Is a dachshund a good family dog?

Updated 8 October 2026 · 7 min read · Wiener Club

For a lot of families, yes. Dachshunds are small enough for a flat, hardy enough for a long walk, funny to live with, and they live a long time: in a study of more than 580,000 UK dogs, miniature dachshunds reached a median of 14 years, against 12.5 for dogs in general.

But they are not an easy first dog, and they are not a doormat. They were bred to work alone against a cornered badger, which produced a dog that is brave, independent, and perfectly willing to disagree with you. They bark. They dig. They decide.

With young children the honest version is: supervise, and teach the children as much as the dog. A dachshund that is pestered will say so.

What you are actually signing up for

Fifteen years of company. The upside of that long life expectancy is also a long commitment — through moves, babies, jobs and holidays.
A dog with opinions. Dachshunds train perfectly well, but they ask what is in it for them. Methods built on force go badly with a breed selected for not backing down.
Noise. They are vocal. You can shape the triggers; you will not get a silent dog.
The back. This is the one that costs money and heartache. Roughly one in six dachshunds in a large survey had been diagnosed with disc disease, and the risk differs sharply by variety: 24% in standard smooth-haired dogs against 7% in standard wire-haired ones.
Attachment. They bond hard and often do not love being alone. That is lovely at 8pm and a problem at 9am.

Dachshunds and children

Plenty of dachshunds live happily with children. But this is a breed that scores above average for aggression in owner-reported research, both toward people and toward other dogs — the authors of that study add a sensible warning that breed-level scores are easily distorted by stereotype and reporting bias, so read it as a flag, not a verdict.

The practical reading: a small dog with a sore back, in a loud house, with children who do not yet read warning signals, is a bad combination. The same dog in a house where the kids know to leave him alone in his bed is usually fine.

Teach the children first: no picking him up, no sitting on him, no cuddles while he eats or sleeps. A dog that is never cornered rarely needs to growl.

What makes a dachshund unhappy

Being alone all day. See the separate piece on that — it is the single most common mismatch.
A household with no rhythm, where nothing is predictable.
Too little real exercise. The research points at more rather than less, and an under-exercised dachshund is both heavier and busier.
Being carried everywhere. They are dogs, not accessories, and the muscle they lose is the muscle their spine needs.

Which variety, and from whom

Standard or miniature, smooth, long or wire-haired — temperament varies more between individuals than between coats, but the back risk does not. If that difference matters to you, it is worth weighing before you choose, because it is the one decision you cannot revisit later.

Ask any breeder about the health testing of both parents, and about the backs in the line. A breeder who is uncomfortable with that question has answered it.

So: get one or not?

Get one if you want a dog with character, you are home enough, you can handle some noise, and you take the back seriously — slim, active, insured or with money set aside.

Think again if you want an easy-going dog that is relaxed about being alone, silent with visitors, and obedient because you asked once.

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Sources

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