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Beagles/beagle training

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Expert: - 1/21/2010


Question
often i take my beagle to the forest i let him loose but still with the leash on,  follow him from one spot to the other. Sometimes he get a bit far and when i call him to come back he completly ignore me like he didnt hear a word or im not exist. What the best way to train him to come back or not to take of to far,i heard lots of beagles for this reason never get freedom and they either at home or back yard or on the leash  

Answer
sorry for the delay in answering..... My opinion is that if you take your beagle off lead you are taking a big risk, beagles are trainable but they will never be 100% reliable due to them being scenthounds and a scent can interfere with any training. My only suggestion would be to try having him on a long lunge line that is about 30 feet, problem is in the woods he will probably get snagged on something. You can try using food as beagles are extremely food motivated but a better scent may still distract him and might also encourage other things in the woods to come after you. Wish I had a good answer but beagles are not great off leash dogs unless they are field trained for hunting rabbits. It is then the leader of the pack that leads the pack back to the master. YOu can maybe do some searching on line for field beagle hunting and see what they do.

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Have4Paws

Expertise

I am happy to answer BEAGLE BREED SPECIFIC behavioral questions. Please DO NOT ask CRATE TRAINING OR MEDICAL questions! I am not a vet nor an expert in the use of crates.

Experience

I currently have one beagle, a male age 5, an 12 month old Pit Bull, and a 8 year old min. poodle. I have had to let go of three of my dogs, 2 beagles and 1 whippet/rat terrier mix in the past 5 years, most recently my whippet mix. The two beagles lived to 15 and the whippet mix to 13.5, it has been hard to say goodbye to them. I have done rescue work on and off for years as well as fund-raising for the local animal shelter. I worked for a dog magazine in the past (Southern California Dog Magazine). Being a psychotherapist has encouraged me to do in depth studying of animal behavior as well. I have worked with many people to help curb undesirable behaviors in their dogs (or them!) or to form good behaviors. My life is devoted to and surrounded by my dogs........The picture you see here is Zeppelin but we also call him the "miracle dog". He was hit by a car April 2010 while out with the dog walker and had very serious injuries... 4 surgeries and $17,000 later my boy is whole again and back to loving life. He is so special to me and he weathered a lot of pain and trauma yet is still the sweet boy he always was! I also work to stop Breed Specific Legislation and help to get pit bulls adopted.

Organizations
HSUS, PETA, SPCA DONT SHOP...ADOPT!!

Publications
Dog Fancy

Education/Credentials
I am a Marriage and Family Therapist licensed in the state of CA and am also credentialed as a Certified Addiction Treatment Specialist

Awards and Honors
Honored by the Agoura Animal Shelter for my volunteer work.

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