Any Beagle owners out there?

[jennyjinx3]

Hi! I am wondering if any Beagle owners out there can share their experiences with their dog? Is yours good with kids, cats, etc? Any info is appreciated.

Thanks

 

[zurgswife]

Owner of 2 beagles. They both are great with kids. I didn't own cats so there experience was barking at the cats they like to tease them and walk through my back yard. They are barkers though. They are a great size sturdy dog. Very pack animals. Mine love to be near people and cuddle.

 

[Zandy595]

Have you watched Animal Planet's Dogs 101: Beagles? http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/dogs-101/videos/beagle.htm

I had a neighbor who had a beagle. I wasn't sad when they moved. It would howl all the time.

 

[tennisfan]

My parents have one, he is fab with kids and any people, they crave company. He hardly barks or howls. He was a lot harder to train then our westies ever were but he is a lovely dig overall

 

[laurafergie]

We had a beagle that lived to 18!!! Years old. He was super with the kids, was raised with the cats, so got along fine with them.

He was the MOST stubborn, hard headed dog I have ever dealt with, and I have had dogs all my life. Along with Charlie the beagle, we had two Labs that were a walk in the park to train. Charlie was not. Being very much a pack animal, he fixed on the "alpha" (Me) and it was a toss up if he would mind anyone else.

He also was extremely smart, and could open any door or gate and would escape at a drop of a hat. We literally had to deadbolt the doors and the yard gate was padlocked at all times. He also was a howler, could not be left alone outside. (Once we got the Lab, that stopped though)

 

[Art 1]

Had 2 now have 1. They make good pets.

 

[jennyjinx3]

Thanks everyone, DH is hung up on the howling and barking thing. Keep sharing....it's very helpful!

 

[Katie Dawn]

I am an Aunt to a beagle. My sister and her hubby did their research before welcoming their pup into their home and one of the things they learned is that beagles are smart and very stubborn! They took him to classes at PetSmart as a puppy and worked with him -- it took until he was 3 years (maybe 2 years) until he really followed commands regularly. (Which is fine, he was still a puppy, but know that it will take patience) He is not a howler but is a barker. They are able to get him to quiet down pretty quickly now but I'm sure the neighbors didn't appreciate it the first couple of years!

They brought a cat into the home when their beagle was a few months old and while they aren't necessarily buddies they don't fight either. He is absolutely wonderful with their 7 month old. His personality with other dogs (at dog parks, etc) is to always, always be submissive - and yet he was still classic beagle "stubborn." Hope that helps!

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

When I as a kid, my neighbors had a beagle. They are very sweet and loving dogs from what I have seen. I think the only problem is the tend to bark a lot.

 

[Katy Belle]

Our Beagle will be 10 next month. She's a good girl, not much of a barker. I worked hard to train her not to bolt when the door opened. We were finally successful! She ruptured two discs in her back last year and had to have back surgey, which was nearly $4000. Other than that we've had no issues!

Good with kds and cats!

 

[ugadog99]

We have two Beagles and three dachshunds. Beagles are FABULOUS family pets! However, they really need a securely fenced yard! Beagles are scent hounds and totally ruled by their noses. Once they catch a scent, they're gone. Thus, the fenced secure area is a must. Also, beagles are true pack dogs in the greatest sense of the word. I definitely believe they require a companion dog. As for health issues, beagles do have some problems with seizure disorder, so just be aware. My brother's beagle lived for 15 years with her seizures treated. I do love my two beagles, but I will stick with doxies from here on out.

 

[tluvstink]

We have a beagle and I love her dearly. She is great with people (adults and children) and other dogs. She's a total love bug without a mean bone in her body!

She doesn't howl but loves to bark! She is mainly an indoor dog and was very difficult regarding house breaking.

Our biggest issue is she's a serious escape artist! We should have named her Houdini !!

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

I'll be the voice of mild dissent. We have a beagle who is eleven years old and while we love her dearly because of the duration of our relationship with her, she has never been an easy dog and as she gets older, is getting pretty cranky to the point that we're concerned about her being too close to the kids and don't leave them alone with her. It may well just be her personality, but she is neurotic to a level that is stunning to me, has allergies that border on crippling (a dog with hay fever in Iowa is NOT a fun animal!!!), and hates to be alone (going back to the pack animal issue). I will say that she did adjust to the cat when we brought it into our lives, and while they still fight on occasion, it is more of a sibling taunting the other than true dislike. Ours, fortunately, does not howl as much as many of them do, although when she does, you can hear her three blocks away (not an exaggeration). Candidly, I doubt we will get another one when she passes away.

