The citizens of Bavaria take pride in the traditional beer, pretzels, and sausages that come from the German state. But apparently Bavarians’ love for sausages doesn’t only include authentic wurst—it extends to another beloved (albeit less-expected) sausage-like symbol of Bavaria: the dachshund.
In April 2018, the Bavarian city of Passau made a major step to commemorate that appreciation and welcomed a museum dedicated entirely to celebrating the German sausage dogs. According to the BBC, the Dackelmuseum (which translates to “Dachshund Museum”) is filled with 4,500 different items celebrating the breed, from stamps to puppets to glass figurines. Its founders, Josef Küblbeck and Oliver Storz, claim the Dackelmuseum features the world’s largest collection of wiener dog paraphernalia. But it won’t just be paraphernalia on display—Küblbeck’s and Storz’s own sausage dogs will reportedly make regular appearances at the exhibition space, and visitors are welcome to bring their dogs, as well.
So why an entire museum devoted to the furry friends? One answer is that the sausage dogs were originally bred in Germany during the 17th century to assist with the common local practice of badger hunting, and later became so popular across Bavaria that a dachshund was chosen as the official symbol of the 1972 Munich Olympics. Another answer is . . . why not?
“The world needs a sausage dog museum,” Küblbeck said in conversation with the BBC. “No other dog in the world enjoys the same kind of recognition or popularity as the symbol of Bavaria, the sausage dog.”
We completely agree.
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