That's My Dog, Dawg!
A lovely ode to a sweet girl (and dachshunds in general).
Howdy! It’s Joey, back with more Fun Fact Friyay. This fact has short, stubby, little legs, so let’s get a move on.
The first official mascot for the Olympics was a dachshund named Waldi, debuted in 1972 in Munich.
Exactly 12 years ago to the day (at least of publishing this, perhaps not when you’re reading it), I adopted my first-ever dog, a chihuahua dachshund mix, also known as a chiweenie.
I thought I was going for a meet-and-greet; her fosters thought I was coming to collect her. She was quite literally thrown into my arms, and all of a sudden, I had a dog!
Her adopted name was Pixie. While I dig some tunes from the Pixies rock band and the pixie cut is a sleek hairstyle, I did not particularly like Pixie as a name.
I was also supposed to meet another dog a few days later named Frank. That meeting did not happen, but I enjoyed the name Frank for a dachshund.
The combo of Pixie and Frank had a catchy ring to it, and thus, Franxie was born.
I never knew Franxie’s official birth date, so I always considered July 18 both her birthday and her gotcha day. This is the first birthday of hers since she passed away last fall.
Franxie was a little lady, but she had a ferocity fitting of the chihuahua part of her. She would snarl and snap at dogs five times her size if they got out of line, AND THEY LISTENED! She was an inspiration to anyone who’s ever had their personal space invaded.
She also suffered from brain issues, occasional back and hip woes, and began losing her sight in her older years. She required several trips to the emergency room, most notably for eating an entire large dark chocolate bar in one sitting.
In that situation, she spent days in the animal hospital recovering. The first thing she did when she got back home was to beeline to the couch and try to find a piece of chocolate she had hidden in the cushions. If only we could all be so gleefully ignorant about the things that might kill us.
Despite that, Franxie was the sweetest cuddlebug, surely her dachshund trait coming out. She loved burrowing into a blanket or snuggling up beside me, enjoyed sunbathing on the balcony, getting all the good scritches, and demolishing a toy, gnawing on squeakers until they squeaked no more. And her ears were the best.
In her younger days, Franxie could jump from the ground into my arms without me having to bend over at all. She perhaps would have been an excellent pole vaulter, which feels like as good a segue as we’re going to get, so let’s roll with it.
Back in 1972, the Summer Olympics were being held in Munich. Dachshunds are quite popular in the state of Bavaria. German designer Otl Aicher, who also had a hand in designing the Lufthansa logo, led a team that whipped up a logo that showcased a favorite animal of the host while representing the endurance, tenacity, and agility of Olympic athletes. The result was a dachshund named Waldi.
Waldi was modeled after a real-life dachshund named Cherie von Birkenhof, just about the classiest dog name I’ve ever heard. Originally, Waldi was going to be called Lumpi, and I think we can all agree the decision-makers went with the right choice in switching to Waldi.
This multi-colored dog was immediately popular, with all kinds of official and unofficial merchandise flying off the shelves. Elena Winschermann, who collaborated with Aicher on the design, said she had no affinity to dachshunds and still doesn’t to this day. But she was tasked with standardizing the design “so that it always looks the same, in different sizes and materials.”
I’d say she nailed it.
Another quirk of the 1972 Olympics: The marathon route was designed to be in the shape of Waldi. Unclear if the runners realized that; I know the one time I ran a marathon, part of the course included going on a government island that civilians aren’t normally allowed to be on. I was so tired and dazed from running more miles than I had ever run that I completely missed appreciating the moment, whoops.
I should note that if you bring this fact up to someone, they may try to counter with a “WELL, AKSHUALLY.”
The 1968 Olympics in Grenoble, France, technically had a mascot, as well. But the International Olympic Committee called this weird ball on skis thing a “character,” only deeming it a mascot many years after the fact. It wasn’t official at the time. I liken it to learning that Pluto was a planet in school, only to have that fact ripped away from us.
Anyway, Waldi was great. Franxie was great. Dachshunds in general are great. If you have one (or any dog), give them an extra squeeze for me.
Enjoyed this, Joey!