Comments on: How to Care for a Beagle

on 10/16/2008 I have a 3yr old beagle and he started to jump out fence, what can i do to stop this from happening?

on 8/15/2006 We have had our Beagle for only a week and a half. I believe he is between 7-8 months. I have noticed that he is very smart. When we catch him chewing on things that are not his, we simply but sternly tell him No! and take him to his toy box (wicker basket) full of my children's old stuffed animals and give him one of his toys to chew on. Now he will go and get his toys on his own. I wonder if he will learn to put them away as well? :)

on 6/30/2006 This is what I've learned from owning two Beagles and doing tons of research:

1. They learn very quickly, but you have to be consistent. "No" means "no" no matter what. They are very smart little things and will constantly challenge you.

2. They are very easy to housebreak. All you need is time. Both of my Beagles were basically housebroken by the age of 3 months (they were not fully reliable until about 8 months). Whenever I was home, I was making sure that I found time to let them out every 1 to 2 hours to do their business. I would wait until they would do it and then praised them with a snack. They would always need to go out after each meal, naps, or play times, when they woke up, or before they went to sleep. I would limit their access to water when I was not home.

3. The easiest method that I found to crate train them was to give them food in their crate. One of my Beagles was afraid of going inside the crate, so I started by putting the food by the crate's door and then moving it further inside each day. In about a week I was able to lock the door behind him. Then I would start extending the time they were kept in the crate after they ate and would let them out only when they would stay quiet. I would always reward them with a snack after letting them out.

4. I found that to keep them quiet I would have to make a sudden noise. If they would bark, I would tell them to stop and if they didn't I would grab empty plastic bottle and hit the wall. They would stop right away. And of course, I would reward them with a snack.

5. Beagles will never be fully reliable when outside and should always be walked on the leash. Even a fenced yard has to be Beagle-proofed. They are definitely the escape masters. The bigger they get, the more curious they become. It took us about 1 year and 3 Beagle escapes to finally feel comfortable in leaving them alone outside for more than 20 minutes. We're still considering installing a new fence. The one that we have is not old or broken, but this is what our beagles found - one loose board in a wooden fence that they can push only to the left side and get out; if they jump enough times on the gate doors they will open enough for them to squeeze by; if they dig just a little bit they will be able to squeeze under the fence (one of our Beagles is a digger, the other one a jumper).

6. Beagles can be very destructive when left alone at home with nothing to do (not necessary for a long time). They should always have plenty of toys and chewy bones or sticks lying around to keep them occupied. Our Beagles did most of their damage when they were about 1 year and 2 months. I made the mistake of leaving them home alone for 3 hours with no toys, which lead them to destroying two of our couches. They definitely like to chew.

7. Punishments should only be given when Beagles are caught in the act. Yelling loudly "Stop" or "No" should do. Punishing afterward (even though it's very tempting) will never work, they won't be able to associate the thing they did wrong with your dissatisfaction.

8. They can be thought to ring a bell when they want to go outside. You can hang a small bell (like a fishing bell) on a string by the handle and before you open the door for them make them touch it with their nose or paw. Reward them with snack afterward. It's amazing how quick they learn. We had to remove our bell because they started to ring the bell every 10 minutes to go out.

And did I mention that Beagles are food motivated? I read somewhere that if you're able to survive with a Beagle the first 2 years you won't want to have any other dog. They are definitely one of a kind.

on 2/28/2006 We have a Beagle that just turned 14 months. The first 6-8 months is the hardest for the owner. They are the most stubborn dogs, but with love and consistency, they will listen. Obedience training is a must, but it will still take time for them to hear you when you give a command. Patience is key. After a year, our Beagle is starting to calm down and listen. We feel it will still be a long time until he is able to stay off the leash and not follow his nose instead of our commands! With all this said, just know that owning a Beagle is a wonderful choice for an active, loving dog!

on 1/31/2006 My beagle is about 8 months old. We've had him since he was a puppy. He was very easy to housetrain (about 3 weeks). He is very friendly with houseguests and kids, however, he has separation anxiety disorder and does not like to be alone at all. If you get up, he gets up, you leave the room, he leaves the room, and forget about shutting the bathroom door. So leaving him alone unattended is out of the question.
We tried crate training him from day one, but he absolutely does not like the crate. He will howl and bark and dig (has actually bent it) for hours on end. We recently took him to the groomer to get rid of his shedding hair and she even said he is one of the worst she's seen in a long time. I would not recommend a beagle to someone who does not have the time to pay attention to them, or who wants to leave them alone for extended periods of time. They are chewers and could destroy your home if not looked after. They need to be told over and over and over again "NO". If you have children you will definitely have a problem with their toys. Our dog chews socks (while they are on their feet), slippers, toys, paper, toilet paper, etc. They are very lovable dogs, but require a lot of attention and patience.

