Day of the Dackel celebrations

A west Wimmera town will honour the long-bodied Dachshund dog-breed this weekend at the annual Day of the Dackel, part of World Dachshund Day celebrations.

After the inaugural event in 2021 attracted more than 100 dachshunds and their owners from across Victoria and South Australia to Henley Park, Edenhope, organisers are gearing up for the second instalment of the ‘sausage’ dog invasion.

Wanda Jackson, from Wanda Queen of Little Desert, will host the celebration of all-things dachshund including a fashions on the field show with prizes, market stalls, takeaway food and drink vans.

Organisers say the day’s highlight will be the ‘March of the Dachshunds’ from the park to Lakeside Living hostel in front of seated Edenhope residents.

Edenhope has long been a lover of the unique breed, having hosted Australia’s only Dachshund Museum since 2019, one of three dedicated museums in the world.

Dachshunds originated from Germany, bred to flush out small burrowdwelling animals.

Day of the Dackel refers to the German name for the breed – dackel. The word Dachshund translates to ‘badger hound’.

Day of the Dackel kicks-off from 10am on Sunday at Henley Park and entry is free for spectators.