Colors
Black and tan: A black and tan dachshund has a black body color with tan points on the face, tan paws, tan front part of the muzzle, etc. Black and tan is recessive to red, wild boar or red sable, but is dominant to chocolate and tan. A black and tan puppy cannot be produced out of two true chocolate and tan parents. Black and tans will have brown eyes and black nose and nails. See Max for example of the black and tan color, he also shows the brindling pattern. Also see Bella who shows the black and tan color, as well as the piebald pattern
Red: A red Dachshund has a red appearance and no tan points. There may be interspersed dark hairs along the back or anywhere on the body. So, the dog may be one solid red color or may have dark hairs along the back, on the face or ears, etc. True red is the most dominant of the colors; it is dominant over red sable or wild boar, black and tan, and chocolate and tan. Red Dachshunds may carry for black and tan, red sable or wild boar, chocolate and tan, or other color factors. Reds have brown eyes and black nose and nails. Note: a puppy that is not red cannot carry for red. See Sadie for an example of a red longhair or Gretta for an example of a red smooth, she also shows brindling.
Red sable: The red sable is similar to the red Dachshund, but it is a longhair red that appears black and tan from a distance. They may have tan points, or they may not. The hairs are red at the base and black at the tip. They may also have a lighter red "mask" on their face. A wild boar is the same as a red sable but in the smooth coat. They may appear redder because they don't have the longer hair with as much black. Also, the wild boar wirehair exists too. See Scarlet for an example of a red sable. True red sables are not seen very often.
Wheaten: A wheaten color is seen only in the wirehair Dachshunds. It is the color of wheat straw, a creamy, yellowish, golden color. They are seldomly seen.
Chocolate and tan: A chocolate and tan Dachshund is one that has a dark brown to a light brown body color with tan markings on the face and paws, etc. Chocolate and tan is recessive to red, red sable or wild boar, and black and tan. True chocolate and tans MUST have hazel eyes and liver-colored nails and nose, and they MUST have tan points. If a dog has brown eyes, then it is not a chocolate and tan. Note: a puppy that is not chocolate and tan should not be represented as carrying for chocolate and tan unless one parent is a chocolate and tan. Two chocolate and tans bred together will have ALL chocolate and tan offspring. See Graham, Gretchen, Mocha, or Coco for an example of a chocolate and tan longhair.
Brown-nosed red: A brown-nosed red is a red dog that has hazel eyes and liver nose and nails. This dog is uniquely both a red dog and a chocolate dog. However, because red is the dominant color, that is the color the dog is considered. They have hazel eyes and liver nose and nails because if they weren't red, they would definitely be chocolate. Do not believe that a red-colored dog with hazel eyes and liver nose and nails is chocolate, because there are no tan points characteristic of a chocolate and tan, and this dog will be capable of producing reds instead of only having chocolate and tan genes to pass to its offspring. It's important that these dogs be sold as reds. This can happen when you have a red dog that carries for chocolate and tan and breed it to another dog that is or carries chocolate and tan; the baby is red but also has the full set of chocolate and tan genes. These will be able to produce chocolate and tans when bred with a dog that is or carries chocolate and tan, but will also produce red puppies.
Blue and tan and isabella and tan: Blue and tans and isabella and tans are complicated due to the participation of multiple genes. A blue and tan is a diluted black and tan. An isabella and tan is a diluted chocolate and tan. Therefore, for a Dachshund to be an isabella and tan, they must not only be a chocolate and tan, but also posess the full set of dilution factors that will make them appear the isabella color. Due to this, a true isabella and tan will ALWAYS have hazel/gray eyes and liver-colored nose and nails, and they will ALWAYS have tan points, although they may be lighter in color. A blue and tan will have brown eyes and blue-colored nose and nails. The same set of dilution factors will make a black and tan blue as will make a chocolate and tan isabella; it just depends on the base color of the dog. Blue and tans and isabella and tans are very recessive. Isabella and tans are the result of posessing the recessive set of dilution factors, as well as being the recessive chocolate and tan to begin with. Note: a puppy that is not blue and tan or isabella and tan should not be represented as carrying for blue and tan or isabella and tan unless a parent is blue and tan or isabella and tan, respectively. Two isabella and tans bred together will have ALL isabella and tan offspring. See Abby for an example of an isabella and tan longhair.
