Advice to New Beaglers

[KPrice]

I have been thinking about some of the hot topics I have been reading here and on other boards and I think that we may be scaring some of the newer people to this sport. It is good that they are aware of some of the pitfalls along the way, but I would hate to think we would scare someone completely away. I thought that it may be a good idea for some of us more experienced beaglers to share some of our early experiences. Speaking for myself, I am pretty happy with the hounds that I have now. I won't say they are the best in the world, because that's not my intention. But they do satisfy me, and that's what counts. So I will share a few things that I have learned over the years in hope that someone else may be able to benefit from them. I hope some of the other folks here may do the same.

- Absolutely know what you want in a hound before you buy it. Make your own list of minimum standards and don't buy a hound that doesn't meet these standards. Don't buy a hound that is lacking in one or more of your required areas thinking you can make the needed improvements. In most cases you will fail.

- Be honest with yourself. If you are not able to make a list of YOUR OWN requirements, or if you know what the requirements are but can't easily and accurately recognize them, you are suffering from inexperience. Nothing to be ashamed of, everybody starts somewhere. My best advice to a person there is to do what I did. Go out and watch other people's hounds run. There are very few stand-up beaglers that will refuse to let a newcomer go out and listen to their hounds run. When you find a person that you trust (use your instincts), judge for yourself if their hounds meet your standards, but it’s probably best not to tell someone that you don’t like their hounds. That will get you uninvited pretty quickly. If you like what you see, try to buy a pair of puppies from some of the hounds that you have seen run. . Even if you were wrong about the parents, you are better off with having purchased pups. They are cheaper and you won’t be buying a hound with man-made faults.

- Learn along with your pups. Make sure they have plenty of time on the ground doing what they were bred to do. But don’t just sit back and listen. Get involved. Teach them to hunt with you and closely watch what they are doing when running rabbits. In my opinion, that is the BEST way for a young person to learn about hounds. It will also create a bond between you and your hounds that you will not get when buying an older hound. Years ago, when I finally had enough dealing with trash runners and mouthy dogs, I did exactly this. The two female pups that I started and finished as gundogs hold a very special place in my heart. They turned into very good hounds. I would not say that they were the best I ever owned, but I can say that they are probably the only two hounds that I have ever shed tears over when they died.

Sorry to have rambled on. I am interested in hearing other comments.

[arrow]

Well said Kip.....The other thing to remember is that Beagles are sort of unique. All of mine serve two functions, Hunting and Companionship. They truly want to please. Bond with them. They are smarter than you think and respond to your every action. They know when they have given you all the have, reward them with kindness and affection.
They are bred to scent and bay. Give them all the opportunity that you can. Some do it a lot better than others, but they will give you all they got. Appreciate their effort and enjoy the event.

[MasonsBeagles]

The best advice is research research research.

Second best is patience

thirdly is work with your dogs.

[Guest]

exactly mason. research everything from dog, ancestors, littermates, offspring, to kennel owner, sales they have made, other peoples opinion of the hounds from there. Will save a lot of heart ache in the end.

[jmorgan]

i agree with kip. don't get discouraged. i found it takes 3 p's to train puppies and all 3-p's are patience. but what a good feeling when it is all over and you can sit on the tailgate and listen to them circle a rabbit.

[Guest]

Hey Johnny. Did your Father-in-Law see anything that caught his eye Saturday? I didn't see much out there, but it was pretty hot. Not much running.

[KPrice]

The guest post above was me.

[Decklin]

Hey Great topic. I have had my first Beagle 3 days now...so far so good.. right now she is good at eating and sleeping. She is getting through the woods and following me good, only 7 weeks so all the fun stuff is yet to come. I have a local friend who is a kennel owner helping me. The dog is a female about 6 lbs. now. all black with white half collar and a little ticking in the legs. question I keep hearing the term cull...someone explain..what is cull? keep the good tips comming. PPL like me are in a bit of need .Thx!
Decklin

[kjohns]

A cull is a dog that someone has decided doesn't suit their needs. And they get rid of it, or "cull" it. Funny thing though, some people don't want other people's culls, but I say sometimes one man's trash is another man's treasure.