Does anyone have a beagle

[ihatethecold]

We are thinking of getting a beagle!
Any advice. We keep hearing that they don't make good family pets.

[foolonthehill]

www.cwbeagles.com/rescuefolder/Pros&Cons/Pros&Cons.htm a useful summary of their good and bad points.

the deal breaker for me was the inability to walk them off lead as when the nose is on the brain is off....mind you, I have a Springer and they have some similar issues

[swooosh]

I do! She can walk off the lead at our local fields and has a reasonably good recall - she's only gone missing an hour or so maybe a few times.

She went through the usual puppy phase - chewing etc.

She rarely does that howling, although barks occasionally when something takes her by surprise. VERY GREEDY. Completely driven by food, leaps up the minute anybody ventures into the kitchen out of hope of getting something.

VERY soppy and affectionate, loves cuddles. Loves nothing more than when everybody is home and snuggled on the sofa. Very docile, gentle, quite wary of other dogs other than puppies and jack Russell's but that's down to previous bad experience.

I think she's a bit broken compared to some Beagle stories I've heard, but she's lovely and of course so beautiful and attracts a lot of attention and compliments

[hellymelly]

I grew up with a rescue beagle cross (mother pure beagle, father unknown but looked like maybe a collie/terrier cross). She was a complete darling. Granted her recall wasn't great, she would happily go off to the other side of vast parks on walks, or way out of sight chasing gulls on clifftops (nearly gave my mother a heart attack doing that), but that was all good experience for my later fox-terrier ownership! Other than that she was sweetness itself,very well behaved and lovely with all other dogs, children, animals. Tried to mother my baby rabbits, scooping them onto her nose and back into the hutch when they first vetured out. She got to 17 and had a family funeral in the back garden.

[buttercrumble]

Yes we love her but she's a pain in the arse. We cant walk her off the lead, any chance she gets she will steal food. She is very vocal and has the beagle howl. Positives are that shes great with the kids and other dogs , and shes very loving....

[FurryDogMother]

I grew up with a (neutered) beagle - came home many a time crying (as a kid) 'cos he'd got a scent and vanished over the horizon. Having said that, he was a lovely dog, and we always walked him off lead - had access to huge beaches and a massive woodland area. He was a gentle dog, never got into fights or anything. He had a wonderful 'woof' - it was just his recall was non existent if there was an interesting scent around...

[zumo]

I know two people with them, one gave it away as it was apack animal and wrecked the house.
The others a big softie and is often seen skate boarding down the road.
We have had a few dogs over the years and I prefer small dogs around children, I cant back this up with any facts just what we have found.
The thing to consider is you can get dogs that are not for you, we have had three Yorkies, two fantastic well behaved obedient etc, one was a little B would do anything for me but growled and bit every one else, we gave him to friends with two teenage children she is home all day and hes a fantastic dog.
I feel every home should have a dog, we have two Lhasa Apsos, fantastic companions, friendly too, bit expensive though.
My best advice is join a local dog training club before you get the dog and learn how best to treat it, I did and now having trained four I feel its well worth it.
Next ones going to be a mongrel as they are often very good pets with few health issues

[purplewoofer]

We are looking after one at the moment. He is fat and very lazy. Have to check he is still breathing he sleeps so long! He is 6 and our dogs - husky cross and jrt are 5 they will walk and run for miles. He sits down and won't move. His recall is good as he can't be bothered to run away and he is very very greedy. Anything that is, was or could be food gets eaten. Deapite all that he is quite sweet - has lovely soft ears but I would never own one. I think he is an exception to the breed.

[bassetfeet]

I dogsit a beagle cross and he is so funny and loving . A bit woofy with other dogs and not sociable that way but perfect with humans .
NEVER let him off lead after some very scary times when he went into scent mode and went over the hills and far away . And they are hugely greedy for food as others have said .
I love him dearly but am sad that I cannot let him off long lead .....spoils it for me and him [but he aint my dog ].
Have owned my own border collies and it seems awful to not let him have his freedom .........he is fat because of his lack of running free.
Not a breed I would recommend although they are so lovely ....just their hound genes .

[ThePlatypusAlwaysTriumphs]

I have a 13 yo beagle (used to have 2). Love her, but she is a pain a lot of the time. She does run away, chews, steals, and isn't the best dog at personal hygeine (loves rolling in fox shit, peeing in her own bed and sleeping in it, so very smelly).

They are very sweet natured, but hard hard work. I usually try to dissuade people from getting one because of the number of times I have been out with the dogs and people have come up to me and said "ooh- we used to have a beagle....but we had to get rid of it- it was chewing/ untrainable/ ran away" In fact, my parents rehomed my first beagle when I was 8, hence my ridiculous affinity for the breed now!

[Zepherial]

I have a 2 year old beagle who fortunately for us is the perfect dog. She has super recall and is always off lead the amount of surprised faces we get when we walk her make me laugh. Yes they are greedy but only if you let them be we feed her dog food and that is it!

I did a huge amount of dog research as I have 3 children and wanted a dog that would fit in with my family and she fits in lovely. She looks beautiful as well her only fault is fox poo perfume, we are experts on where not to walk her.

Beagles came out top family pet when I was researching, they are easy to train and our dog has no interest in tracking. ( we have chickens and walk in fields with pheasants)

[LetThereBeCupcakes]

We think our lab is crossed with a beagle. She is very vocal - not just barking and howling, but all sorts of vocalisations. She'll chat away to us all day. She loves cuddles on the sofa, and is very, very greedy (though being part lab can't really be surprised by that!) She also bounces a lot - all four paws clean off the ground. It's both funny and slightly frightening when a 22kg dog strats bouncing around the kitchen, ricocheting off everything in sight...

