Plural of dachshund; multiple small dogs with short legs and elongated bodies, originally bred in Germany to hunt badgers.
From German 'Dachshund,' literally 'badger dog,' combining 'Dachs' (badger) and 'Hund' (dog). The breed became popular in English-speaking countries in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Dachshunds are living proof of selective breeding—their extreme proportions (short legs, long body) were deliberately engineered to pursue badgers into burrows, and their popularity in modern times has actually made them prone to back problems, showing how humans reshape animals to fit our aesthetic preferences.
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