Beagle Dog Training
Beagles were originally bred as hunting dogs; they are scent hounds and do very well at tracking hare, rabbit and game. They are excellent detection dogs and also very popular family pet due to its size, good temper and lack of health problems.
These dogs have been around for about 2000 years. Dogs resembling the Beagle can be traced back to the 5th century BC and they were also used by the Romans. The Talbot hound was bought to Britain by William the Conqueror. This white hound was crossed with the Greyhound giving rise to the Southern Hound, a direct ancestor of the Beagle. Form medieval times it was a generic term used for small hounds including some miniature versions which were owned by Edward II, Henry VII and Elizabeth I.
By the 1700s two hunting breeds had been developed, the Southern Hound and the North Country Beagle. The Southern Hound was tall and heavy set so lacked stamina and was slow but had excellent scenting ability, the North Country Beagle was smaller and lighter and therefore faster but had less developed scenting capabilities.
The modern day version of this dog was developed in Britain around the 1830s by Reverend Philip Honeywood. This original pack was breed solely for hunting and the dogs were smaller than they are today. It was left to Thomas Johnson to develop the breed and produce dogs that were attractive as well as good hunters. Several breeds were involved including the North Country Beagle, Southern Hound and Harrier. There was still much variation in the size of the dogs and it was not until 1890 that the Beagle Club was formed and the first standard was drawn up.
Beagles make excellent Family pets and companions; they are even tempered and good with children and other pets and will adapt to any environment and lifestyle. They do not make good guard dogs as they are easily won over by strangers. The breed is intelligent and eager to please but can be single-minded and determined so training must be consistent and start for an early age. They can lose interest in training and become bored and if they pick up a scent they will be easily distracted. Beagles are not demanding when it comes to exercise but they do have high levels of stamina and do not tire easily. They will happily rest though without exercising to exhaustion.
On average Beagles live to around 12 years old and they have very few inherent health problems. Weight gain can be issue with older or sedentary dogs as they will eat whatever is put in front of them. They can be prone to epilepsy but this can be controlled with medication. There are two unique conditions to the breed; Funny Puppy, which is where the puppy is slow to develop and has weak legs and a crooked back which makes it prone to a range of illnesses; and Chinese Beagle Syndrome where eyes are slanted and outer toes are not developed. The breed sometimes suffers from minor eye and ear infections which can usually be treated or corrected. Field dogs can pick up cut and sprains as well as picking up parasites such as mites, fleas and ticks.
These are the most common breed of dogs used in animal testing due to their size and good nature. In 2005, although Beagles were only used in 0.3% of total animal testing there were still 7406 dogs used. Most of these dogs are bred specifically for this purpose. They come in a range of colours but the most common is tricolour, white, black and brown. The two colour tan and white is also popular. Tricolour onesare normally born black and white with the brown developing later. Some change colour during there lives. The breed has a sleek shorthaired coat which is easy to groom.
Beagles have featured in a wide range of media over the years; they appeared in the writing of Shakespeare, John Dryden, Henry Fielding and Alexander Pope. They have famously appeared in comic strip and animated cartoons with the Peanuts character Snoopy being billed as' the world's most famous Beagle'.
The breed has appeared in many films as well as on TV; they had a central role in Cats and Dogs, as well as appearing in The Royal Tenenbaums, Star Trek: Enterprise, The Wonder Years and East Enders among others.
Barry Manilow's Beagle, Bagel, featured on the cover of some of his albums and former US president Lyndon Johnson famously picked up one of his by the ear during an official greeting on the White House lawn.
Steve Batchelor is a dog lover and the webmaster at www.dogbreedguides.com [http://www.dogbreedguides.com] where you can find some great information on many different dog breeds. He also recommends petinfogoldmine for more info on dog training, obedience, health care and many other subjects.
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Beagle Dog Training article