 

[ElizK]

We had to put our elderly beagle down back in June. She was somewhere around 15 yrs old. We adopted her as an adult dog from the pound when my kids were 3 and 6 yrs old. She was a great dog, except for a couple of things.

She was quite the chow hound. She GOBBLED anything she could, would literally eat until she killed herself if she were given the chance. And if she got out of the house or yard, she was halfway down the street before you even realized it. That was a pain (and probably the reason she ended up at the pound!).

She rarely barked, and never howled, so that wasn't a problem for us.

She was TERRIFIED of thunderstorms.

As she got older, she started getting a little snappish, particularly if she was cornered. She managed to nip the neighbor kid (3yrs old) in the face (bruised, but on broken skin). She was probably 10-11 when she started getting cranky.

Overall, she was a wonderfully sweet dog for my kids to grow up with. I doubt if I'd get another, though. I'm partial to mutts now.

 

[dogluva]

Hi! I am wondering if any Beagle owners out there can share their experiences with their dog? Is yours good with kids, cats, etc? Any info is appreciated.

Thanks

I love my beagle. We adopted him at two. He had to be nuetered and shortly after, got over weight. It has been a struggle to get him to lose weight. He is so food driven. Also, he barks not stop. I mean non stop. At nothing. He is grumpy too. He has always been that way for us but he is not agressive. Just growls if he is in a bad mood. But he would never bite anyone, including the kids. He just kind of put his face up, bites the air and yells. He gets along with my other three doga, in fact, he loves my 12 year old female shepard mix. She escapes all the time and he is right behind her. I can take him off the leash to walk in the woods, he does not run off although I have heard beagles take off after scents. One more thing, he has cherry eyes. I have had it fixed, it came back. I guess it doesn't bother him he just looks like he had too much to drink. So, that is my beagle. The beagles down the street are also very loud. I do love him but I don't think I would own another beagle. I like mutts.

 

[dogluva]

We had to put our elderly beagle down back in June. She was somewhere around 15 yrs old. We adopted her as an adult dog from the pound when my kids were 3 and 6 yrs old. She was a great dog, except for a couple of things.

She was quite the chow hound. She GOBBLED anything she could, would literally eat until she killed herself if she were given the chance. And if she got out of the house or yard, she was halfway down the street before you even realized it. That was a pain (and probably the reason she ended up at the pound!).

She rarely barked, and never howled, so that wasn't a problem for us.

She was TERRIFIED of thunderstorms.

As she got older, she started getting a little snappish, particularly if she was cornered. She managed to nip the neighbor kid (3yrs old) in the face (bruised, but on broken skin). She was probably 10-11 when she started getting cranky.

Overall, she was a wonderfully sweet dog for my kids to grow up with. I doubt if I'd get another, though. I'm partial to mutts now.

That is too funny-we said the same thing about getting onother one and mutts and I did not even read your post! I just love my mutt.

 

[KathyTX]

My Jessie is very gentle and friendly with kids and adults. She loves to meet you, sniff your shoes and get her ears scratched, then she'll just hang back and keep an eye on the action. She's really only underfoot when she thinks you might drop some food her way.

She's quiet, not a howler or barker. But she is STUBBORN, I don't think you can really obedience train a beagle, they sort of have a "cat" attitude. (you know- "what's in it for me?")

 

[manning]

He was the MOST stubborn, hard headed dog I have ever dealt with, and I have had dogs all my life.
He also was extremely smart, and could open any door or gate and would escape at a drop of a hat. He also was a howler, could not be left alone outside. (Once we got the Lab, that stopped though)

A beagle trait. Once they get a scent they're off. Haven't seen one that doesn't have it's nose to the ground. That's the hound in them.

 

[chrissy92972]

We have a Puggle, we got him at the SPCA almost a year ago. He is part beagle, part pug. He definately has the Beagle in him when it comes to sniffy for bunnies and running away and not coming back. He is also very stubborn, but he is smart and loyal.

We taught him to jungle the bell on the door to go out, he is crate trained for when we are not home. He knows sits, paw, come etc. But he only does it when he wants to or when a baby carrot is involved LOL.

He was about 4 months old when we got him. So he is a little over a year and still a puppy. I knowin pet stores this breed goes for close to $1000, but we rescued him.

I would suggest a puggle or another bread mixed with a beagle if you do not gwt a beagle.

Chrissy

 

[cousinbb]

My family had a beagle. We loved him to death. Such cute dogs! but he was very stubborn and was loud when he howled at dogs and people walking by the house. Murphy (the dog) would be very good at crawling underneath the fence around our yard and running around the neighborhood lol. Yet he was easy to train! We taught him tricks and such. Very much a family dog too.