Is a Beagle a good dog for an ADHD boy?

[Art 1]

We have 2 beagles,I don't see a problem.

 

[Sarah_Rose]

I don't mean to pick on you, but I am going to point out a couple of things in your post that are common mistakes that many dog owners make.

Has never snapped or growled would be more accurate. You can never guarantee with ANY dog that they WOULD never snap or growl. Given the right circumstances, any dog could. Even a dog that is normally docile. Which is why there are so many dog bites every day. It's not just the "bad dogs" doing all the biting.

I'll give you that - any dog can bite. Sasha has never shown a tendency towards this sort of behavior, but you are entirely right that she could tear someone's face off one day if provoked. We are always aware of this. However, what I meant to say is that under the normal unpleasant situations that she encounters in her life, she has never shown any tendency towards violent behavior.... and she patiently tolerates a lot more than any other German Shepherd I've ever met. Our other shepherd has never bit, either (he will remove himself from the situation as a first measure), but I could easily see him doing it if he was pushed far enough - we've childproofed him against all "normal" things a toddler could do to a dog (and I've even seen a toddler stick her finger in his eye once, during a single moment when she was not closely supervised and he just blinked and continued to lie there quietly) but if he genuinely felt threatened, I am confident that he could bite.

As far as the Sasha-puppy interaction.... Sasha would give a quiet warning growl (no teeth bared) and the gentle neck bite to the puppy if it went too far. I consider this to be positive interaction and part of the puppy-adult socialization process. This was when the puppy was very young. Once it hit 6 months and still wasn't getting the message, I stopped bringing Sasha over for "play-dates". I can expect a tolerant adult dog like Sasha to have a measure of patience for a very young puppy, but was afraid that it would escalate, once the puppy got older.

I think you have good points and I do agree with you - I think I just wasn't clear enough in my post.

 

[Goldenbear6]

Why would I ask these questions if I already had a beagle???? No, I haven't made up my mind at all....in fact, the post you quoted states that maybe a mix would be the way to go. I have considered a Golden, the only thing stopping me is the size and the hair like you said. I was just this minute researching Golden mixes that are smaller. I haven't decided anything which is why I'm asking for opinions.

My bad.

 

[Dee & Greg]

Holly is beautiful! What is she mixed with--do you know? GP are great dogs--my inlaws had some to herd sheep and loved them, but I never considered them a family pet--hmmm, may have to check into that........

Holly is about 30 lbs and has a liver nose, so she may have some yellow lab in her, but I think she's too small. I have never had a more loving girl than her! And she loves children. Can't believe she was picked up off the street as a skinny scared stray

 

[pilesoflaundry]

I think beagles are a little adhd themselves. They are trash diggers and can be a real handful. I would think a very calm, easy going breed would be a better fit for a child that may have some trouble understanding to be calm and gentle.

 

[maddiel]

We currently have a yellow lab mix (? - maybe part ducktoller) and before that we had a beagle.

I second the idea of getting a rescue dog from a foster environment because you'll get a better idea of their true temperment.

We loved our beagle but there are reasons why we looked for another breed this time. Both our dogs were SPCA rescues and were about 4-5 when we got them. I think we knew better what we wanted and what to ask the second time - we really looked at her specific temperment.

The beagle was a one-man (my DH) dog, while the lab prefers my DD9 but will snuggle or play or walk with anyone in the family. Our beagle was a cuddller with the adults in the house and loved to walk, but not to play. Our beagle did not tolerate being manhandled at all. DD9 was 2 when we got her and we we had to be very careful with to never leave the two of them alone for a very long time.

The beagle was all about 1) what she could smell and 2) what she could eat. We have way more control over our lab than we did over our beagle and I feel much more comfortable with other kids in the house with her. We had to train the beagle not to charge the door - and were successful (unless she saw us with luggage...)

BTW, I think you'll find it easier to add a dog to family with kids than vice versa. I think the fact that your Cocker Spaniel came first probably made
the situation trickier.

M.

 

[labdogs42]

I have two Labs and a Beagle. I also have a five year old. All three dogs are very tolerant of my son. I would say the Labs are ridiculously tolerant! The Beagle is still a puppy, but he is very tolerant as well.

I would recommend a RESCUE of either breed. Puppies are hard to deal with and take a long time to train. If it is hard for your son to follow instructions and stay on task, trying to teach him how to behave with a puppy while training a puppy how to be a good member of the household might drive you to insanity! (and I say this from experience) A good rescue group can help you find a dog that fits your needs and is already housebroken and used to kids. I think you could go with either breed, but I think finding a dog, instead of a puppy would be the way to go.

 

[labdogs42]

A few more thoughts.

Any dog is better off with a fence, but a dog run is a good alternative (better, IMO, than an electric fence).

Those mixed breeds like labradoodles, puggles and the like aren't really worth looking into. They aren't a true breed and won't necessarily exhibit the best characteristics of each breed. You could get the worst of each breed in those kinds of pups. If you want a mix, just go to a shelter and get a mix. Check Petfinder for beagle and/or Lab mixes. Don't go to a "breeder" of mixed breed dogs. Please don't.

 

[Liberty Belle]

Since I have a beagle, a lab, and a son with ADHD, I feel I have some input.

If I had to choose between the lab and the beagle, I'd choose the lab. All labs are different, of course, but ours never really took to water. The beagle is very hyper. Very vocal and just full of energy. He's pretty gentle (though he's still only 8 months old, so he jumps on us and doesn't understand that his nails will hurt us, etc), but not as gentle as our lab.