on 1/26/2006 My beagle has a cage with his own pillow and toys. Whenever I can't find him I know he is in there playing. It is like his bedroom. When we have parties, or the kids have friends over, he will periodically check up on them and go right back to his cage.

on 11/22/2005 All Beagle owners know that Beagles in general are very energetic. My Beagle loves tennis balls and she can play "get-the-ball-and-bring-it" non-stop for hours. Also, she and my Great Dane play for hours every day. But these activities don't compare to her daily walks. After throwing the ball or playing with the Dane, she will want more playing. But, each day after her walk she gets up in her chair and sleeps for hours. There have been days when we just couldn't go for a walk, and on those days she was jumping off the walls. Nowadays we take the walk, rain or shine, and it keeps her happy!

on 11/22/2005 My Beagle was always running away from my house. Another big problem was that every time another dog would pass by, my dog would bark like crazy. What I did to stop this was I started to walk my dog twice a day. That way he got used to being outside and not just in the yard. Also every Sunday I would take Markie to a dog park. Markie got used to other dogs. And now he's really happy,and so am I!

on 11/22/2005 i own a blue tick beagle mix named sparky when he was young he used to destroy the house when we left him alone so instead of sticking him outside for hours on end while we are gone that by leaving the radio play he thought that he wasnt alone and stopped destroying the house

on 11/22/2005 I am the proud owner of 3 Beagles. I think that it is very important to understand the breed of dog you are buying before you bring the dog home. Beagles are adorable, but they are a lot of work. You can not let them roam free. Their nose rules the brain, so extra effort is needed to keep them at home. They are also a very independent breed, and they can be quite stubborn. You must have an overwhelming amount of patience to truly love a beagle.

on 11/22/2005 My wife had concerns about our dog being left in the house while we are out or I'm at work, etc. We put our dog in the laundry room, and he initially had a hard time being behind a closed door. Having a very young child in our house, we have one of those child doorway gates/fences available to us. We leave the door open and place the gate in the opening, and it gives our dog Riley the freedom he thinks he has. He does awesome! Our longest stretch has been 8 hours without incident. Beagles are great sleepers - we're gone, he sleeps! The minute we walk in, he's all about giving and getting attention! He is a digger, though. In the yard, we have miniature Grand Canyons - my only gripe!

on 11/22/2005 When adopting a rescue beagle, make sure you are observant of behaviors that may make your beagle panic. I have Honey, a 1 year old Beagle/Shepherd mix and Homer, a three-ish Beagle, and both were abused. Honey is afraid of pillows. When I make the bed, I have to be careful not to throw pillows around, otherwise she pees. Homer is afraid of almost everything, but he was in a kennel for two years so I don't blame him. Just be patient, and they will come around...

on 11/22/2005 I invented a new approach to tying out my beagle, Mario. I got two tie out stakes from the pet store and connected them with a 50 foot vinyl coated cable. I attached a steel ring and connected a 25 foot lead with a clip attached to his collar. This gave Mario a HUGE oval to roam in over the yard. He never tired of it and never got wrapped up in it.

on 11/22/2005 We have 3 dogs, one of which is a Beagle. Before we got her, we looked online to find a place to buy a Beagle. We put each place that we thought was nice on a list and set off to find the right place. It took about 3 places until we ran across a Beagle farm. We thought this looked like a very good place to buy our first Beagle. A lady directed us to the cage and we just saw her sitting there with cute little puppy eyes. We knew that she was the one for us. That was the day we took her home. My tip for you - even if it takes you a while, you need to find a place that you feel safe buying a Beagle from, even if you want the dog right away.

on 11/22/2005 4 beagles are better than 1! All were taken in over the years with problems. Baby Marie 15, Jody Elizabeth 9, Scooter Magoo 6, Skeeter Magee 5. We had to get a kingsize bed so my husband, me and "the girls" can sleep comfortably! They give so much love!!