Among the characteristics of the Beagle, its compact, strong and agile appearance stands out. It is a canine pet with a loving, courageous and alert character. At Petlifey, we explain everything about the Beagle dog breed.
Character of the Beagle breed
The Beagle dog breed has a friendly and vigilant character, it is never aggressive or shy. Its essential function is tracking, especially of hares, and in it it is bold and very active, as it is endowed with great determination and tenacity.
Thanks to its temperament, it is always alert, intelligent and has a balanced temperament. The Beagle behaves in an affectionate, sweet and friendly way. This dog, who is happy and very sociable, its behavior is very jovial and outgoing with everyone around them and even with strangers.
A clear proof of its personality is its characteristic and constant movement of the tail in a clear reflection of its happiness, its curiosity and its permanent desire to please.
Its relationship with children is extraordinary and it immediately establishes a complicity with them that is even comical.
It also tends to get along quite well with other dogs, mainly due to its selection as a pack dog. So it knows how to accept hierarchies without expressing great opposition and to establish a good relationship with its peers.
On the other hand, that same temperament received from the same traditional selection for hunting makes it not the ideal friend for other types of pets, unless it is used from puppyhood to such a difficult symbiosis.
The beagle adapts relatively well to city life, but is not considered a suitable dog to be alone for many hours throughout the day.
You need contact with members of your family and loneliness can cause a picture of separation anxiety, with the consequent alterations in your usual behavior.
For example, if it gets bored, it is quite frequent that it begins to bark continuously, which becomes a real torture for its owners and an unbearable annoyance for its neighbors.
The bark of this breed is very characteristic, halfway to the howl but with a tone and cadence that have made it famous, and it usually occurs especially during hunting, exercising or, as has been seen, when it is bored.
That is why it is important that the animal is fully satisfied both physically and mentally and that any deviation from behaviour that is expected of it is corrected from the first moment that the slightest alteration occurs.
For the beagle, everything that is not explicitly forbidden becomes something allowed, and once a habit is acquired it is very difficult to eradicate it.
- Energy: It is an energetic and active dog that likes to exercise.
- Temperament: Bold, courageous and with great tenacity and determination, he is intelligent and is always alert. At home he is cheerful, kind and loving.
- Adaptability: It adapts well to life in an urban environment, but does not like to be left alone too long.
- Sociability: It gets along very well with all members of his family and is very sociable with everyone, even strangers.
- Health: In general it is a healthy and robust dog.
- Longevity: Medium / High. Live between 10 and 15 years.
- Utility: Versatile. Hunting dog in origin, today it is used mainly as a companion animal, but it also excels in tracking tasks.
- Use: Hunting and company.
Characteristics of the Beagle
The characteristics of the Beagle are very peculiar since when observing its general appearance it is observed that it is a dog of compact constitution that produces an impression of elegance and distinction, strength and agility.
It is a characteristic hound, with a compact, robust , slightly elongated body, whose height at the withers is about 37 cm in both the male and the female.
Its head is strong and broad, with a bulging and broad skull. The nose-frontal depression is marked and divides the head lengthwise into two equal parts. The truffle is generally black.
It has quite large eyes, dark brown or hazel, and they are moderately separated from each other. Its expression is sweet and friendly.
The ears have a rounded tip and a fine texture, hanging close to the cheek. They are set low and if they are stretched they reach the tip of the muzzle.
Their feet are characterized by being compact, strong, covered with fine fur and having short pasterns. The pads are hard and resistant and the nails are short.
The tail is set high and is covered with hair, especially at the bottom, which has a slight fringe that makes it appear wider. The dog wears it high, but without curling it.
The hair is short and dense, which protects it from inclement weather. The cloak presents different combinations of tricolor or bicolor, such as, for example, white, black and tan.
Let’s now see in more detail what the Beagle is like and the breed standard:
Beagle breed standard
- General appearance: it is a dog with a robust and compact body structure, without being rough.
- Size: medium.
- Height at the withers: between 33 and 40 cm for males and between 31 and 38 cm for females.
