Sep 16, The Good Natured Beagle: Is this the Bread For You?

by Janice Jones     |Last updated 09-16-2022

Beagles are gentle, sweet and funny but have a tendency to act up often
without the special attention and training that they need as puppies.

But, if you
love dogs that make you laugh because of their funny personality, but also have
a sweet and caring nature, then this breed may be the perfect furry companion
for you!

The sweet-natured beagle, everyone’s friend. Breed Profile at Small Dog Place

They adore their owners and are very friendly to everyone, especially kids and
families willing to spend some time with them. This breed has three famous
colors that include brown, black, and white. These dogs are hound dogs, so they
were bred for hunting and being on the trails.

They have short legs that
keep them close to the ground and an obviously excellent nose. Their noses are
wet which helps scent molecules stick to it and help travel in the nose. Ears
also help by collecting the scent and helping to travel it to the nose.

Did you
know that the Beagle has over 220 million scent receptors?

The
most important thing that is breed is famous for is, you guessed it, their vocals! They are
extremely vocal and have three main sounds they make. The first one is just the
average bark that they use when they are alerted or sense something out of the
ordinary, doorbell, phone ringing, etc.

The second sound is the one that they
use when they’re out on the trails. This sound is called a “bay” and it is composed
of three different pitches that they use to alert either their owner or the
other dogs that they found the scent and they are hot on the trail. The last is
the famous ‘ole howl that they will use when they are sad, bored, or
sometimes even in comradely.

They are extremely vocal dogs and if you live in an apartment, or don’t like the
excess barking, this breed may not be for you. If you can look past that and to
their sweet and happy interior, then you may have just found the perfect pet!

They can
be difficult to house-train, and some are known to even take up to a year to be fully housebroken. People with no time or desire to properly train them should
probably consider another breed.

Miniature, Mini,
Teacup, Pocket Beagles

Regardless of the
name, The Pocket Beagle, a smaller version of the standard size dog
originated in England and used as a hunting dog capable of crawling under
scrubs to find rabbits. 

Their original
name, the Old English Pocket Beagle was coined because hunters would carry
their beagles in their saddlebags.  Also
known as glove beagles, they were around during the time of Henry VIII.  Once thought extinct, they are being
recreated and have become popular once again.

Unlike some breeds that have specific AKC size differentiations (e.g.
Standard, Miniature and toy Poodle), these smaller versions of the original
breed are not classified differently with AKC or other breed registries.  This means that there is no breed standard
for these small dogs. 

Usually people
will define these smaller versions of the breed to weigh less than 15 pounds and grow to less
than 12 inches in height.  

These smaller
versions of the beagle have become popular with folks that like small
dogs.  Due to their small size, they can
be a good choice for people in apartments, but since they are still beagles, they
will still require plenty of exercise. 

These smaller fur babies are basically health just as their larger cousins, but when breeders
deliberately breed for smaller size, a condition called Dwarfism or
Chondroplasia may occur.  This leads to warped
front legs.

History

Tri-Colored Beagle

The
history of the breed’s name is
not determined, but many people think that it comes from the French word Be’geule
that means gaped throat, which no
one protests against because of the vocalization of the Beagle.

They were bred
for hunting and it took almost a millennium of breeding to craft them
into the dog that we know and love today.

These dogs were very popular in the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and even as far back as the Roman times. Due to the age of the breed, the specifics of ancestry are lost, so only the Beagle knows its bloodline and I suspect they are not talking!!

Personality

Dog Breed Ratings Got You a Little Confused?
Here’s a little help in understanding them

• Playfulness:   Most Playful = 5    Least Playful = 1
• Affection:  Most Affectionate = 5   Least Affectionate = 1
• Friendliness Towards Strangers: Most Friendly = 5  Least = 1
• Good With Children:  Great= 5    Not Good with Children = 1
• Good With Dogs:  Great = 5   Not Good Around Dogs = 1
• Good With First Time Owners:  Fine=5  Not Appropriate = 1
• Exercise Required:  Extensive Daily Exercise = 1  Minimal = 1
• Ease of Training:  Very Easy = 5     Difficult = 1
• Watch Dog:  Excellent Watch Dog = 5  Minimal = 1
• Grooming:  Time Consuming = 5   Minimal = 1
• Shedding:  Heavy Shedder = 5     Minimal = 1
• Cold Tolerance:  Well Tolerated = 5   Poor Tolerance = 1
• Heat Tolerance:  Well Tolerated = 5  Poor Tolerance = 1

These little dogs are very affectionate, funny, and overall
happy dogs. They are constantly using their nose and love to go on adventures,
especially ones that they can smell different things.

They are extremely scent
motivated and once they get a whiff of something, they will stop at nothing
until they explore. They can be quite difficult to train because they will be
distracted by all of the different smells in their area.

Food motivation is the
way to go when training this hound, and as long as the food and what you’re
trying to teach them is more interesting to them then the smells, their
attention will be on you. However, there is no training them not to follow
their nose because that is their number one priority.

Although they are not the easiest and most
patient fur babies in the world to work with during training, they are
extremely intelligent and can differentiate and remember hundreds of different
scents.

Because of their love of smells, they must be kept in a
fenced in area such as a backyard, pen, etc. Whether it is a normal fence,
invisible fence, or just a leash, these little hounds need to be contained unless you want
to be chasing them all over the neighborhood just because they saw a rabbit.

These little guys are not good guard dogs because they are
friendly to everyone, but are good watchdogs and will howl or alert the family
when new animals or people approach the home. 

They also need a large amount of exercise,
so if you’re a couch potato, this may not be the dog for you. Beagles are very
good jogging buddies and love to be outside running around and playing.

Grooming

If grooming is not your thing, then these guys are definitely for you.  They have very smooth, short hair and do not
need to be groomed too often, however they need baths more than the average dog
would.

They love to hunt for scents (obviously) and then they tend to roll
around in whatever scent they discover and will wear that doggie cologne home
with them.

They need to be bathed at least once a week if they get into that lovely habit.  Other than that all the
basic grooming needs such as clipping their nails, checking their eyes, ears, and anal glands.

Read More About Grooming Short-Haired Dogs.

Health Concerns

As breeds go, they are extraordinarily healthy, one of the
healthiest dog breeds. Because they have been bred over so many years, the
disease and health problems has essentially been bred out of them. You will
have to be aware of minor cuts, sprains, and possibly ticks if your hound has
been out in the fields all day.

When they get older they might become
inactive, and then obesity could be a concern. Other than that, Beagles are
overall very healthy dogs but of course, with all breeds, there are the average
health concerns such as:

Cherry Eyes:  Read More About Cherry Eyes

Allergies

Adopting a Beagle

For more information about adopting a beagle puppy or adult, please check out our article about Adopting a Beagle

Resources on the Beagle Breed

Here are some books you might find helpful if you are interested in being owned by a beagle.  All can be purchased from Amazon and this site receives a very small commission from your purchase on Amazon.  

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This article was originally published by Smalldogplace.com. Read the original article here.