything to eat that he wanted. He had things that we normally never give the dogs. Doughnuts and a blueberry muffin were particularly enjoyed as was bologna. About the only thing he'd eat reliably was baby food meat. But even that became unpalatable and we knew it was time to say goodbye. We ponder why it had to happen. We ponder the unfairness of it.

But mostly we grieve as we say good bye.

Trapped

11/24/2012

There has been some discussion on a tracking dog list lately about trapping (as well as hunting) being allowed in state parks. State parks are where people often train their tracking dogs, and more than a few tracking tests are held on park lands.

The discussion prompted one list member to post a worthy link Removing Your Dog From A Trap Or Snare. With sources being the Wisconsin DNR website and the Nova Scotia DNR, Wildlife Division, this information from the Lincoln County Humane Society, Merrill, Wisconsin is very well done.

There are a number of trappers in my neck of the woods so I am glad to have the info. I just hope I never have to use it.