Any Beagle owners out there? need help!

[newchickenfamily]

I'm looking for advice on Beagles. We have a 10 month old female Beagle named Abby. She is adorable, sweet and wonderful with our kids and other pets. No problems with too much barking or baying. She is crate trained, exercised often and has lots of squeaky toys, chew bones, etc.. at her disposal.

BUT.....

She is also driving us absolutely bonkers! She has pretty much destroyed the backyard plants, drip irrigation, etc... She chews and destroys anything she can get a hold of. Potty training has been difficult too! Before we decided on a Beagle, I did do lots of research, so I was aware of some of these issues, buy holy cow, she is a terror! DH is ready to send her to Siberia, however, re-homing to Siberia is not an option. We've been to puppy school, hired a private trainer to train us, etc... nothing is helping!

Anyone have any Beagle insight that they can share, such as when she may settle a bit?

 

[BettyR]

I have never owned a Beagle before but I do have a lot of experience with dogs in general; some puppies are just like that. If they were children we would call them hyperactive. The only thing that will keep them from destroying their environment is lots of very heavy exercise. I believe the dog whisper would tell you to take her on some very long brisk walks everyday and if it's at all possible buy her a treadmill and make her walk on it several times a day.

She will out grow this...in a few years.

 

[hoosier]

We had a Beagle once. We decided that whoever coined the phrase, "Stubborn as a mule" had never owned a Beagle!

 

[SterlingAcres]

Quote:
Agreed, but my uncle owned several hunting beagles. They were kept outside though

I do miss that funky beagle smell sometimes.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

I love beagles! I grew up with a beagle/cocker mix.

She's in the adolescent stage, so it'll be awhile, yet. For most dogs, it's toughest between 9 months and 2 years old. There's some variation, but that's the general age when they drive people nuts. It's the prime age for people dumping their dogs at shelters.

What are you giving her to chew on? Have you taught her what she IS allowed to chew on and does she have that available to her all the time? She needs lots of praise when she's chewing on her own things. If you catch her chewing on something she shouldn't, calmly and firmly tell her "No." Then give her one of her chew things. When she starts chewing that, praise her and make sure she knows what a fabulous dog you think she is.

What form of exercise is she getting and for how long? At her age and with her breed, she can go all day. If you can teach her to fetch, I always find that helpful. She gets more exercise than you do running after a ball, Frisbee or other toy, so you can do it for longer. Other household members may even help out, as they can sit in a chair drinking a beverage, while exercising the dog.

What kind of problems are you having with potty training? Can you describe what's going on? You may just need to go back to basics, like getting her on a schedule and keeping an eye on her any time she isn't crated. Don't forget to praise enthusiastically, every time she potties outside. It really helps!

There are some dogs that just aren't good at telling you when they need to go out. For them, I just make sure to schedule regular breaks or ask them if they need to go out, depending on the dog.

Some of this may be things you're already doing, but without more details from you, I just wanted to give some general information. She'll naturally settle down some as she gets older, but I would still work on the potty training and chewing now. It sounds like she is having more problems than she should with those issues. As for the rest of it, I usually just keep chanting, "I just have to live through this until she's 2 years old... I just have to live through this until she's 2 years old..."

 

[EllyMae]

I don't have a beagle, BUT I have a basset hound that is exactly what you described. Bassets and beagles are closely related, lol. I will tell you that Molly, our basset is four years old and still has these issues. UGH. In fact, this weekend, my daughters L.L. Bean backpack was delivered while we were gone so guess who got it first...yep, Molly. So, there went a $50 backpack. I had to order another one and while I was doing so was thinking of all the many places I would have liked to ship Molly by way of UPS!!
We have found the only solution is to keep her in a dog kennel(those chain link kind) when we aren't home to supervise her. We left her out this weekend thinking she would probably just sleep on the porch since we would be gone all day. NOT! So, we learned an expensive lesson.

 

[mgibbzzz]

We have a beagle, bassetts, and redbones. We used to breed, train, and hunt (both pleasure and competition) our beagles and redbones. This is common. They need lots of activity. Play fetch and go for walks. Get a kong for her to chew on, (get these at most pet stores). They have a hole to hide a treat and they have to work to get it out. It helps with her teething and will keep her from chewing on your stuff. There is a spray that you can get to spray and keep the off or away from stuff that you don't want her on or near. You will probably have to start back at the beginning and make sure that you stay on schedule with the house breaking. You have to retrain her bladder to be able to hold it. Start going out every 2 hours till bedtime and as soon as you get up. Then each day move it up an hour until she can hold it and go a few times a day. We also hold food and water after so late at night til they are going longer during the day between potty time. Then when they are 'trained' we give free choice. Hope that this helps.


Michelle
DMK Ranch

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

I have owned SO many dogs and my insite is this...if you can live through TWO years of puppyhood it's a keeper! At age two years they settle down A LOT! Try a water spray bottle and spray her every time. OR try a clicker. It worked wonders for our boxer. Gave him something else to think about other then chewing. He is now a clicker master and when I see him doing something he shouldn't be doing I say NO really loud...click the clicker and give him a treat. NOW I know that sounds weird that your giving him a treat when he does something wrong but it does work. He relates the food with the clicker not with what he was doing. Good luck!

 

[ams3651]

Beagles are very curious and they get bored real easy. My Sadie can 1. open the fridge 2. open the dishwasher to access whats on the counter. She likes to chase my son but rips holes in his clothes when she catches him. My girl came potty trained but has accidents on average once a week. They say dogs arent bent on revenge but if I ignore her she will pee on my bed. They re just as smart as they are stubborn. Im not sure what to do other than be extremely persistent, take the dog to the same place on a leash every time and say something, we say "pee pee" when she hears that she knows its time to go out. They do have spikes that are scented and tell them to go at that spot. ANd at 10 months it is still very much a puppy, buy toys and let him play with them as a reward for being good. Otherwise its mostly not allowing access to things you dont want the dog to have. I had to get locks on my fridge and dishwasher like for a toddler. Shes on a chain run outside where she isnt around anything she can destroy. Also they are extremely food oriented which makes rewards easy. And scents, there may be a scent out there she is attracted to.

edited, about toilet training...i can now take her out about 9 or 10pm and she will be fine till 7am. when she wants out during the day she will sit in the door way and stare at me, if i dont get up in a few minutes she starts moving closer, we call it The Stare. But she knows it works. I have also seen bells on a rope that the dog can jingle if they want out, you would just have to jingle it everytime you take them out to teach them. Try taking her out every hour to the same spot, they can smell they went there before. good luck, our Sadie is a great girl....most of the time

 

[newchickenfamily]

Thanks guys... all great suggestions! To start, I have ordered a "Walky Dog" bike leash and plan to get her out on the bike with me to run down her energy. She has done great running next to me, but it's a little unsteady holding a leash and riding a bike! I'm hoping that more exercise will help. She has more energy than I can get out of her on a walk and she won't fetch to save her little life!

She does run out back with the kids a lot as well.

We do have lots of chewies. I have Kongs that I put peanut butter in, spray cheese, etc...

Thankfully she has not learned to open the fridge or dishwasher!

BUT she can jump up on the kitchen table just as easily as a cat can!!

That makes me cranky!!

When I can't watch her every minute, she goes in the crate. I've been pulling her water dish around 8 so she can make it through the night.

Hoping she'll settle by age 2. Thanks again for all of the suggestions once again! I appreciate being able to rant and get some helpful feedback.