[hawksport]

Set yourself realistic targets. There is nothing in KCGS gold or in your post that you shouldn't be able to achieve.
Accept from the start that because of breed, character, experience and natural ability some will progress faster than others. It's not a race
Make sure the whole family sticks to rules. Things are much easier if you are all on the same side.
Dogs are gamblers they understand always and never much better than sometimes. So he always sits to greet people, he never runs through the door when you open it

 

[theevos5]

Agree with getting rid of the puppy pads,you need to stay outside with him when you want him to wee,wait until he does and then make a fuss like never beforeand then say wee and treat him,if he starts to have an accident indoors,get him outside as quick as possible and then when he goes treat again.It will eventually click if he think there is food at the end of it.If he does have an accident in the house,use a solution of persil soap powder and water this should help stop him,remarking.
Regarding the walking to heel,we used a halti and Alf hated it,spent most of his walks trying to get it off his face and eventually learned to back out of it and slip it off(who said Beagles were stupid?)we use a slip lead,it costs a fiver and we walk Alf to the park on it,it takes 10 mins there so we do a strict heel walk and he is perfect now,I started off by holding it quite tight so that he was right next to me,but he has got it sorted it and walks on a loose lead.He knows the command heel and trots along next to me looking at my treat pocket with those gorgeous eyes.
The problem we made with our beagle was we were totally besotted with him and allowed him to get away with murder You have got to this point and recognised that there is a few problems and that is a great thing to do,alot of people would have given up by now and thats why Beagle welfare has so many dogs in their care.The vet said to me that we have to learn to be as stubborn as a Beagle and that is the best bit of advice I have had.If I want him to sit I make sure he sits,not give up as that just teaches him that you don't really mean what you say.Be consistent always

By the way the pic of Basil is gorgeous x

 

[BeagleMumma]

The problem we made with our beagle was we were totally besotted with him and allowed him to get away with murder You have got to this point and recognised that there is a few problems and that is a great thing to do,alot of people would have given up by now and thats why Beagle welfare has so many dogs in their care.The vet said to me that we have to learn to be as stubborn as a Beagle and that is the best bit of advice I have had.If I want him to sit I make sure he sits,not give up as that just teaches him that you don't really mean what you say.Be consistent always

By the way the pic of Basil is gorgeous x

I can totally relate to this, i think Beagles invented that puppy dog look and who can resist it? What the vet said to you sounds like valuable advice. I will definitely strive to out-stubborn Basil.
It's great to talk to someone else who has a Beagle. It's nice to hear that you've been there and come out unscathed I had a look at your album of Alfie, he is lovely!! It inspired me to make a little album of Basil and our cat Roxie, have a look...

Thanks for all the walking advice Sled Dog, tomorrow we are going to start practicing your suggestions.
For today we have moved the puppy pad outside and booked puppy training classes. A good start I think

Thank you all for your help.

Keep the suggestions coming x

 

[Sled dog hotel]

I think the other two things you were worried about were the possibility he was developing separation anxiety and control of him when visitors were coming.

At the moment if you are allowing him to be with you all the time you are there and he is also following you about, it makes it harder for them to cope on their own. So you need to start giving him time on his own initially when you are there.

If you set up the area where you want him to stay when you are out,with his bed some chews, and toys, that you keep especially for those times when he is to be left. Kongs that a hollow solid rubber toys are good you stuff them with food, you can use wet dog food mixed with a few goodies, like chicken,cheese, biscuits and bigs of ham, to make last longer you can freeze if before hand, although when training him for the shorter periods to start with,you probably wont need to freeze it. Treat balls are good too, you can fill them with kibble and set it to distribute pieces here and there as he plays to keep his interest. Things like an old tee-shirt or jumper you have worn left in his bed can help as it has your smell to re-assure him (providing he isnt the sort of dog to rip and ingest fabric. A radio left on low on a talking station can help as the sound of voices s oothes them. Another good thing is a DAP dog appeasing pheromone plug in diffuser, it is an artificial version of the pheromone mum emits to calm and soothe pups and its keeps them calm.
I would start with giving him some rest time ideally after a walk when he is tired and more likely to settle (In fact any time you have to leave him for real a walk is better first gets rid of any excess energy too) I would do this several times a day even for 10/15 minutes at a time at first, just get him used to coping. Dont make a big thing of leaving. Try to return when he is quiet and calm, just let him out and dont fuss him straight away,just leave it a minute or two before you do. Keep to the same routine every time he is left and just build up the time scale a little each time.

