First rabbit hunt with my beagle pup

[DaveBriner]

Just an observation to possibly give you hope...

I have a rat terrier-beagle mix.  He's built like a terrier with the markings of a beagle.  Since I knew he was part beagle, of course I paid attention to how he would work with his nose since I would like to train him to track deer.  Well, 6 months go by and he's sniffin' this and sniffin' that, so I think "well, he can smell stuff".  Let me tell you somebody turned the switch on one day at about 7 months old, cuz he started trailing rabbits in the neighborhood like a posessed critter.  I can tell when he's on a rabbit trail now cuz he makes this deep guttural huffing/growling noise since he's breathing so deep and hard, and he works the track very very hard and fast.

Keep up hope brother, he may turn out!!
Dave

[V I Archer]

My little Artemis, we call her Missy.  My sweetheart and I do not have children, MIssy is our baby.  She is spoiled, we prefer the term, well loved
She has great natural instinct.  
 
The nose is always to the ground.  
 
We were walking the other day and jumped a blacktail doe about 100 yards out.  Missy put her nose to the trail and followed every step that deer took for another 200 yards, until she crossed a covey of quail.  She loves going hunting with me, and will run into her travel kennel if she sees me grabbing my bow. She is still just a pup, and is easily distracted.  She is getting fixed this afternoon.  Come the new year, I will step up her tracking training.  The goal is to utilze her as a blood trailing hound.  She has been with me a few times when we have recovered deer, and I think the last time she put two and two together and realized a down deer means fresh liver to snack on!  As soon as she saw the downed animal she ran over to it and began chewing it's ears, and tugging away    
One thing I will say, beagles are smart, cute, but stubborn and cheeky.  I wouldn't trade mine for the world!

[Fallguy]

I have heard that logic repeated about all type's of hunting dogs. And can not say that I have ever seen it to be true. I believe that you can have good hunting dogs that live in the house. The only reason to keep them out side is to keep them acclimated for the northern winter temps. My friend keeps his Drathar's outside during the day when he is at work and lets them in when he is home in the evening. My beagle is 15 she still has to be on a leash when she is outside or it is off to the races.

[Buz-AL]

Your beagle will learn to hunt if you keep getting it around rabbits.  It takes time for a pup to get it, but its good time. And the more its around people, the more it will learn to act right around people. The more its outside barking, the more it'll just learn to bark.

My Halle ran the first twenty or so rabbits we jumped right off and lost 'em, but she enjoyed the heck out of it and was proud of herself. After a while she started getting them out about 50-100 yards before losing the trail. That happened for the next twenty rabbits or so, then she started actually coming back my way sometimes. One day she was coming back to me and she kept coming and and coming and suddenly she veered off just as she got into sight. I realized she'd circled the bunny, and it had seen me. Success!!!

I just took her to a fallow field by the nearby school a few times a week after work and she was circling them more often than not by the time hunting season opened when she was eight months old.

She won't pack up, but that's the only thing we've missed by not getting her with other dogs while she was learning.

And I would no sooner leave her outdoors at night than I would my Mother-in-Law.  The secret to having a dog that doesn't chew everything is to have only ONE toy.  In my experience if only one toy is allowed they can easily learn that everything else is off limits.  And crate-training works, if the trainer is as smart as the dog. Good luck with your pup.

[no]

I have 1 inside & he is like another kid. He hunts every bit as my 2 outside beagles & probably has the best nose of them. As far as starting them, I usually start with a few sight chases with a domestic & once they open you have got to bring them to rabbits, around the neiborhood or a park or during the season you jump a few for the dog & go into the brush with to show. Shoot a starters pistol or .22 to get used to the noise when on track. Pm if you need any advise.  Mike