Wirehair Puppy coat

[Ziggy]

We have an 11-week-old wirehair dachshund puppy and his coat is really soft. Will his coat become rougher or will it stay soft? If it will become rough at what age will it change?

[Cindi]

Wires are my passion and I have been 'in' them for over 20 years. From my experience, those that are soft at this age (and the degree of softness can vary) usually stay softer. Some coats can be 'worked' in to a decent coat, some can't. And sometimes the color is going to play a big part, hard as that may seem.
What color is your new child? If it is a diluted version of a color I'm sorry to say (well, unlesss you wanted a soft coated wire which many pet people DO want because they are hairier by far) that it most likely will be a softer coat.
Sometimes, if you strip out this coat you will find a decent coat coming in underneath OR the new coat that grows in will be decent. If you did not intend on handstripping I don't know what to tell you to expect http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/frown.gif
What colors were the parents and did they have harsh coats?

Cindi

PS I use to have much softer coated dogs in my house. I now have 2 wild boars with very nice coats and a black/tan with a double coat and it can be maintained to a decent harshness. If left to run amok, however, he gets pretty fluffy http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

[Ziggy]

Hi Cindi,

What do you mean by “diluted version of a color”? Our Ziggy’s coat is dark on the top, but the coat underneath is more grayish. It doesn’t really mater what coat he will get, but we are just curious… Looking forward to your answer!!

[Cindi]

The 'normal' <g> colors for dachshunds:
red can dilute to wheaten or strawberry blonde and frequently these coats are 'fluffier'
black and tan can dilute to a blue gray color and cream (or keep the dark tan) and the lighter versions are fluffier
chocolate and tan dilutes to cafe au lait and can be fluffy
Wild Boar - as of yet I have not seen a diluted wild boar <g>
Ziggy's coat is a dark what? Red, wild boar, black and tan? The undercoat on nearly every base color is lighter. Each hair is normally banded, except in black and tans, meaning there are stripes of color in each hair shaft. What are Ziggy's 'stripes'?

[Ziggy]

I believe that Ziggy has a black and tan coat. He has two different colors on each shaft (black and gray). However, his coat is getting more grayish by the day. His mother has a soft coat, meanwhile his dad’s coat is very rough.

We will not strip his coat for another couple of months since it’s very cold in Sweden right now. Will have to wait until April (otherwise he will refuse to go out).
<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm41.gif" border=0>

[Ziggy]

Sorry Cindy, I have to correct myself. After reading up on coats we conclude that he has a wild boar coat. However, this doesn’t help us with the question if his coat is going to become rough or will he stay soft.

[Cindi]

Wild boar dogs usually have reddish tinged ears, which is normally the same color as their undercoat or at least parts of their undercoat http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif, while black and tans have black ears. Does he have tan points but kind of a mixture of colors of hairs on his body sides? If I knew how to attach a picture of my wild boar I would .... but I don't know how to do that http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif
The wire coats change so much!!! Once you strip him and his new coat starts coming in you might find him a different color http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif You could start now, I know you don't want him naked (g), but just pull a little bit each day. The new growth will come in the darkest color. Some dogs have long bands of dark color (and that is usually the harshest) before the lighter band starts growing (and that is usually softer). Some dogs have extremely short dark bands (I had a few reds like that. They were in excellent coat for about 2 months and then the lighter stuff started coming in and I had to strip them down again.) and longer light bands.
Only time will tell with your child BUT I have never really seen a fluffy wild boar adult. Doesn't mean they exist but you can always hope!!!!

[Sandy]

Cindi, maybe you can help me too. I adopted a Dachshund from the Pound about 7 months ago. I knew a little about the Doxie breed and thought (and was told at the pound) he was a long-haired Doxie. I was told he was purebred and a year old.
My question is about his color. He is mostly black and tan, with dark red on his ears and a lot of tan mixed in on the sides. He also has a splash of white on his chest. His hair was very cottony and fluffy on his sides and legs. When I took him to the groomer, I was told he was a wild boar, but I thought wire-haired doxies were the only ones that had the wild boar color?
Can long-hairs be the wild boar color?
I have to say that whatever color he is, he is the most wonderful dog I have ever had. I am so glad we decided to bring him into our lives. He is truly a joy.