When visitors come, No doubt because he is so cute, they probably make a fuss and talk to him straight away. They usually get overexcited with visitors coming anyway and attention straight away tends to make them even more so, to the point they can get so hyped they dont listen. If you keep a tin of treats by the front door, take him there on a lead and get him to sit before the visitors are allowed in, pre warn them to totally ignore him and walk in staight through and just sit. Then bring him in, still asking them to ignore him.
Get him to sit a distance away, and only when he is calm,then take him up to be introduced. but still tell your visitors to ignore him. If he carries on sitting,then they can then give him a treat and gently fuss him. Once he seems to realiably be able to control himself and greet calmly then, try it later without the lead. If he really gets hyper and wont stop at all even with the ignoring, then put him out for 5/10 minutes in his area, then he is calm then bring him in and try again. and keep doing it until he is calm.
Eventually they usually learn that, calm polite behaviour gets treats and attention and barking and attention seeking doesnt.

Hope these other things to try might help.

 

[BeagleMumma]

Thanks for the advice Sled Dog. I have tried some of the above. I often put him in his cage in the kictchen with toys, chews etc and we always leave the radio on as i have heard that this helps.
At night he is fine and will sleep soundly all night. If, however I do this in the day when I am home, or going out he will bark and howl incessantly for at least 10mins, sometimes longer. It is driving me mad and i worry the neighbours will complain. I don't know why he does it, I do everything I can to make sure he is comfortable and has things to entertain him. I will look into buying a kong tho - good advice.

With regards to the visitors issue, i will try your suggestions. He definitely can't get any worse when people come round!

 

[Sled dog hotel]

Thanks for the advice Sled Dog. I have tried some of the above. I often put him in his cage in the kictchen with toys, chews etc and we always leave the radio on as i have heard that this helps.
At night he is fine and will sleep soundly all night. If, however I do this in the day when I am home, or going out he will bark and howl incessantly for at least 10mins, sometimes longer. It is driving me mad and i worry the neighbours will complain. I don't know why he does it, I do everything I can to make sure he is comfortable and has things to entertain him. I will look into buying a kong tho - good advice.

With regards to the visitors issue, i will try your suggestions. He definitely can't get any worse when people come round!

Someone on heres dog started whining in the night and I suggested the DAP diffuser, and they had one from when theirs was a pup with some left in it and found it helped, so it might be worth a go. You can get them from vets and pets at home but usually cheaper on line. I still use one for times of stress and things like fireworks. I get mine from Vet-Medic - the same medicines as your vet at consistently low prices. if you want a look. First one I got was double the price at the vets. One of the uses is separation anxiety too.

 

[BeagleOesx]

I would echo what the others have said and would reiterate you have to be firm with your commands, even when trained if you give him a command make sure he follows thro with it. Beagles are stubborn but as long as you are firm & consistant it is possible to train them

You have to have a lot of patience when training but if you are prepared to spend the time it will come. I took Harvey to training classes when we first got him and the trainer basically said that 'you won't get a beagle to listen to you or follow commands because of his high prey drive' but we proved him wrong and I can honestly say he walks beautifully to heel and if we are somewhere secure & let him off he comes back when recalled. Training him to do most things was easy as he is so food driven he will basically do anything for a treat, so use treats to your advantage.

With regard to your other thread about neutering, we had Harvey neutered when he was 12 months old and besides the health benefits from having it done he did calm down greatly. He also hasn't tried to be as dominant as he used to be.

It isn't easy but it is rewarding and due to Harvey's 'magpie' tendancies my lounge always looks tidy:lol: You will learn never to leave anything lying around if you don't want it to be beagle napped!!

