Dachshunds Could Soon Be BANNED In Germany

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PUBLISHED: 12:25 EDT, March 26, 2024 | UPDATED: 12:25 EDT, March 26, 2024

Sausage dogs could soon be banned in Germany under a new law banning breeds with “skeletal abnormalities.”

The draft animal protection law could ban breeds with special characteristics, such as spinal problems related to the dachshund’s short legs and long back.

The German Kennel Club (VDH) has launched a petition to save ‘our favorite dogs’, arguing that the law would leave too much room for interpretation in determining what constitutes a genetic defect.

The petition, which has 12,500 signatures, reads: ‘A draft for a new animal protection law was published in February.

‘Many of the proposed changes, such as regulating the online pet trade or cracking down on the illegal puppy trade, make sense.

Sausage dogs could soon be banned in Germany under a new law banning breeds with “skeletal abnormalities.”

‘However, the new animal protection law contains requirements that could mean the end of many healthy dog ​​breeds in Germany.

‘The draft lists several disease characteristics that could lead to a ban on the breeding of healthy dogs.

‘Unfortunately, many of the features mentioned are vague and ambiguous.’

The ‘catalogue of features’ include skeletal abnormalities, movement abnormalities, lameness, hairlessness and a reduction in life expectancy.

The petition argues that “skeletal abnormalities” could be interpreted as a ban on breeding for “any significant deviation in size” from wolves – the ancestor of all modern dogs.

“For example, this term could be assigned to the leg length of dachshunds… and other small dog breeds and these could be excluded from breeding,” it says.

‘The result would be that you would no longer be allowed to breed dachshunds in Germany, for example.’

Dachshunds have short, stubby legs due to a genetic condition called chondrodysplasia, a form of dwarfism.