# thinking about getting a beagle - questions



## cdacker (Jan 10, 2011)

Thinking about a beagle ... I have great memories of hunting over beagles as a kid, and now my kids are getting old enough where I'm thinking I'd like to get one and introduce them to rabbit hunting. 
I've never owned one ... always had GSPs for bird hunting. A few questions/concerns before I make the leap:
Is one adequate for hunting? I've usually hunted over two.
My shorthairs have always enjoyed being unleashed. 40 acres with no permanent neighbors. They have run a bit, but generally stay around the house. Would a beagle be on the run constantly if not leashed or in a kennel?
Barking ... if kenneled, do they tend to constantly bark, or only when excited?
Good with kids / enjoy attention? Good family pet?
I'd be hunting both snowshoe and cottontail .. maybe even a bit more hare. Gender / traits to consider?
Any breeder recommendations?
I realize these questions are very general .. just looking for some input from those with experience.
Thanks!


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## SWMbruiser (Jan 25, 2012)

I dont have a lot of experience or knowledge on them, but here mine is. I would say like many other dogs/breeds it varies. We had 2 brothers when I was younger. One was a hunting machine, the other pretty worthless for hunting. That being said, we bought them from the pound. We did well with just the one on rabbits. But yes if you let him out he was nose to the ground and gone, picked him up a county over more than once. In addition to being a pound dog we were novice dog trainers at best. had his raw talent been honed in, it may have been a completely different experience for us. As far as barking, they loved howling at sirens and loved kids. Overall fun dogs/hunting partners

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## packmaster (Mar 1, 2010)

You will probably want to keep your beagle kenneled up,because they are always hunting.Some will bark others wont,but there are plenty of ways to break them from barking in the kennel.If your planning on doing more hare hunting I would go with a 15 inch hound.with Michigan hare breeding,and they will also run cottontail fine,just faster.I see your from west branch.There is a guy by the name of Gene Beyers (lake Ogemaw kennels) That lives in west branch that has some awesome bloodlines.He may be able to point you in the right direction on picking a hound.PM me if you want his number. hope this helps.


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## dknollie (Feb 1, 2014)

I also grew up with beagles, never more than one at a time and we did just fine with rabbits, cottontails only for us in Holland though. As a general rule of thumb females make for more determined rabbit dogs though, at least that's from what I've seen personally. 

And yes, they do bark/howl a lot, but generally only when there is something to bark at. Since you've got 40 acres I'm guessing there will be quite a bit for them to bark at. They are great family dogs as well. On a side note, you better be prepared to shoot whatever rabbit they are running, or you may never see it again.

Good luck to you.


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## TallPaul (Jan 12, 2007)

Answers vary,
One works, We ran hare last night, took one dog. Will it stay around the house? If it's has any desire, probably not. We had a female once that was virtually 3 legged. After she had her accident I really didn't put much hope in hunting her, came home from school one day, asked dad where the dog was. He informed me that she goes out running each day for awhile then comes home when she's done, all while I was at school. Then I know of other hounds, that will never quit and tend to be brought home by a number of different community members. 

Some blood lines are known for kennel barking, Mine do only when something is around, someone walking or a rabbit in the yard, etc. Most with some kind of training will learn, 

Beagles are pretty intelligent. Make great family pets, great with kids. Contrary to some people, beagles as house pets run just as well.

Breeders, you could go to americanbeagler.com you'll find a number of pups for sale, Del Gerstenberg in thumb has good stock, Andy Echerberg (sp?) Lone Pine kennels, Most important, ask if you can run with the seller for a afternoon. That will tell you the type of dog/pup they're selling. I can get you numbers if interested for others if you PM me.


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## brownitsdown84 (Jan 19, 2009)

I just bought my pup on my way home from west branch in december.. stopped at andys ^^ and came home with my pup. I just went through the learning process on buying your first beagle... pm me if u have any questions

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## steve w (Feb 15, 2004)

http://www.northernmihare.com/Index.html Check the kennel listings ,judges list and classified for help finding a dog. You have quality people very close to you. I would look at getting a couple of siblings, beagles are pack animals and do better together. Although if you have other dogs that could suffice.Keep em' in a kennel for there own protection, they can get themselves into trouble rather quick, with that said if you have enough rabbits to hold them on your land you can let them run some, just remember they are not GSP's or Lab's that worry more about you. They will go till they find game. Like others have said they can be quiet or noisy or both. I find they bark more when bored and not hunted. They can be taught to be quiet, water hose is good teacher. Great with kids and or family.Good luck


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## Fred Bear (Jan 20, 2000)

you cant just let a hound out the door and expect them not to go off hunting. There nose drives them. Do they bark allot? not unless they dont have what they need. Beagles are a pack animal and they want to be with you. If they are alone they are gunna bark. I have had beagles for years.


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## Jumpshootin' (Jul 6, 2000)

Two Beagles in a kennel will be more quiet than one alone. Besides, two noses in the field are better than one; and three are better than two, and.............

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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

cdacker said:


> Thinking about a beagle ... I have great memories of hunting over beagles as a kid, and now my kids are getting old enough where I'm thinking I'd like to get one and introduce them to rabbit hunting.
> I've never owned one ... always had GSPs for bird hunting. A few questions/concerns before I make the leap:
> Is one adequate for hunting? I've usually hunted over two.
> My shorthairs have always enjoyed being unleashed. 40 acres with no permanent neighbors. They have run a bit, but generally stay around the house. Would a beagle be on the run constantly if not leashed or in a kennel?
> ...