- Weight: between 15 and 20 kg for males and between 14 and 19 kg for females.
- Origin: United Kingdom.
- Body : it is robust, strong and slightly elongated.
- Head: medium long, powerful without being coarse and free of wrinkles and folds. It is thinner in females.
- Skull: somewhat domed and moderately broad, with a slight occipital ridge.
- Muzzle: It is more blunt than pointed.
- Nose: wide and black in color, it may present an attenuated pigmentation in the lighter colored specimens. Its nostrils are wide and wide open.
- Eyes: they are quite large, dark brown or hazel in color, slightly separated and with a sweet and friendly expression.
- Ears: they have a rounded tip, they are long; they are set low, have a fine texture and hang gracefully along the cheeks.
- Nose-frontal depression (stop): visibly marked, it divides the head lengthwise into two almost equal parts.
- Jaws: with strong jaws, they present a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite.
- Neck: long enough to allow the dog to lean while crawling and slightly arched, showing a small dewlap.
- Chest: it descends to below the elbows and the ribs, well arched, extend harmoniously backwards.
- Back: straight, with a short loin, but well proportioned, strong and flexible. The dorsal line is straight.
- Tail: strong and moderately long, set high and well covered with hair, especially on the underside. The dog wears it in the shape of a saber.
- Forelimbs: they are straight, vertical and well placed under the body, they are robust and have round bones. They retain the same thickness down to the feet. The shoulders and shoulder blades are set back and are not heavy. His elbows are firm and do not drift in or out.
- Hind limbs: with good bones and strong muscles. The legs are strong and with muscular thighs. Their knees are well angulated and their hocks are strong, positioned low and parallel to each other.
- Feet: firm and compact, they are endowed with strong pads and short nails.
- Color: generally the coat is white, black and tan (tricolor), or lemon and white (bicolor), but it can present any of the typical colors of hounds, except liver color: grayish, sandy, red, wheat and blue . Some specimens have slight white markings on the head, chest, feet, and tip of the tail.
- Hair: the coat is short, smooth and dense, the coat of the beagle is resistant to the elements. It can appear in any typical color of the hounds, except liver tone, and the tip of the tail is white.
- Movement: in action, the dog keeps its back level and develops a balanced movement, without rocking when walking. The stride is free, long reach and straight in front, without raising the legs too much. The hind limbs provide a good boost.
- FCI Classification: FC1 # 161 Group 6 – Bloodhounds, Trace Dogs and Similar Breeds. Section 1 – Bloodhound-type dogs.
Beagle puppies
If you are looking for information about the Beagle, it may be because you are considering adopting or purchasing a Beagle puppy. If so, we believe that there are a number of considerations that you should know first.
As a puppy, you must monitor the ear hygiene of the beagle, since, although it is a fairly clean dog, its long and hanging ears can become infected if a twig or other object is inserted into the ear.
One of the qualities that have always stood out the most of the beagle is its sociable and friendly character. It especially likes being around children, and makes an excellent therapy animal.
The beagle’s hunting instinct may lead them to try to catch other small pets, but if it gets used to living with them since it was a puppy, the relationship can be perfect.
It is very important to start the socialization of Beagle puppies from a very young age. That is, always with the consent of the veterinarian, the animal must be in other places than home, hear sounds of all kinds and have contact with other dogs and pets. Only in this way will we avoid a fearful and antisocial animal.
Education and training of the Beagle
As for how to raise a Beagle, despite being sociable, gentle and accommodating, one of the characteristics of the Beagle is its independence and its ability to make its own decisions, so it can also be stubborn and stubborn at times.
Thus, it requires a process of education that begins very early and develops continuously, constantly and very firmly, never letting the dog get away with it or starting to establish its own rules.
It is essential that you fully understand your position within the family pack and, above all, that you learn to respect and obey your leader, who must exercise this function consistently and permanently, without fissures and without adopting behaviors that denote a artificial or forced position.
Perhaps that is why, although the breed is basically easy, it is convenient that its owners have some experience in keeping dogs.
