[Today's post comes from Marja, a married woman from Finland living in a small town in Southern part of the country. Her house is a home to her husband, stepson, and three lovely dogs: two Cairn terriers and one wire haired dachshund Iita.]



My family's life was truly changed a couple of years back when we (me?) decided to get a dog. After some research where we tried to tick all the boxes of our needs we have for the pet into a one animal, we decided to get a Cairn terrier. All went well, found the nicest breeder, she just had a litter and Nessa came to us four years ago. She is the nicest, most clever, greedy dog you can want. But a hunter dog she wasn't (hubby hunts).

Then I decided (I consulted my hubby but was quite adamant to have another dog) that we should also adopt one of Nessa's puppies when she was expecting. At the same time, Hubby wanted a dachshund, but, dear Lord, please not at the same time. So we found another lovely breeder of sausage dogs and agreed that would be in the "queue" for the litter planned next year.

So, Nessa's puppies were born (at the breeder's) and eight weeks later, home came Mindi. Beautiful, big eared goofball. Only a month later came Iita, our little sausage dog. Somebody did not want her since she has a little bend in the tail. But we wanted her. She was tiny (rut of the litter, breeder's little princess), feisty and cutest thing in the world.

Now that we have all lived together for about a year-and-a-half, I do understand why they say that Dachhunds are very special breed. They are. Pampered, funny, ferocious when hunting, cuddly when in sofa, furniture eaters, fast (one flash and they are gone into the woods with ears flopping), co-dependent and independent at the same time...

I have replaced a kitchen chair, coffee table, a rug because of her eating away at them, still mercifully forgetting the evil deeds she has done with her sister's help or on her own. She is the one in the morning jumping to the bed when the alarm goes off and waits for my eyes to open. Then the dance begins and I get tens of kisses in my face and neck. The other dogs let her do the waking up, too much effort!

She has travelled with us when we drove to Lappland to stay with relatives for two weeks (sister Mindi had her social calendar full with dog shows being a beauty queen) so only Iita and Nessa went with us. No matter how many hours we travelled in the car, Iita would always jump in and start to snore. Nessa on the other hand is a regular state patrol, always looking out the car window to see if we have the right route.

There are so many stories already and many more to come. This fall she will go hunting deers with the hunting party for the first time. There will be another dachshund at the party who is a veteran at that. I can't wait to hear how she does. Already she loves to run around the woods, now will she take to deer smell? Who knows? During our normal walks she hunts for the little birds, sparrows watch out...


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