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Okanagan dachshunds get along swimmingly

Kelowna Dachshund Club hosts pool party in Coldstream

Four little legs paddling fast and furious, wearing a personal flotation device.

Another on a miniature surf board trying unsuccessfully to catch a ball tossed by its owner. Two more being used as props for a reporter’s photo, the reporter in the pool trying to get up close with the subjects to get their tails. Er, tales.

Welcome to a Sunday afternoon summertime dachshund pot luck pool party, hosted in Coldstream by the Kelowna Dachshund Club at member Erin Green’s home overlooking Kalamalka Lake.

“I found out about the club through a Facebook post but I’ve yet to go to a function because we’re so busy,” said Green, owner of Olive, a fancy Isabella tan piebald dachshund, and Harley, your basic everyday red/tan/chocolate model. She and her husband operate a trucking company in Calgary and a fishing charter in Mexico.

“When they asked if anyone had a pool (for the party), I said, ‘what do you need, what’s involved?’ They said, ‘a pool and a safe yard. This is dachshund proof.”

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On this hot sunny Sunday, there are about 25 varieties of dachshunds, aged five months to approximately 10 years, roaming around the backyard. Their owners are nearby, noshing on the pot luck food, or going for a dip in the pool.

Lots of the dogs took to the water, most with personal flotation devices. Others were content to run laps around the pool rather than swim laps. All of the dogs got along fabulously.

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“They are feisty, fun and so funny,” said Cera Bollo, club member from Armstrong who realized a life-long dream of owning a dachshund when she picked up Hazel, her long-hair chocolate and cream pup. “They are the biggest cuddlers, they just want to be with you and around you. They’re very attached to you. They don’t have any problems with each other because they know they’re the same breed and they all get along.”

Emily Enoch from Kelowna founded the club to try and attract some friends for her dachshund, Ruby, though Enoch confesses Ruby isn’t a fan of club functions.

“She’s grumpy. I enjoy them more than she does,” laughed Enoch, who has watched her club grow to 700 members.

The club gets the dogs together and it gets the community together.”

The club has its own Facebook page under Kelowna Dachshund Club.



roger@vernonmorningstar.com

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Members of the Kelowna Dachshund Club and their pups gather for a group photo at the club’s first pool party in Coldstream Sunday. (Roger Knox - Morning Star)
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Paula Sich of the Kelowna Dachshund Club tries to get her surfboarding dog Smokie to catch a ball during the club’s first pool party in Coldstream Sunday. (Roger Knox - Morning Star)
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Black Press Media reporter Roger Knox tried in vain to get a pair of dachshunds to share their stories at the Kelowna Dachshund Club’s first pool party Sunday in Coldstream. (Emily Enoch - photo)


Roger Knox

About the Author: Roger Knox

I am a journalist with more than 30 years of experience in the industry. I started my career in radio and have spent the last 21 years working with Black Press Media.
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