Cream: A cream-colored dachshund is due to recessive genes known as the chinchilla dilution genes and the recessive red genes. Again, there are two recessive gene sets involved in making this color. True creams MUST have black noses and nails. Longhair creams may have some black hairs mixed into the coat on the ears, back, or tail; smooth creams should not have any black on the coat. True longhair creams are very dark when they are born and get lighter as they grow older. There should be no hint of red on a cream-colored dog. Also, true creams will grow lighter with time. A black and tan dog that has received the dilution factors may have cream-colored tan points and will be referred to as a black and cream; this may also happen with any other color with tan points. Be very careful when paying the prices demanded for creams to ensure you are getting a true cream.
Patterns
Brindle: Brindling is a pattern that is expressed as dark stripes all over the dog's body, running from midline down to the belly. The most common brindle Dachshund is the red brindle. However, brindling can affect any base color. A black and tan Dachshund that has brindling will only show it in the tan points, not on the black body color. Brindling is a dominant pattern; the puppy only needs to get one gene out of two to be a brindle. A puppy that is not brindle cannot carry for brindle. See Gretta for an example of the brindling pattern.Dapple: A dappled Dachshund has lighter patches of its body color randomly spaced on its body. A black and tan will have silver or gray dapples, a chocolate and tan will have cream-colored dapples, and red will have lighter red dapples, a blue and tan will have lighter blue/gray dapples, etc. Dappling is dominant; only one parent needs to be dappled to see dappled offspring. A black and tan that has silvery dapples has one gene for dapple, a black and tan that has silvery dapples in the black areas and random splashes of white is known as a double dapple- this dog has both genes for dappling. We do not recommend breeding for double dapples. This is why one should not breed a dapple to a dapple. Double dapple puppies can have deafness problems and/or blindness problems. They may have small or missing eyes. These problems, however, will not pass to their offspring if they are bred to a non-dapple dog. One or two blue eye(s) or a partially-blue eye are indications that the dog is dappled even if no dapples are visible. See Coco or for an example of the single dapple pattern.
Piebald: The piebald pattern is a recessive pattern, unlike dappling and brindling. It takes a full set of the genes to see a piebald. A piebald Dachshund will have random spots of white on their body, and they will have white tail tips. Typically, piebald white spots are more circular and ordered in appearance than the white spots as a result of the double dapple. The piebald pattern can affect any body color, including red, black and tan, cream, red sable or wild boar, chocolate and tan, blue and tan, and isabella and tan. A puppy that is not a piebald should not be represented as carrying for piebald unless one parent is a piebald. Two true piebalds bred together will have ALL piebald offspring. See Bella, Gracie, Otto, or Gretchen for an example of the piebald pattern.Coats
Wirehair: A wirehaired Dachshund will have coarse hairs on their body. They will also have longer, coarse "whiskers" on the side of their muzzle and above their eyes. Wirehair is the most dominant of the coats. Only one parent needs to be wirehaired to get some wirehaired offspring. There are three types of wirehair coats: true wirehair, pinwire, and woolly wire. The true wirehair has a stiff, harsh coat, wiry to the touch, close to the body, but noticeably more profuse on the muzzle and legs. The true wirehair and pinwire are the result of wirehair to smooth breeding. The pinwire is genetically the same as the true wirehair, but the smooth gene from the smooth parent has a greater effect on the puppy. The pinwire can look virtually smooth, but with the giveaway whiskery hair on the jaw and legs, and sometimes on the center of the back. The woolly wire is a result of wire to wire breeding. The woolly wire will have a soft fluffy coat, opposed to the tight, coarse coat of the true wire. The woolly coat can be stripped to achieve correctness. Two wires could have a smooth puppy if they both carry for smooth. A puppy that is not wirehaired cannot carry for wirehair. See Heidi, Ruby, or Fritz for examples of the wirehair coat.Smooth: The smooth coat is recessive to wirehair, but dominant to longhair. The smooth coat is short and soft and requires minimal upkeep. Two longhairs can never produce a smooth puppy. See Mocha for an example of the smooth coat.
Longhair: The longhair coat is a thick, soft coat that covers the body. It runs into silky feathering on the ears, legs, and tail. It is the most recessive of the coats. Two longhairs can never have a smooth or a wire puppy. See Scarlet or Coco for an example of the longhair coat.