The lab will tolerate much more than the beagle. Given all that, the beagle is my son's dog. He picked him out, named him, and plays with him the most. So, while a beagle would be ok with a child with ADHD, if that child is very hyper/hands on/etc, a lab might be a better choice.

 

[Liberty Belle]

I don't know a thing about beagles. I do know that if you are worried about a lab wandering off, then you should cross the beagle off your list right away. From what I read here, they catch a scent and are gone.....probably not a match for your son. I would hate to see your son have to take off after the beagle to chase him down.

I think this might be more of a case of matching a dog to your son and not worrying about breed as heavily.

If you really want to be careful with matching up a pet to your son, maybe you could hire a trainer to evaluate your son and help you out. While it sounds a little nutty, it sounds like you want a good match.

That's the truth. My beagle can smell bread through a cupboard door.

 

[Liberty Belle]

I think beagles are a little adhd themselves. They are trash diggers and can be a real handful. I would think a very calm, easy going breed would be a better fit for a child that may have some trouble understanding to be calm and gentle.

We've often wondered what would happen if we gave our beagle some of our son's ADHD medication.

Disclaimer: I, of course, would not give the medication to the dog, but the similarities in their personalities are uncanny.

ETA: lol - I didn't mean to bold the trash diggers part. While my dog is, my son is not.

 

[maddiel]

Beagle owners always have the most interesting stories about things their dogs have eaten.

M.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

My in-laws have a beagle, he is very sweet. If given an opportunity he will take off, as will any dog that is not properly trained. You may have a "wondering off" problem with any dog you get. We have a lab that stays put.

My nephew is Autistic. Duncan (the beagle) bit him. Why? Because he was harrassing the dog. Not necessarily the dogs fault, my nephew was not being properly watched, he was hitting and pulling Duncan's tale. Duncan bit him in protection.

This same nephew has hit and kicked our lab. I have done my best to correct the behavior because it is not right. The lab just kind of stood there. It would take a lot to provoke her.

Duncan also digs, a lot! And howls. No Beagles for us.

 

[Disneycrazy!!]

Shih Tzus, like the dog in my sign on pic, are very loyal and very calm, loving, sweet dogs. They are also great for people with allergies, they hardly shed. My two shih tzus are wonderful with my kids and are content to curl up on the couch with us or go outside and play.

Beagles are very vocal and can get bored easy inside. They love to be outside.

 

[dogluva]

I have three ADHD children (two under ten, the other is in college) and a beagle. He is very, very loud. He is a howler. He also gets very annoyed when the kids bug him. He is not tolerant at all. My shepard mix is sweet and calm. The beale, not so much. I love him to death but I am not used to such a loud, mouthy, irritable dog. My kids know to leave him alone. He really just hangs out with me. I adopted him at two. I don't know what kind of a life he had before us. He has calmed down some in the three years we have had him.

Please don't tell me beagles don't howl because the two up the street do and my sister's beagle did as well. Beagles are the loudest dogs I know. My dog goes out every night after his walk and howls for about a half an hour before coming in and going to sleep.

 

[dogluva]

A few more thoughts.

Any dog is better off with a fence, but a dog run is a good alternative (better, IMO, than an electric fence).

Those mixed breeds like labradoodles, puggles and the like aren't really worth looking into. They aren't a true breed and won't necessarily exhibit the best characteristics of each breed. You could get the worst of each breed in those kinds of pups. If you want a mix, just go to a shelter and get a mix. Check Petfinder for beagle and/or Lab mixes. Don't go to a "breeder" of mixed breed dogs. Please don't.

Well my mix (shepard and something nice) has the absolute best of her breeds. She is an amazing dog and they really should have a breed for her.

 

[SandrA9810]

I had a mix samoyed. Big white fluffy thing. She was attached to me from day one, and was the best dog ever. She never barked unless I was rough housing with her. I could pull her tail, her ears, where ever and she just stared at me. She hated the water and wouldn't get within 5ft of it if she could help it. Very very playful, and very very lazy. But she loved to try to sneak off and would become a chasing game with her. Most the time I could get her to jump into the truck if I started it, but there were a couple nights she got left outside, because nothing I did would get her to come to me.

Her fur was all over the place, so constant vacuuming, but bath time was a breeze.

Samoyed are generally very quiet dogs, but they do need to run (they're like husky and love pulling). But I loved her temperment, and was the best dog around.

Another thing to think about is adopting an older dog so you don't have to deal with puppy training, and you can see their personality better.

 

[minkydog]

Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~ Ba-ROOOO~Ba-ROOOO~

Yeah, I want me some of that--NOT

 

[NikiM20]

Well my mix (shepard and something nice) has the absolute best of her breeds. She is an amazing dog and they really should have a breed for her.

My shepard mix is this way too!! We adopted Harleigh from the shelter. My DD has ADHD, is very loud and Harleigh never has shown any signs of aggression.

 

[dogluva]

My shepard mix is this way too!! We adopted Harleigh from the shelter. My DD has ADHD, is very loud and Harleigh never has shown any signs of aggression.

That is were we got Sienna. She is so sweet and loving. She is almost nine and is the kindest, best dog in the world. I have six kids and she has never even flinched at them. I just love her so much. I say mutts are the best!