Have fun with your Beagle:thumbup:

 

[tiny]

Beaglemumma - its hard work but perserverance does pay off. my beagle pup is only 12 weeks old and can wee on command. she was paper trained by the breeder but as soon as i brought her home i started taking her outside as per the advice of sleddog and the other forum members on here. the 1st week was a nightmare - out every 20 mins and up 3 times during the night but it has paid off. i still take honey out every half hour when she is awake during the day but she goes from around 10pm every night until 6am now and is dry every night. she has been crate trained and sometimes when i have to put her in during the day she crys and whines a bit but if i ignore her for 5 or 10 mins she drops off to sleep. if you give in and let your beagle out when he howls he will catch on quickly - you really should try to sit it out for a bit n see what happens. i give honey a puppy kong with cream cheese in it or a crunchy stick in her crate and she will happily chew away for a bit. when im out walking i stop when she pulls - she is still very young but is getting the message already although i am going to get her a premier easy walk harness. please dont be fooled by the big hound eyes as beagles are notoriously stubborn and very intelligent - treat him like a spoilt child and be consistently firm and he will learn. good luck.

 

[BeagleMumma]

It isn't easy but it is rewarding and due to Harvey's 'magpie' tendancies my lounge always looks tidy:lol: You will learn never to leave anything lying around if you don't want it to be beagle napped!!

Have fun with your Beagle:thumbup:

I can totally relate with the 'magpie' tendancies, Basil has these too. He'll swipe anything he can from the coffee table or dining table. In particular pens and notepads seem to go missing. Earlier today I came into the living room to find Basil under the dining table eating a packet of chewits that he had 'found' on the computer desk. You know he knows it's wrong because he hides under the table with his loot. Cheeky bugger!

 

[BeagleMumma]

Beaglemumma - its hard work but perserverance does pay off. my beagle pup is only 12 weeks old and can wee on command. she was paper trained by the breeder but as soon as i brought her home i started taking her outside as per the advice of sleddog and the other forum members on here. the 1st week was a nightmare - out every 20 mins and up 3 times during the night but it has paid off. i still take honey out every half hour when she is awake during the day but she goes from around 10pm every night until 6am now and is dry every night. she has been crate trained and sometimes when i have to put her in during the day she crys and whines a bit but if i ignore her for 5 or 10 mins she drops off to sleep. if you give in and let your beagle out when he howls he will catch on quickly - you really should try to sit it out for a bit n see what happens. i give honey a puppy kong with cream cheese in it or a crunchy stick in her crate and she will happily chew away for a bit. when im out walking i stop when she pulls - she is still very young but is getting the message already although i am going to get her a premier easy walk harness. please dont be fooled by the big hound eyes as beagles are notoriously stubborn and very intelligent - treat him like a spoilt child and be consistently firm and he will learn. good luck.

Thanks for your advice Tiny. I am impressed that you have done so well training your beagle at such a young age and somewhat embarrassed that we are so behind. I wish i had known about this forum earlier on. Ho hum! Saying that tho - after just one day of training using suggestions from very helpful people on here, we have made progress!! I am feeling encouraged and tomorrow we start puppy school so it can only get better. (I hope)

Any further advice you have, don't be shy

 

[momentofmadness]

When I go out for a walk with mine.. the first thing I do when I get back is go straight to the back door and let them out for a few mins.. Bobby usually has a mega wee.. and so do the girls.. even though they have had a couple on a walk.. I reckon if I didn't put them out I would then have to wear wellies to get through the pee in my kitchen..

And I would suggest like other go to puppy class..

 

[Sled dog hotel]

With the magpie tendencies, as much as a pain as it is it is best to puppy proof as much as you can by removing as much as you can so its not a temptation to steal things, Also they do cotton on that nicking stuff is a way of getting attention and it becomes a game and a learned behaviour you dont want. Teaching the leave command is always good. Ive done this by teaching a reliable sit and wait first, waiting until the wait is for a good while before you give the treat. Next step is to put the treat on the floor,cover it with your hand, tell him to wait again, then still with the treaat covered, say leave repeat the leave, then uncover it and tell him to take it. You should be able to build it up, eventually where, you can do sit wait, leave, uncover it wait, step back and then the take it. That is something you can try later as each stage has got to be done individually building it up and not going on to the next step until each is realiable.

