By Emily Chapman Laing
A group of delighted dachshunds gathered at Casey Fields Dog Park on Sunday 7 May.
There were little legs abound as the pups chased one another all over the park, sniffing, licking, playing and jumping.
Other dogs joined in, including beagles, bull arabs and terriers, but the dachshunds sure stole the spotlight.
Dressed in their finest winter garb, the short but spunky pups put smiles on the owners’ faces in spite of the windchill.
The South East Dach Club was started by Georgia after she saw a need for a dachshund community in her area.
“I have travelled upwards of an hour to go and meet other dachshunds, when suddenly I thought ’Why don’t I just create a local meet up?’ So I did,“ she said.
“I created an Instagram and Facebook page to promote the meet ups, having our first one on April 16th.
“I was worried as the weather wasn’t great and dachshunds don’t like the cold and wet usually, but we still had 15 come along, and then the next week we had about 60 dachshunds running around much to my surprise.
Georgia said it was so amazing to see what a “great little community“ she had built in just a few short weeks.
The owners come from all walks of life and Georgia said she loves giving people a space to connect over a common love.
“It is so great to have a range of aged people come along with their dogs,“ Georgia said.
“It creates new friendships and a space where everyone can have conversations about the same things and what we love most, our dachys.
“It’s also an opportunity to share tips and tricks to raising dachshunds.“
The meet ups also benefit the pups, who have a chance to play, sniff and socialise with others of their kind.
“Socialising dogs is so important as it builds their confidence and awareness when around people and other dogs.
“It’s so great to see all of the dachshunds creating their own little community and protecting one another when a ‘big and scary’ dog comes over.“