I found one to hunt adequately, two made it better as their traits and behaviors were opposite. Hot trailer that won't bark until the track is smoking and another that will sound off at last night's track.

I can keep my dog in the yard not on the run or kennel. It won't happen right away but it can be done.

My dogs are house dogs and don't bark excessively, I don't like that. I think kennel dogs can be trained to limit it but I can see where that'd be difficult.

Beagles are pack animals and will accept humans as members of the pack. They are very loving, great with kids and IMO there is no better family pet.

If you are looking to run hare, you may want a taller bloodline of beagle so they can handle the snow.

As with all dogs and ATMs, you will get out of them, what you put into them.

Best of luck


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## Bassmastergm (Jan 8, 2002)

We have had beagles for over 10 years, however they have been family pets not used for hunting but they do have the instict in them to hunt and you can't take that away.

A good source of information and an excellant breeder is Pine Valley Gundogs in Mayville. This is where we got ours from. He also does training for the dogs as well, if thats what you want to use them for. He does have a website http://pinevalleygundogs.com/ his prices are very good also.


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## cdacker (Jan 10, 2011)

Thanks to all that replied ... good info. Ended up picking up a male from Lake Ogemaw Kennels. Very impressed so far. Th pup is smart, great with the kids, extremely playful, showing good signs of obedience, and a TON of drive. My daughter attached a rabbit leg to a string on a stick this past weekend and dragged it on the ground in front of the pup. He went ballistic ... yipping, barking, baying, howling ... all the sounds of an adult dog hot on the trail of a rabbit. At 8 weeks old! 
Now, shopping for a good tracking/training collar. Would prefer one with both functions (GPS tracking and e-collar). Looking at the Sportdog tek 1.0. Any suggestions?


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

I like Tritronics, I have the Sport Basic G3 now.


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## itchn2fish (Dec 15, 2005)

cdacker said:


> Thanks to all that replied ... good info. Ended up picking up a male from Lake Ogemaw Kennels. Very impressed so far. Th pup is smart, great with the kids, extremely playful, showing good signs of obedience, and a TON of drive. My daughter attached a rabbit leg to a string on a stick this past weekend and dragged it on the ground in front of the pup. He went ballistic ... yipping, barking, baying, howling ... all the sounds of an adult dog hot on the trail of a rabbit. At 8 weeks old!
> Now, shopping for a good tracking/training collar. Would prefer one with both functions (GPS tracking and e-collar). Looking at the Sportdog tek 1.0. Any suggestions?
> View attachment 60399


 Very cool. I love beagles....sounds like he's going to be a good one!


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## michiganoutdoorsman (Dec 29, 2010)

Beautiful looking pup! 


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## steve w (Feb 15, 2004)

First of all congratulations, you made a fine choice especially for hare buying from Gene Byers.Take a good look at the Garmin Alpha before you take the plunge into the track and train market. It really has features that are way ahead of Sport Dogs. With that said Sport Dog is rumored to be coming up with a new system that could rival or surpass Garmin. I personally run the Garmin Astro 320 with DC40's and Sport Dog Hound Hunter 3225 training collars. I have some on the same collar and some I put two on. I really like to stay away from e collars ( just a my way thing ) so that is why I have the two different set ups. The tek 1 would be last on my list. Check out www.gundogsupply.com or www.lcsupply.com for some pretty good reviews on collars. Good Luck and great picture.


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## cdacker (Jan 10, 2011)

steve w said:


> First of all congratulations, you made a fine choice especially for hare buying from Gene Byers.Take a good look at the Garmin Alpha before you take the plunge into the track and train market. It really has features that are way ahead of Sport Dogs. With that said Sport Dog is rumored to be coming up with a new system that could rival or surpass Garmin. I personally run the Garmin Astro 320 with DC40's and Sport Dog Hound Hunter 3225 training collars. I have some on the same collar and some I put two on. I really like to stay away from e collars ( just a my way thing ) so that is why I have the two different set ups. The tek 1 would be last on my list. Check out www.gundogsupply.com or www.lcsupply.com for some pretty good reviews on collars. Good Luck and great picture.


Good info on the collars. Appreciated. 
One quick tour through Gene's home and it was evident that he means business when it comes to his hounds ... the walls are covered with field trial trophies. Good guy too ... I live near where he runs his dogs frequently and he offered to let me run the pup with him when the time comes. Great offer IMO, and one that I will likely take him up on.


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## steve w (Feb 15, 2004)

Glad to help, hope my info made sense. I run up your way too when I get the chance which has not been as often as I like the last few years and your certainly fortunate to be able to run with Gene. The man has to be an encyclopedia on beagles, I met him once a few years ago but all I really know is he has sure done a lot of winning at trials and has had some very good dogs over the years. You should be off to a great start.


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## kisherfisher (Apr 6, 2008)

Cdacker, sounds like you made a good choice. Bloodline dictates the hunt of your dog, and its sounds like that is in order. Your main concern will be obedience at this young age,and I would concentrate on this. A good hunting dog that doesn't listen to squat can ruin a good hunt any day. Good luck with your dog.


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