Beagle - The Facts Every Owner Of This Dog Breed Should Know
Made famous by
the Peanuts character, Snoopy, Beagles were bred
in England as
trail hounds, used
to hunt rabbits
and hares. Beagles
are scent hounds
and have a tendency
to ignore
everything but
the interesting scent when
hunting. A very energetic breed
of dog, Beagles are social,
curious, intelligent
and brave.
They are also likely
to get into trouble as
their hound
dog instinct can take over
in an instant
should a Beagle catch a whiff
of an exciting
or interesting
scent. Male Beagles
will grow to an average
height of
14 to 16 inches
and average weight of 22 to 25 pounds; females, 13 to
15 inches
and 20 to 23 pounds. On average, a Beagle
will live
12 to
15 years. Most Beagles have a tri-color
coat, consisting of red
and white,
orange and white or lemon and white.
It is a short to medium length coat
that requires
no more than minimal care regular
brushing and bathing only when necessary.
Beagles will shed, but
not excessively.
They have
long, wide ears and brown or hazel
eyes that often times look like pleading 'puppy dog' eyes. They have a distinct, and often times, familiar baying sound that they make when
hunting prey. It
is this distinctive
howl and ability to pick
up on strange scents that make
them excellent guard dogs.
Beagles are good
with families and children and love to play, but care should
be taken with other family pets. If a Beagle
is not properly socialized early, it may try to hunt and
capture the other pets; however, they
do not like being left alone and may
bay excessively (annoying the neighbors). Beagles do
well traveling and adapt quickly and easily to new experiences,
thanks to their
fearless nature, but also need strong and consistent
training to
ensure they do not run off. Beagles will do
well in almost
any living environment, provided they are given plenty of opportunity to run and exercise.
A
leash is a must with a
Beagle, or a well fenced in
yard as well as consistent obedience training.
Their hunting instinct will take over when a scent comes their way and will run
off in search of the prey. Ears should be
checked and cleaned
regularly, as Beagles are prone to painful ear infections. Beagles are also prone to heart disease, epilepsy,
eye and back
problems, and chondroplasia
- dwarfism that results in warped front legs.
There is a website that has great information on Beagles and most other
breeds of dogs. It has details that pertain to a dog breeds health, grooming, living conditions,
best food choices and more, the website is called: Dog
And Cat Facts, and can be found at this url:
http://www.dogandcatfacts.comBy
Robert W. Benjamin
Copyright © 2006
You may
publish this article in your ezine,
newsletter on your web site as
long as it is reprinted in its entirety and without modification except for
formatting needs or grammar corrections.
Robert W. Benjamin has been in the
software business on the internet for over 5 years, and has been producing low-cost software for the past
25+ years.
He first released
products on the AMIGA and C64 computer systems in the
late 1970's-80's.
Stop Your Dog Barking When You're At Home
When you need
to curb
your dogs barking,
it can be a real challenge
if the only time
they do
it is when youre not
there. Often, these
dogs need
a training
program that will not
only address the barking,
but possibly
a general case
of separation anxiety.
However, youre in
luck if they bark in your presence, as you can correct
the barking with the
right timing, correction,
and praise. Dealing with a barking problem
when youre there
may also help prevent it from happening
when youre
away. There
are several methods discussed, which
have varying degrees of merit:
* Ignore,
wait, and reward method.
This is good for attention seekers,
but youll need some patience,
and perhaps a good set of earplugs.
The important thing is to reward them immediately after
they stop.
* The squirt gun method. I personally dont
enjoy carrying
around a gun (how un-American of me!) even if
that gun is
filled with water.
It can
be a hassle,
and if youre not a
quick enough draw, it diminishes the effect. Note: a mixture of Citronella or
water and vinegar
solution (one part vinegar to eight parts water) can be
more effective than
straight water when using this approach. Aim for the chest, not the face.
* The collar and leash method. Effective for dogs on lead that have been trained to respond to a tug and a corrective, Uh
uh or simple No. You may find it
easy to
suppress barking
through the
same means. This is a good method.
But heres the absolute best and quickest:
* Physical
correction method. No, its not the least
bit violent,
painful, or inhumane. When your
dog barks, meet them
at their level, firmly
wrap one or both of your hands around the snout (dont
shake it), and
repeat your corrective command. I use a continual Shhh or a repeated Uh
uh uh uh. The idea is to
hold on not only
until they stop making noise (they obviously cant bark with their mouth closed) but also until they stop resisting the placement of your hand by jerking
back or
wriggling away. This
method is effective also because it asserts your dominant
role in the process.
