Dachshund Badger hunters bred to work alone underground had to make decisions without a human telling them what to do. That stubborn streak everyone complains about? It was engineered on purpose, and it is the single biggest reason standard obedience advice falls flat with this breed.
Once that clicks, training stops feeling like a battle of wills.
The tips below work with that independent wiring instead of against it. They spread fast for a reason: people try them and see results within a week.
1. Pay Before You Ask
Most owners hold the treat behind their back, say the cue, then reward. Reasonable, right?
Flip it.
Show the reward first, let the dog lock in on it, then give the cue. This tiny reorder does something clever: it teaches your dachshund that paying attention to you predicts good things, rather than teaching them that ignoring you costs nothing.
Why This Works On Scent Hounds Specifically
A dachshund’s nose is running constantly. It is not defiance, it is hardware.
You are competing with a sensory system that was purpose built to override distractions. Loading the reward up front gives you a foothold before the nose takes over.
A dachshund who ignores you is rarely being rude. They are simply following better information than you offered.
2. Train In Ninety Second Bursts
Long sessions produce a bored, checked out dog and a frustrated human. Nobody wins.
Ninety seconds. That is the whole session.
Set a timer, run five or six reps, then stop while your dog still wants more. Ending on a high note is the part almost everyone skips, and it is the part that makes the next session start strong.
Three of these scattered through the day beats one twenty minute slog every single time.
The "Stop Too Early" Rule
If you are thinking "we could do a couple more," stop. That itch is exactly the feeling you want your dog to end on.
Enthusiasm compounds. Fatigue does too, just in the wrong direction.
3. Use A Marker Word Before You Use Treats
Pick a sound. "Yes" works. So does a click.
The marker tells your dog precisely which half second earned the reward, and that precision is everything with a breed that moves fast and thinks faster.
Say the word, then deliver food. Do that thirty times with no other agenda at all, just marker and treat, until your dachshund’s head snaps around at the sound.
Now you have a tool that can mark behavior from across a room.
Timing beats treat quality. A cheap kibble delivered at the perfect instant will outperform steak delivered three seconds late.
Common Mistake
Owners often say the marker while handing over the food. That defeats the purpose entirely, because the marker is supposed to be a promise, not an announcement.
Mark first. Feed second. Keep them separate.
4. Recall Training That Respects The Nose
Calling a dachshund away from a scent trail is genuinely one of the hardest asks in dog training.
So stop asking cold.
Build recall in the house first, on carpet, with zero competition. Then a hallway. Then the yard with a long line attached, and only then somewhere interesting.
Each step should feel almost boringly easy before you advance.
Make Coming Back Pay Better Than Leaving
Here is where people sabotage themselves: they call the dog, then immediately clip the leash on and go inside. You just taught your dachshund that recall ends the fun.
Call them, reward generously, and release them back to what they were doing. Do that ten times for every one time recall actually ends the outing.
The math matters more than the training.
5. Manage The Back Before You Train The Sit
Long spine, short legs, and a real risk of disc problems. That anatomy should shape your training choices, not just your furniture decisions.
Skip repetitive jumping tricks. Skip anything that asks for a hard twist or a sudden vertical.
Sit and down are fine in moderation, though watching for a sloppy hip roll tells you when your dog is getting tired or sore.
Better Physical Skills To Teach Instead
Teach a ramp cue. Genuinely, this is one of the highest value behaviors you can install in a dachshund.
Ramp onto the couch, ramp into the car, ramp up to the bed. A dog who defaults to the ramp instead of launching off the arm of the sofa is a dog whose spine you have quietly protected for years.
Pair it with a "wait" at every edge and you have covered most of the real risk.
6. Redirect The Digging Instead Of Deleting It
Your dachshund digs because a person a few hundred years ago decided that dogs who dig were valuable. Punishing it is like punishing a border collie for staring at things.
Give it an address instead.
A sandbox, a corner of the yard, a plastic tub filled with soil and shredded paper. Bury something good in it, act delighted when they find it, and let them go feral in a place you have approved.
The Trade Off Nobody Mentions
You will still get the occasional hole in the lawn. Redirection is not a light switch.
But the volume drops dramatically, and more importantly, your dog gets an outlet for a drive that has to go somewhere. Bottled up terrier energy always finds a target, and it is usually your baseboards.
7. Stop Repeating The Cue
Say "come" once. Then wait.
Saying it six times teaches your dachshund that the real cue is "come come come come come come," and that the first five are just noise they can safely ignore.
This one is uncomfortable at first, because standing there in silence feels like failing. It is not failing. It is holding the line on what the word actually means.
What To Do In The Silence
Wait a full five seconds. Count them.
If nothing happens, do not repeat yourself: instead, make yourself more interesting. Crouch, clap, turn and jog the other way, rustle a treat bag.
Then, when they come, reward like they just performed a miracle.
Every repeated cue is a small withdrawal from an account you will need later, in a parking lot, near a road, on a day when it actually counts.
Putting The Seven Together
None of these tips require special equipment or a trainer’s certification.
They require you to accept a slightly uncomfortable idea: your dachshund is not stubborn, they are independent, and independence responds to negotiation rather than command.
A Realistic First Week
Day one, load the marker word. Just marker and treat, three short sessions.
Day two and three, add pay before you ask to something your dog already knows. Sit, touch, whatever is easy.
Day four, start indoor recall on carpet. Ninety seconds, five reps, done.
Day five, introduce the digging box and make a giant production of burying a chew in it.
Day six and seven, take recall to the yard on a long line, and practice releasing your dog back to the fun at least eight times for every one time you end the session.
Tracking What Actually Changes
Write down how many times you had to say a cue before your dog responded. Just a tally on your phone.
Most owners find that number cuts roughly in half within ten days, purely from the discipline of not repeating themselves.
That number is your real progress report, more honest than any feeling you have about whether things are going well.
When To Bring In Help
Reactivity on leash, resource guarding, or anything involving teeth deserves a professional set of eyes rather than a listicle.
Everything above is foundation work. It is the stuff that makes professional help more effective if you end up needing it, because a dog with a solid marker word and a real recall gives a trainer something to build on.
Start with the marker. Everything else stacks on top of it.