Sandy and Badger <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm42.gif" border=0>

[Mandy]

The color can appear in all three coats. In wires and smooths it is called wild boar. In longs it is called sable. Same color pattern, just different names in the different coats. I'm not certain why there are differnt names. Perhaps one of our experienced (and professional/ reputable - I have to hand it to good breeders for all of their hard work) could enlighten us on the reasoning for the name differences.

[Cindi]

Yes the color does appear in all 3 coats, and yes http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif it is called sable in longhairs and I don't know why http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif However, the expression in longhairs is usually very different than the wild boars (maybe that explains the different terminology). In a longhair, the dog will appear to be black and tan from a distance with the red being shown when you pull the hair back on the body and check the underlying hairs.
The puppy in question may be a red with a heavy overlay, thereby the reddish sides. White spots do occur in dachshunds http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif on the chest...sometime large, sometimes small. As with everything else it is genetic.
Is it possible to post a picture of the puppy?
And many people have problems describing the color of longhairs. Intermingled colors of hairs = people wanting to call them something other than their base color. It happens alllllll the time. It is just confusing!! <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm42.gif" border=0>

[Sandy]

I just got a new scanner, so once I get it all hooked up and figured out, I'll post Badger's pic.
Badger definitely has red heavily mixed in with the black on his head and along his back. His ears are red with a little black. His sides are a lighter color(tan) heavily mixed in and his underside is a mixture of all the colors including some white.
Thanks guys for your help! There seems to be such a confusion about the different colors.

Sandy and Badger

[Sandy]

Can anyone explain how to post a picture here? I have one of those Photo CDs. Can I post a pic here from one of them?
Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Sandy and Badger

[Cindi]

Can't help you on the posting a picture...sorry. BUT, it just dawned on me...does your dog have white hairs, not spots of white? As in there are hairs with white bands along with color bands or the hairs themselves are white but they are sprinkled throughout the coat?
The reason I ask is that Wrinkles needs grooming and the way I can tell easily is that the white/gray bands are VERY obvious right now. He is wild boar (as your boy sounds) but his body hair has lots of white bands.

[kathleen]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">i have a related question on the wire coat. how long does it take for the whiskers to come in?
my boy bailey will be one year old next month. his coat is coming in nicely except for his whiskers. he has longish hair growing down from the top of his nose, lengthwise. and catfish whiskers growing at the corners of his mouth. he's adorable, but it's not the traditional wire look.
i'm hand stripping bailey (or at least, i'm trying). should i be stripping his face, too? would that encourage the hair to grow? or should i just chill out and let nature take it's course?

thanks!</FONT f><IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm42.gif" border=0>

[Cindi]

<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm12.gif" border=0> You may have what many wire breeders want...the perfect coat. If they have a really, really harsh coat you won't get many whiskers or eyebrows; probably more than you have now but not much. Stripping won't encourage the growth there and you would hate to take what little he has off. I have never had a dog with that little furnishings, mine usually have too much for most people <g> but the current one has a good coat for me with not an abundance of furnishings - probably 3 times as much as your dog has though.
At least you won't have much work!!!! Best of luck!

[Uschi]

Oooh, very good information here in this topic -- I'm glad I stopped in. http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

I've now got two wirehairs, though one may admittedly be a mix (who knows with rescues!?) I SO wish I had the Christmas pictures developed to post so you could take a look at them.

I think I may have a "wheaton" (the possible mix) whose coat is ultra soft and fine. If we let her hair grow more than a month she gets curly all over her body and the top of her head. She's got cinnamon-colored whiskers and eyebrows like you might expect from a wirehair... but I've always wondered.

Our standard boy is black and tan and MUCH more coarse. He stays 'sleeker' looking for a lot longer after a trip to the groomers. However, his beard gets scraggly pretty quickly. Any suggestions on how to care for his beard without so many trips to the groomer?

Oh, and (for the self-grooming novice) what IS hand stripping and is it necessary for wirehairs?

--J + Ripley, Kaze & Brendan <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm16.gif" border=0>