Another thing you can teach later is the Drop command.Ive always taught mine through play. If you use a toy or ball he likes, but is not a great favourite, you have more chance of getting him to give it up. I throw the toy or ball. Try to get him to bring it to me by holding out a really smelly tasty treat (remember beagles in particular use there noses) if the comes with the toy/ball offer the treat close to him nose, if and as he drops it, say drop, repeat drop, then give the treat with lots of praise, then you can repeat the whole thing again. He should learn that giving up things can be rewarding.

I have found with mine that a couple of 10/15 minute training sessions a day mixed with a bit of play really helps. It also seems to tire them out as they are using energy and their brains, but at the same time is enough to train but not too long for them to get bored. Its good you are going to training, for socialisation plus you will be constantly learning new things. Which you can then add and practice to your training sessions at home.

 

[theevos5]

I have found with mine that a couple of 10/15 minute training sessions a day mixed with a bit of play really helps. It also seems to tire them out as they are using energy and their brains, but at the same time is enough to train but not too long for them to get bored. Its good you are going to training, for socialisation plus you will be constantly learning new things. Which you can then add and practice to your training sessions at home.

Completely agree,every night around 5pm,we have a play session,with the ball launcher,outdoors,and this is purely to exercise Alfs body and mind,we do the drop command and now when he pinches something,instead of a scene from benny hill,I say drop,he drops and then gets his treat!So much easier,but again 6 months ago i would never have believed that he would be that calm and responsiveThis also settles him for the night and we have a clam relaxed dog of an evening:thumbup:

 

[BeagleMumma]

Agree with getting rid of the puppy pads,you need to stay outside with him when you want him to wee,wait until he does and then make a fuss like never beforeand then say wee and treat him,if he starts to have an accident indoors,get him outside as quick as possible and then when he goes treat again.It will eventually click if he think there is food at the end of it.If he does have an accident in the house,use a solution of persil soap powder and water this should help stop him,remarking.
Regarding the walking to heel,we used a halti and Alf hated it,spent most of his walks trying to get it off his face and eventually learned to back out of it and slip it off(who said Beagles were stupid?)we use a slip lead,it costs a fiver and we walk Alf to the park on it,it takes 10 mins there so we do a strict heel walk and he is perfect now,I started off by holding it quite tight so that he was right next to me,but he has got it sorted it and walks on a loose lead.He knows the command heel and trots along next to me looking at my treat pocket with those gorgeous eyes.

So far after just 2 days of toilet training, Basil has been amazing!! He has been going outside as if he's been doing it all his life and has not once tried to go in the house where his puppy pad was (she says with crossed fingers) I left the backdoor ajar earlier and he even went out of his own accord and had a wee (i spied on him from the window)

With regards to the dog walking we are currently using a collar and an extendable lead and i don't think it's very good to train him with. Do you suggest we take his collar off for the time being and get a slip lead then?

 

[BeagleMumma]

Another thing you can teach later is the Drop command.Ive always taught mine through play. If you use a toy or ball he likes, but is not a great favourite, you have more chance of getting him to give it up. I throw the toy or ball. Try to get him to bring it to me by holding out a really smelly tasty treat (remember beagles in particular use there noses) if the comes with the toy/ball offer the treat close to him nose, if and as he drops it, say drop, repeat drop, then give the treat with lots of praise, then you can repeat the whole thing again. He should learn that giving up things can be rewarding.

I have found with mine that a couple of 10/15 minute training sessions a day mixed with a bit of play really helps. It also seems to tire them out as they are using energy and their brains, but at the same time is enough to train but not too long for them to get bored. Its good you are going to training, for socialisation plus you will be constantly learning new things. Which you can then add and practice to your training sessions at home.

Are there any good educational dog toys i should get? I have taken your suggestion re the kong and am going to get him one but just wondered if there's anything inparticular I should buy to play with him with and to use as a teaching aid. I would hate to think that he was being understimulated so want to get some things to keep his brain active.

As always, any suggestions welcome

 

[Sled dog hotel]

Are there any good educational dog toys i should get? I have taken your suggestion re the kong and am going to get him one but just wondered if there's anything inparticular I should buy to play with him with and to use as a teaching aid. I would hate to think that he was being understimulated so want to get some things to keep his brain active.

