Dachshund Back Problems: Why Coat Type May Matter
In 4,295 Dachshunds from the UK, Norway and Denmark, smooth-coated dogs had worse spinal health than long- or wire-coated ones. What that means for buyers.
Written by thecanineledger
If your Dachshund suddenly can’t walk, drags its back legs, or cries when touched along the back, call a vet now.
Our note: This advice is ours. A Dachshund that is only reluctant to jump is worth a call to your vet the same day.
Of UK Dachshunds aged 10 or over in an owner survey, 35.05% of small smooth-coated dogs had signs of disc disease. For standard long-coated dogs it was 10.42%. A 2026 study found that pattern in all three countries it looked at. “In dachshunds, smooth coat type is associated with worse spinal health than is long or wire coat type” (Hopper et al., Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 2026).
While the gap looks large, the study doesn’t prove coat genes cause back problems. It found an association and offers a possible reason.
1. Why Dachshunds have back problems
The disease is intervertebral disc disease, or IVDD. The discs between the bones of the spine harden and can burst or bulge, pressing on the spinal cord.
Calcified discs. In Dachshunds, hardened discs show up on x-rays as calcifications. The number on x-rays taken at 2 to 4 years old is heritable. The paper cites earlier work in which dogs with more calcifications were more likely to show signs of IVDD.
→ Sudden Back Pain or Wobbly Legs: IVDD, and When It Is an Emergency
2. The study
Three groups of dogs.
- UK: 1,134 Dachshunds aged 10 or over, from a 2021 owner survey. Owners reported whether the dog had had signs of disc disease.
- Norway and Denmark: 3,161 Dachshunds with x-ray calcification counts in national breeding databases.
Funding and interests. The authors received no specific funding. “Stacey Sullivan is a dachshund breeder.”
3. What it found
Coat type. In all three groups, smooth-coated Dachshunds had worse spinal health than long- or wire-coated ones.
Size. The link with size was inconsistent. Small smooth Dachshunds did worse than the other type in 12 of 15 comparisons.
In the UK survey, signs of disc disease by type were:
| Type | Owners reporting signs of disc disease |
|---|---|
| Small, smooth | 35.05% |
| Standard, smooth | 33.80% |
| Small, wire | 27.57% |
| Small, long | 19.75% |
| Standard, wire | 15.57% |
| Standard, long | 10.42% |
Some of these groups are small. Only 48 standard long-coated dogs were in the UK survey.
Our note: These are owner reports, not diagnoses. The x-ray data from Norway and Denmark are a different kind of evidence.
4. A possible reason
The authors suggest a gene behind the wire coat may protect the discs, and a gene behind the smooth coat may harm them. This is a hypothesis. The study didn’t test the dogs’ genes.
A warning against simple fixes. The authors caution that removing dogs with a single gene from breeding “may result in the loss of valuable healthy genetics, causing more net harm than good.”
Our note: Our one-line description of IVDD is ours. We don’t cover the disc-disease gene the paper discusses.
5. What the study can’t tell you
European dogs only. In these countries, breeding across coat types is banned. The authors say the link “might differ” where it isn’t, as in the United States.
Different measures. The UK used owner reports and the other countries used x-rays. The Norwegian and Danish dogs were mostly being considered for breeding.
6. If you have, or want, a Dachshund
- Ask a breeder whether the parents have had spinal x-rays and what they showed.
- Keep your dog lean.
- Know the warning signs of a disc problem, and act fast.
Our note: These points are ours, and “keep your dog lean” isn’t from this study. In the UK, the Royal Kennel Club runs an x-ray scheme for Dachshunds with Dachshund Health UK. Dogs are x-rayed once, between 24 and 48 months of age. Grades are published, including on the club’s online Health Test Results Finder, so a buyer can look up a screened parent’s grade (Royal Kennel Club, IVDD Scheme for Dachshunds). The club warns that its breeding advice “cannot guarantee that a puppy from grade 0 parents will be free of IVDD.”
→ Choosing a Breed or a Mix: The Health Data Breeders Don’t Lead With · → Is My Dog Overweight? Body Condition Scoring Without Guesswork
7. What we could not verify
| Commonly said | What we found |
|---|---|
| “Miniature Dachshunds have worse backs” | Not consistently. Size mattered in some comparisons, not others. |
| “Wire-haired Dachshunds have healthier backs” | Better than smooth, in three European groups. The cause isn’t proven. |
| “Breeding out one gene will fix IVDD” | The authors warn against it. They describe IVDD as involving many genes. |
Sources
- Hopper M, Liu CC, Embersics C, Otamendi A, Sullivan S. Dachshund spinal health by coat and size type. J Vet Intern Med 2026: 4,295 Dachshunds: UK owner survey and Norwegian and Danish x-ray databases. No specific funding; one author is a Dachshund breeder
Always confirm with your vet before acting on anything on this page.