Dachshunds are a bit notorious for catching small critters or picking up dead ones. If you're out walking your dog and he picks something up, you're not going to want to touch the icky thing. At the same time, you've got to be able to get him to drop it. That's the other problem. When a dachshund has something he really treasures, he can lock his jaws and become quite determined not to give up the item. If your dachsie is trained with the “Give” command, you can get him to release the item without getting into a confrontation (in which your dachsie might snap or bite to defend his prize).

Offer your dog a favorite toy or chew that you know he will want, and say “Take it!” Click and treat, and repeat. For the “Give” command, wait until your dachsie is holding something you want. Hold a very yummy treat up in front of his nose. If the treat is a good one, your dachshund will almost always give you what you want when you say “Give!” Click and treat. To repeat this exercise, give the item back to your dachsie with the “Take It!” command, then click and treat.

You will want to practice this exercise with your dachshund so when the day comes that he has something forbidden or even dangerous, you can say “Give” and he will drop the nasty thing. For those who are interested in competitive obedience, this exercise is the beginning for many more complex maneuvers, such as fetching and returning a tossed dumbbell and picking out a dumbbell with the owner's scent from a pile of dumbbells.