Urgent Beagle Advice Needed

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Well, as your OH's methods nearly got the damned mutt's head blown off, I think it's probably time for you to call the shots.

He's an animal, not a small human with incredibly gorgeous floppy ears. Once his instincts take over - to hunt, to chase, to breed - he can't hear you. You already know they are famed for being smart and stubborn as hell.


They're designed to follow scents for hours and over large distances without becoming distracted by other noises, smells or people/other dogs. That 'deafness'/stubborness is a trait that was encouraged in their breeding to make them better at hunting hares. So saying he's deliberately choosing to ignore you isn't a particularly useful comment for your OH to make - sounds more like he's trying to blame the dog rather than himself for screwing up.



My Beagle was great. Despite considerable neglect at the hands of my mother, I managed to train him well enough that I could let him run free with me for one part of our Sunday walks - a full pelt sprint across the middle of a city park with fencing all around. The excitement for him getting to chase me, completely free, was enough for him to not notice any other dogs, squirrels, foxes or small children with ice creams.

But the moment that insanely fast dash ended, the extending lead went back on and he went back to weaving about, taking in the smells and tracks. And usually getting some icecream from children by walking up to within six foot, then sitting down, looking all innocent and babylike in the knowledge that they would always want to fuss 'the labrador puppy'. Aged 10. :cool:


If I hadn't kept him on the lead, I believe that I would probably have managed to lose him at some point, whether in the park or on the pavements walking home. As my mother refused to neuter him, he had form for disappearing after females when I was out at school, anyhow. Had he been neutered, there wouldn't have been such a draw from the outside world. Although her refusal to accept that dogs needed walking probably didn't help and he would still have gone walkabout occasionally.



He managed fine, socialising with other dogs with the extending lead on, by the way. And I never held a lead with just one hand; always two, just in case.


So I would say damned mutt doesn't need his nads. And training, whilst not as easy as with some other breeds, is still very possible with Beagles - it just tends to be harder to make it worth their while (food and hunting games are their top value rewards).



Lovely, lovely dogs, though. Lovely.

mountainofdebt

Oh Jo your straight talking did make me laugh.

Seriously though you're right ......as I've said OH literally sat on the bank after chasing him for an hour and half and told me he didn't know what to do for the best so yes you're right OH did realise he'd screwed up and realised that the outcome could have been so so different.

As I mentioned OH was off on Thursday and I must admit I was expecting the mutt to play me up (as he does when OH is away) but for the last few days the mutt has been perfectly behaved and yes he has remained firmly on the lead.

We're due to take the mutt to the vets for his jabs soon so we'll be discussing with the vet how long the recovery time is to work out when it can be done but rest assured by Christmas, he won't be the dog he is now!

Tesco_points_addict

https://www.facebook.com/groups/beaglesuk/

This group will help xx

Celli

You could also try him with scent work training and give his extraordinary hooter a chance to do what it does best. It's great fun for both you and the dog, and would be a great outlet for all that teenage energy.
If you can't find a class near you, there are loads of books n the subject.

elsien

Now that reminds me of a neighbour we called "susie come".
Because while in theory she was doing scent work with her beagle, all we ever heard was her trying to call the dog while it bounced around pleasing itself.

NervousHomeowner

I sympathise I also have a dog with a strong prey drive and selective hearing and once they're off, they are well and truly gone!

Obviously you know that your boy can't be trusted and you mustn't let him off lead. However, if for whatever reason he ends up getting selective hearing at some point in the future, the best advice I can give is not to chase him but to run away from him & try to get him to chase you. My dog is the same and if I chase her, she will see it as a game and keep running away from me. On the other hand, if I run away from her she sees it as a game and starts chasing me instead! Obviously that's not a good way to train recall but it can help if something goes desperately wrong and you end up with a loose dog!

It would be worthwhile taking your dog to training classes and start training his recall from scratch. Even if he ends up never going off lead again, it is always worth it to have some form of basic recall, just in case. Another thing you could try is training an 'emergency stop' command, which is what I do with my dog. The idea is that, although he might not respond to a recall, you'll have a way to stop him in his tracks, and then you can go and collect him. It's just another option in case he ends up loose.

mountainofdebt wrote: »

I know what you mean about the retractable leads and I think a shopping trip is in order. Its a pity really as we walk with a number of other dogs and he always seems to have a more fun time playing with them, but at the end of the day I can't risk him doing this again........the last thing I want is for him to get shot -which lets face it is the probable outcome had the farmer appeared.

It'll still be possible for your dog to play with the other dogs while on a walk My dog is still able to play normally with other dogs, we just have a very long lead (You can get them at Pets at Home and on the internet) that we leave trailing behind her so that if she wanders off, we can grab the end of it.
Usually playing with other dogs actually works well for uss, because if the other dogs have a good recall, my dog will follow them back when they're called.

shirlgirl2004

Unfortunately he has now learnt that he can ignore you and get away with it. We have a beagle but she was never allowed to get away with not returning. Until I was certain she would return every time she was not allowed off the lead. She's now nearly 15 and has never run away. I think you will have to resign yourself to having to keep him on a long line.

JennyW_2

My collie has a nose for scents and goes into that zone and is off like a bullet so I'm very careful where I let him off. Some dogs are just like this so you need to learn manage it as its in their genes and just can't be trained out of them.

In areas where its not safe, he's on a long retractable lead and harness (please use a harness with a long lead) and he gets lots of freedom to sniff around and certainly no worse off.

I've been there and done that with treats, toys etc but this is something I can't crack with him so just manage it.

Neutering won't stop his natural instincts.