It all began one sunny spring day when a friend delivered a birthday present for our two children and it was a gift that would “keep on giving” for 12 years.

He was a wiggly, cuddly, long tailed, short legged dachshund with “wrinkled socks” and a short nose soon to grow longer (on purpose…not like Pinocchio). He moved in that day and began a family’s life time love affair with dachshunds.

The consensus was to choose a name to suit our new family member and also to represent his German heritage. We each had good suggestions, so the final test was to stand on the front porch and call, “Here, Fritz!,” or “Here, Herman!,” or “Here, Adolph!,” or “Here, Hans!”…and there it was…the perfect choice! Our new son/brother became Hans Maximilian von Low Belly.

Webster (actually American Heritage) defines dachshund as a small dog with a long body, drooping ears and very short legs. Other sources say they are smart, loving, loyal, and stubborn! This was our first experience with any dog and it was before we were aware of professional training for family pets…so we muddled along. On the very first day, Hans set out to teach us as much as we were to teach him!

After a shopping excursion, Hans had a nice bed with a comfy pillow. He had two special dishes just for him and puppy food to go in them. He looked spiffy in his new collar and there was a leash too, but I don’t remember that it got a lot of use.

Well, first of all, Hans preferred our beds to his…as nice and new as his was. He was part of this family (pack) and he was establishing his place in it. He wasn’t choosy about whose bed it was as long as one of his people was in it As he grew able to jump high, he was sure to share his time with each of us every night.

When we had overnight visitors, he made them welcome by joining them in bed, too. Once one of our friends fell out of bed because Hans kept cuddling up next to her. She’d move over and so would he until she was on the floor and he had the bed. Phooy! He didn’t want to sleep alone!

Our friend made the comment “They say that dogs resemble their owners. If so, which of you goes from bed to bed with your visitors?” Do all dachshunds do that or was Hans just being friendly in the extreme?

Check back soon for the next installment of “The Story of Hans”. As part of the new look of Distinctively Dachshund, we will be posting stories about dachshunds on a more-or-less regular basis. We have many stories about our own dachshunds that we plan on sharing, but we also want to hear from you! We all know dachshunds have a special knack for arranging and interacting with the world around them.