question about beagles

[razorback]

ok, we are considering getting a Beagle puppy. It would be mostly a family pet but it would also like to use it for rabbits and grouse. What I want is the good, the bad and the ugly. Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated. Also any pointers to other other resources would be helpful.

[centaur]

We are on our second beagle. Our first one lived until he was 15. They are great pets; lively, intelligent, loyal and loving. Our current beagle came from hunting stock, and his nose is amazing. Both of our beagles will do anything to please their 'parents', and they train quickly.
Our first beagle was the biggest chowhound I have ever seen, but our current one would rather hunt, chase a ball, or carry a stick than eat.
Here's Huey…
 

[razorback]

Good looking hound. How are they if left alone for 4 hours.

[centaur]

No doubt it depends on the dog, but ours are just fine. We trained both beagles to a crate from the start, and if we leave for a while and they were left inside, we just put them in their 'box' and they do fine. They are really happy to see you when you come home.

Another thing; if a beagle gets on a trail, you will see his nose to the ground and his tail in the air, and good luck calling him back. And they do have a voice that they love to share, and there is great music in a beagle's bay.

[stiknstringer]

This is Lady, one of the best beagles I ever had.I got her and her sister Nelly for $95. The two I have now cost $1000 each but aren't nearly as good hunting.My point is you never know what they will be like.

[larry]

the good- fairly easy to house and crate train. Playful and loving dogs. The bad- like has been said above, when buying a pup, you never really know what kind of hunter it will be, even if both parents are great hunters. I've had both, excellent hunters and ones not really worth a darn. They all loose there hearing once their nose gets full of scent. Get one that likes to run deer and you'll have a heck of a time breaking them from it

[JD Page 1965]

If you enjoy barking, barking and yet more barking at absolutely nothing then get yourself a beagle and a good set of ear plugs..

[centaur]

Originally posted by JD Page 1965:
If you enjoy barking, barking and yet more barking at absolutely nothing then get yourself a beagle and a good set of ear plugs..

That has not been my experience. Our dogs will bark and bay on a trail, and speak for their dinner, but incessant barking hasn't happened with us, and if we had a barker, that dog would be wearing a bark collar.
Is this the face of a barker, or a little canine angel?
 

[tracker1]

Try to research both parents of the pup for good hunting stock.  Spend as much time as you can with the pup.  Give your pup as much opportunity as possible to jump and run rabbits or find a puppy pen to give the puppy plenty of rabbits to run.  After your pup knows what he is supposed to be running then put your pup on a hot deer trail and use a shock collar to let the pup know what there not supposed to chase.  Yes prepare to get up in the middle of the night and yell at the dogs to be quite if they are outside kennel dogs they will bark at anything that comes into yard.  I crate train my pups from the start so they travel well to your hunting spots.  Good beagles live to chase rabbits and won't leave a track unless you shoot the rabbit or they loose the scent.  Beagles either you love them or hate them.  I have always owned hounds so I love them.  Good luck have fun.

[Tall Paul]

Originally posted by JD Page 1965:
If you enjoy barking, barking and yet more barking at absolutely nothing then get yourself a beagle and a good set of ear plugs..

LOL!!!!

[macbow]

Have loved beagles all my life. The part about hard to call off trail is certainly true. Many a rabbit hunt ended with carrying ours back so they wouldn't hit another trail.
We seldom used leashes and could have used them.

Hard to get a more loving dog.

[PaulDeadringer29]

I squirrel/rabbit hunt with my treeing feist (also an excellent choice as a solo hunting dog/family pet) a lot....love hunting with dogs. Get a pup from hunting parents to increase your odds. Get an electronic shock collar and  learn how to properly use it, and you'll save a lot of headaches.

[Red Beastmaster]

Our beagle, Shoey, is 10 now and has been a house dog from the beginning. I used to take her out hunting around the house but she just started wandering farther each time. She would go out of sight and wouldn't come back until she decided to. Very frustrating. I finally just stopped trying to hunt with her.

Now she just stays inside and alternates between eating and sleeping.

Pro: The most friendly dog I was ever around, especially with my 4 little granddaughters.

Con: Absolutely will not come when called unless you rattle a box of treats. Also sheds 11 months per year.

[3arrows]

Any one use one for blood trailing?

[Stump73]

Weve had beagles most of my life. They are family pets and great with kids. I love hearing them running rabbits. They can be hard headed some times though.

[suburbanirma]

I grew up chasing rabbits and pheasants with the family beagle. When I was old enough, I followed beagles with the scatter gun and teamed up to take a few bunnies and pheasants. We got another beagle last year to keep our old Labrador, Rainy, company. Ruby loves to chase sticks with the lab and likes to play mock battle with the house kitties. She's great with the grandkids, other dogs and cats. Ever since Ruby was little, whenever we took her for walks or just down to the barn she was on a long rope and soon learned "heel, here and sit". Beagles are happy, smart and have great dispositions. Did some training with a rabbit an owl killed in the yard in late November. Ruby loved finding the bunny at the end of a fairly long trail. I'm taking Ruby bunny hunting in southern Wisconsin with a bunch of fellow Wisconsin Traditional Archers this weekend. Hope to hear lots of beagle music.
 
Ruby with Rainy's stick.

[Charlie3]

Beagles are terrific pets and can hunt just about anything. I've owned a few and hunted with several dozen.

As some have stated, buy one who's parents are hunters. Due to their popularity some beagles come from puppy mill type breeders and will either have health problems or not want to hunt. If you are new to hunting with hounds try really hard to go hunt with someone who has them. You should also consider buying a dog that is already "started", meaning it has been trained to hunt.

Not all of them bark. I had two that would only bark when running rabbits. They did not bark when the doorbell rang, or even when other dogs came in the yard. Sadly, both died after getting their 2nd snakebite. Wish I had 'em back.

[razorback]

Thanks guys, some great and consistent information. Hunting will be secondary to family pet, but I live in the woods so plenty of opportunity.

[razorback]

Any thought on whether male or female is better. Will not be breeding.

[Ron LaClair]

My first beagle Trump with our first bow killed rabbit over 50 years ago

   

Since then there has always been a beagle in the LaClair household. If you want a beagle to mind you keep them as a house pet. A beagle kept in a kennel will not respond to commands as well.

This is our current beagle Dolly the day I brought her home.

   

She makes herself right at home

   

She goes everywhere with me, even to deer camp