Her recall is actually very good - she will come when we call her but we have to watch her like a hawk because when she gets a scent she will go very quickly and get out of earshot. We whistle trained her and she comes back no trouble as soon as we give the 3 "peep" signal.

Of course, we have no evidence she IS a beagle cross, as she's a rescue - just her behaviour and the way she looks makes us think she probably is (and beagle owning friends have agreed).

Agility in a secure field is a good activity for recall-shakey Beagles.

[MotherOfCleo]

we have a basset an i believe they are quite similar. She is such a gorgeous loving dog, loves being a lap dog and always wants cuddles BUT recall is noexistant! She will disapear for smells and other dogs (shes so sociable with people and absolutely loves other dogs) she is great with kids though, a bit clumsy but always brings my friends toddler her toys to play with lol. We took her to puppy training classes for about 5 months and she did well, her recall in class was great, in a field it is another matter. She is a bit lazy and sleeps lots but when you do walk her she loves long walks, copes easily with 5 pluw miles. I wish you luck!

[MotherOfCleo]

also we tried whistle training and all the usual suggestions, recall was good till she was about 6 months and got more confident, we even hired two different trainers, they said she is just doing what bassets do.....not overly helpful really. Think the good recall of the previous posters dog may come from the lab not the hound

[LetThereBeCupcakes]

motherofcleo you're probably right! We've been very lucky - with the mix I think, could have been very difficult.

[InTheNightGarden]

I don't have one, but a friend does....

it's 1 and half years old
it bites, it draws blood, it jumps up at you, it doesn't listen, it pooed on the sofa the last time I visited!!! it jumps up and "play" bites my dd!! it doesn't walk on a lead very well, if let off it runs off for hoursssss, it escapes from the garden and pisses off car drivers and neighbours...


I don't go round anymore :)

[MotherOfCleo]

nightgarden that just sounds like an untrained dog to me, more a reflection on the owners than the dog or breed I think!
Haha, wish my madam had a bit of lab in her, could do with some sensible genes lol

[InTheNightGarden]

I wouldn't know, not a dog person! I just dislike that dog and when I saw the word beagle I just thought of this pain in bum beagle!

[deste]

Don't do it. My son has two really friendly lovely looking dogs but as everyone says, really greedy and when they take them up to us they won't sit down, they prowl around and you can't relax. They destroy our dogs toys in seconds. They can't let them off the lead either. They are 5 and 4. They were sent to a dog trainer for one month and he had difficulty training them.

[Jaynerae]

We have a Beagle, we had her as an 8 week old pup, she will be 3 in March. She is just settling down a bit now. There have been times when thoughts of rehoming her did cross my mind on a daily basis, but my heart would never let me do that to any dog.

I starting taking her to training lessons every week from 15 weeks old, we still go now, but for fun now for both of us. She is by far the best trained dog in the class and the best trained Beagle I have ever heard of or seen. This has been achieved by sheer hard work and practice. On every single walk I do 10 minutes training and that is how I have got her to the standard she is at. Recalls to whistle wish is the best thing I ever taught her.

She is 100% obsessed with food. This means I have to store bins in cupboards, all food out of reach at all times. Absolutely no off lead walks in parks in summer when people are picnicking, or eating lunch on park bench, no matter how good recall is, whatever titbits I have does not beat jacket potatoe tuna and sweet corn! Which she did indeed steal.

I have to crate her when we are eating as she will jump and steal off your plate, whilst you are eating!.

Until she was about 2.5 years I could not leave her alone for 5 mins, even so I could go to the loo, I had to crate her as she would steal and chew absolutely anything she can reach, mobiles, remotes, pens, pencils, letters, washing, slippers, shoes, utterly anything. It only happened couple times though as I crated her when I left the room.

She is very very loud and barks insessently if you ignore her, or she is in garden hearing noises. Neighbours have complained, when I was on loo and she was in garden barking!

I have to tie her on long lead in garden as she digs under fence and escapes. Can't take her camping with us after first time as she digs up the campsite!

I could go on, but you get the picture .

There are many more breeds much more suitable as family pets, Beagles are not family pets, they are pack dogs. Mine adores other dogs, I put her in doggy day care if I need to go the the office and DH is on shift, and she absolutely loves it, plays with all the big dogs all day, and owner of daycare things she is great as so friendly with other dogs.

We have a cavalier king Charles spaniel, and he is in my opinion the most perfect pet dog ever. I love both my dogs, but I will never ever have another Beagle, just too much hard work. All future dogs in my household will be cavies!

[MotherOfCleo]

wow, well done Jay, I have a basset and understand how infuriating hounds can be. I honestly never realised how different they were. Ours loves other dogs more than almost anything else which is definitely our main recall issue, shes not as bad with the whole nose to the ground thing as I feared. Ours has had the bin over a few times but Ive trained her that she only gets food we are eating if she goes and sits (perferably lays) in her bed, it took AGES but it stops her jumping or begging at the table, I also trained her to lay to be given a treat rather than sit, I figured when we have kids they will be holding food at her sitting level so I needed her lower down.
Mines also a bit of a lead puller, shes good with me but we also have 2 dog walkers and my OH walking her so its our own fault for lack of consistancy.
Hounds are a real commitment, not dogs to be taken on lightly. They love you more than anything though, she is a real lap dog.