At the very least, they should take the precaution of putting themselves in the hands of professionals who will advise them properly on the matter and help them develop an adequate training plan.
If it is well educated or trained, as it is also an intelligent and very brave dog, the Beagle is capable of working in multiple terrains and circumstances, even in the harshest conditions, for long hours and being used without ambiguity against much stronger enemies.
But if it is not dedicated to hunting, it must be used for some other activity so that it is entertained and active, since, despite its size, it is an extremely energetic animal and needs large doses of daily exercise to stay in good physical shape. and in a correct mental balance.
However, you have to be very careful and before letting it run free you should be very clear that you exercise absolute control over the animal, because its hound instincts are very strong and when it follows a trail that is interesting to it, it can become obsessed and not attending to the orders of its master, so it is easy for them to get lost or expose themselves to some danger.
In fact, perhaps the main characteristics that have made this breed such a useful dog are its extremely fine sense of smell and its great perseverance at work; For this reason, despite the fact that hunting with a pack is increasingly rare, the Beagle has found a perfect fit in other roles and jobs.
It is especially appreciated in tasks such as the detection of explosives, drugs or other types of substances, collaborating with the armies and police forces of many countries in the world, and has also stood out as an auxiliary to the fire brigades, since it is capable of distinguish between the remains of a fire the presence of certain substances that could have caused it intentionally.
Likewise, it can be seen with some frequency as a truffle dog, especially in regions of France and Italy where this activity is practiced with real passion.
On the other hand, although it is not its specialty, it can also be very competitive in certain canine sports such as agility or flyball, and a job tailored to its needs is working as a therapy dog, especially with sick children and elderly people. who find in this little hound a perfect companion, happy and with a contagious optimism.
Beagle breed diet
Regarding how to feed a Beagle, the practice of exercise, in addition to keeping the animal in good shape, contributes to keeping its weight at bay.
The specimens of this breed love to eat. It is easy that if their diet is not controlled, they become overweight and inactive, a situation that could lead to serious health problems.
in the other hand, due to their voracity and gluttony, and their permanent state of activity, cases of stomach torsion frequently occur, which although they do not occur in a generalized way, do have a higher incidence than would be expected in a breed of this size.
Fortunately, this problem can be easily prevented by dividing the daily intake into two or more intakes and taking care not to feed and not let the dog drink at will immediately before or after exercising or during the summer, in the hours hottest of the day.
Beagle health and diseases
In reality, the beagle is a very healthy and robust animal, like many other working breeds or with a history very attached to its original function.
But even so, it has a tendency to suffer more frequently than usual from certain diseases that can be considered typical of the breed.
In normal and well cared for, the Beagle’s life expectancy is estimated to be between 10 and 15 years.
For example, there are some breeding lines that show a certain propensity to suffer episodes of epilepsy. Others are affected by heart complications or suffering from eye problems. And, others have osteoarticular conditions, especially back and hip.
Interestingly, dysplasia is a fairly rare disease in the breed and has a medium degree of affection. Far below most races.
In contrast, an anomaly that occurs with some assiduity is dwarfism. This is due in part to a trend in recent years to seek increasingly smaller specimens, a situation that is accentuated in American lines. Since the breed in the United States is classified in two different sizes.
Specific care of the Beagle breed
The relation to how to care for a Beagle, the care of the coat is very simple.
An occasional brushing using a washcloth, a natural bristle brush or a simple leather chamois is enough to keep it in an impeccable condition.
Using these hair maintenance tasks it is important to check that skin allergies have not developed. These can occur occasionally in specimens that live in humid regions, in those that show signs of obesity or in those that eat an unbalanced diet.
If any alteration is detected, it is necessary to go to a trusted veterinarian to diagnose the case and determine the action to be carried out.
In fact, the figure of the veterinarian has to become essential in the life of every beagle. You must take care to monitor and take care of its health at all times, to ensure that the animal retains its overwhelming nature. That so much fame has made them get around the world: an athletic, sporty, strong, sociable, balanced and cheerful dog.