You have finally gotten that Beagle puppy that you wanted so much. Now what? When does the training start? Many Beagle owners start training at the wrong time. Some may start too early when the puppy is not ready to hold his bladder and is far from ready to learn basic commands or obedience. Beagles are often notorious for being stubborn to train. That’s partly because some people wait until their teens to start their training, which is too late. This article is about the when and how of your first Beagle obedience training.
What is the best age to bring your Beagle puppy home?
Keep in mind that a Beagle puppy should not be separated from its mother and siblings before 8 weeks of age. Your Beagle will learn many of the basics of his social position in those first few weeks of training. Puppies removed too early will often have aggression issues and may even bite or have other social problems. It is very important that you socialize your Beagle a lot with people and other dogs while they are young and as they age. Under no circumstances should a Beagle have no interactions with other dogs or people before they reach 15 months of age.
When should you start breaking into the house?
Housebreaking should not begin until your Beagle is 10-12 weeks old and only after your puppy has acclimatized to your home. You need to be old enough to have the physical ability to hold it. Most trainers will tell you that cage training is the best method of breaking down your Beagle’s house. Don’t let your human emotions make you think of cage training like caging your Beagle. Beagles, like all other dogs, are a type of burrowing animal and come to regard their cage as a burrow; a safe place where he will make a nest himself. Another good thing about cage training is that it reduces the chance of your Beagle suffering from separation anxiety. For instructions on box training, click the link to my website under my name.
When is the best time to start basic obedience training?
Basic obedience training includes simple commands like sit, stay, lie down, roll over, fetch, etc. This type of training should begin between 3 and 6 months of age. Start with the easiest ones, like sitting down and working your way up from there. This is also a good time to leash training your Beagle. Beagles are easily distracted while walking so visit my website for good instructions on leash training your Beagle. You can train your Beagle at home or more preferably you can both take an obedience class. You can usually locate one through a local dog club or even a local community college. Believe it or not, the human has more to learn than the Beagle when it comes to teaching shoeing and other obedience tasks. The basics are very easy and with the right approach they can be taught in just a few days. To make the process even easier, you may want to consider clicker training. Clicker training is a style of training in which you first teach your Beagle that a click equals a reward. Actually, this can be done very quickly, in a matter of minutes. Once you think of the click as a reward, the training process will dramatically accelerate. Visit my website for more information on this. The link is under my name.
By teaching your Beagle when he is young, you will instill in him that his role is that of leader of the pack. This is very important for a good long-term relationship and a well-behaved Beagle.
What comes next?
Once your Beagle has completed his basic obedience training, you have plenty of time to train him in other ways. The old adage that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks is totally untrue when it comes to Beagles. Generally, the basics are sufficient for most Beagle owners, but other people want to go further with more complex tricks. Beagles are very skilled when it comes to agility training. Agility is a sport in which dogs are timed while running through a variety of obstacles and Beagles are a favorite dog for this. Check with your local kennel club to see if there are agility clubs in your area.
One thing you won’t have to train your Beagle for is sniffing game animals like rabbits. They are bloodhounds and have been bred to do this naturally and that is why many people use Beagles when hunting. Not only do they have an incredible sense of smell, but they also have a remarkable howl to keep in touch with the hunter and communicate their location and what is happening on the hunt.
If you decide to take your Beagle beyond the basics, make sure he is old enough to handle physical stress. It should be fully grown before you have it jumping, running, or diving.
For more information on how to train your Beagle, be sure to visit my website below. It not only contains information on obedience training, but also on how to handle problems such as aggression, biting, chewing, barking, etc.