Because it involves a physical correction, it may not be a favorite option for owners uncomfortable with this sort of interaction. But I can only emphasize that dogs are not children and they feel more secure with a clear idea of a pack leader they can trust.
Whatever method you choose, only repetition will do the trick. Never yell. Its
like barking back at them. It just makes more noise. Though its easy to tell your dog to shut it through an open window, its
lazy, and if your dog is barking because it needs to tell you
something, even if its just that they want a
bit more attention,
then yelling will upset and confuse them more. Expect more
barking. As always, give praise when the barking stops.
All in all, you still need to
allow your dog times to fully express themselves and their beautiful voice. It is not realistic that you always ask your dog to stop barking
every time they
start. In fact, this can have dangerous consequences if the dog needs to alert you to something but they have been discouraged from speaking
up. Remember, if they are barking to indicate arrival of someone trying to sell their
Tupperware or their
religion, let them go for an extra minute, and thank them after they have made a hasty exit.
Martin Olliver is a
proud member of the Kingdom of
Pets team (
http://www.kingdomofpets.com/). For more great
articles on problem barking, visit:
http://kingdomofpets.com/dogobediencetraining/articles/barking_dogs.php
Are There Poisons in Your Yard?
Each
year many dogs die from ingesting poisons they
found in
the house, backyard,
or neighborhood. According
to The American Society
for the Prevention
of Cruelty
to Animals (ASPCA)
the numbers are increasing.
In some cases
the increase is quite dramatic.
There are
numerous plants and fertilizers
that are poisonous. In fact,
there is a
very popular cocoa mulch
that people like
to use because it
degrades into
an organic fertilizer. It also lacks that strong, pungent
smell found in regular fertilizer. It even has an attractive color and odor.
Unfortunately, it
is a
life-threatening poison
for dogs that are attracted
by the smell and
often eat varying amounts. One
dog in particular found a
bag of it
on the patio,
got into it, and ate a large amount. The next day he
suddenly had some
seizures and collapsed dead.
The ASPCA highly recommends that
anyone with a
dog or any animal that might
be tempted to
eat this
fertilizer not use it, especially
if their dog is ever
unsupervised in the yard.
Fertilizers are not the only things found in
our yards that are
poisonous for our dogs.
There are some plants that we
need to avoid if we want to keep our pets safe and healthy.
The following is a partial list of plants that can kill:
Azalea/Rhododendron
Oleander
Castor Bean
Cyclamen
Yew
Some mushrooms (always assume that an ingested mushroom is
toxic and
see your vet)
Plants that can cause liver, heart and/or kidney damage include:
Lilies
Tulips
Marijuana
Cycads (such
as the Sago Palm)
Kalanchoe
Foxglove
Rhubarb
Shamrock
Autumn Crocus
Rosebay
If you think
your pet has eaten a poisonous plant
or fertilizer contact your vet immediately.
If you dont know if the plant is toxic to
animals bring a sample to your local nursery.
Symptoms can very, and can even
take hours or days to appear. The dog
mentioned above seemed
fine until the seizures started. The owner had
no idea that the cocoa mulch
was toxic.
The best way to prevent your pet from ingesting a poisonous plant is to dig up any toxic plant that is in your yard. There are so many beautiful plants available that are not poisonous that there is no need to
have one around that
could kill your pet.
Its possible you could train your dog to leave the plant alone,
but its really not worth the
risk. Remove the Oleander, Sago Palms and Lilies from your yard and grow safe plants in their place.
When you put
fertilizers, insecticides or herbicides on your
lawn or in your garden make sure your dogs and cats do not go on the treated areas until the time listed by the manufacturer. If there is no time listed call the company who manufactured the product to find out.
Dont use snail
bait that contains metaldehyde, fly bait that contains
methomyl, and mole or gopher bait where your dog or
cat can get to it.
Most forms of rat poisons are also toxic for pets.
Also, be sure to
store any unused fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides in an area that is not available to your pets. Dogs can easily tear into a bag of
fertilizer, as that dog did with the cocoa mulch, and eat half the bag before anyone notices.
If you have any questions about poisons, or if you think your dog might have eaten something poisonous, contact your vet or the ASPCA Poison
Control Center
at (888) 426-4435.
Copyright 2006 Carol Stack
Carol Stack has been working with dogs for more than three decades. She lives with her
husband, 3
kids, 4 dogs,
8 cats and one bird (Bob) in
California. Carol and her
daughter Christy have created a web site especially for dog
lovers at:
http://www.christysdogportal.com.