As always, any suggestions welcome

I find with my youngest a good old fashioned tennis ball works wonders. The treatball I mentioned earlier is good, because it keeps interest as it releases a treat here and there. So that is good for them to amuse thereselves. My youngest also likes her kong wubba (Think you can get several sizes) its bascically like the hollow kong you stuff underneath, with a squeaker in it and covered in thick canvas fabric, It also has thick canvas tails like an octopus,for want of a better description. Good for throwing, a game of tug, or just for them to mouth and chew. To get their prey drive going, there is skeneeze, basically fake fur, skinned squirrels with tails (sorry about the gory description) those I think have a squeaker too. Quite useful to distract dogs with prey drive from the real thing. Seen them used in training for recall, but I havent used them on my lot as would probably dismantle them in no time.
There are other puzzle toys on the market that they have to use there brain to get treats out of, maybe another thing you could use when you need him to amuse himself. Chewing is a great destresser and wind down for dogs, so the other thing I would add is a selection of chews. Dood for when you want a bit of P&Q and might help with his magpie habits too.

 

[Dogless]

So far after just 2 days of toilet training, Basil has been amazing!! He has been going outside as if he's been doing it all his life and has not once tried to go in the house where his puppy pad was (she says with crossed fingers) I left the backdoor ajar earlier and he even went out of his own accord and had a wee (i spied on him from the window)

With regards to the dog walking we are currently using a collar and an extendable lead and i don't think it's very good to train him with. Do you suggest we take his collar off for the time being and get a slip lead then?

Or a collar and normal lead. I also have a headcollar (Dogmatic) for the occasions when I do not have time to work on loose lead training so that Kilo never learns to pull on a normal flat collar. I do loose lead training at least twice per day and try to do it wherever we go, however he comes to work so if I need to get to a meeting etc I don't always have the time everywhere we travel.

The way I do it is on normal walks, collar and lead. On walks where there is a little time pressure I put on the Dogmatic and attach one end of my training lead to Kilo's normal collar and one end to the headcollar. I walk him using his normal collar by keeping the end attached to the headcollar slack...if he pulls I then take control of his head...once the lead is loose again, I slack off the headcollar end and so on.

I was a little despairing only a few weeks ago about the pulling, but about a fortnight or so ago something just clicked and Kilo just understood. He is now really, really good at walking with a loose lead, the headcollar has only been on once last week

 

[BeagleMumma]

I find with my youngest a good old fashioned tennis ball works wonders. The treatball I mentioned earlier is good, because it keeps interest as it releases a treat here and there. So that is good for them to amuse thereselves. My youngest also likes her kong wubba (Think you can get several sizes) its bascically like the hollow kong you stuff underneath, with a squeaker in it and covered in thick canvas fabric, It also has thick canvas tails like an octopus,for want of a better description. Good for throwing, a game of tug, or just for them to mouth and chew. To get their prey drive going, there is skeneeze, basically fake fur, skinned squirrels with tails (sorry about the gory description) those I think have a squeaker too. Quite useful to distract dogs with prey drive from the real thing. Seen them used in training for recall, but I havent used them on my lot as would probably dismantle them in no time.
There are other puzzle toys on the market that they have to use there brain to get treats out of, maybe another thing you could use when you need him to amuse himself. Chewing is a great destresser and wind down for dogs, so the other thing I would add is a selection of chews. Dood for when you want a bit of P&Q and might help with his magpie habits too.

Thanks Sled Dog. I have just ordered a treat ball online and my partner is off to get a Kong after work so i'm looking forward to watching Basil playing with them. Will let you know how we get on with them.

With regards to chews, we already buy him dentastix and raw hide bones and he absolutely loves them to death. He will hapilly sit for an hour or more chewing on a bone - much to the relief of me and my finace

 

[Sled dog hotel]

Thanks Sled Dog. I have just ordered a treat ball online and my partner is off to get a Kong after work so i'm looking forward to watching Basil playing with them. Will let you know how we get on with them.

With regards to chews, we already buy him dentastix and raw hide bones and he absolutely loves them to death. He will hapilly sit for an hour or more chewing on a bone - much to the relief of me and my finace

I spend a fortune on chews especially having 3 dogs, but god its worth every penny!!

 

[BeagleMumma]

Basil and I are off to puppy school shortly - Wish us luck!!

I will let you know how we get on.

Let's hope he's not the oldest and worst behaved puppy there!!