Busy Beagles

For a family-loving pooch, you can’t beat a beagle – just don’t leave food lying around, writes Roger Crosthwaite.

Beagles have a busy air about them. That may have something to do with the fact that their noses – their windows on the world – are constantly receiving signals at a fantastic rate. These sniffing machines have worked as detector dogs at airports and ports for decades, and for several hundred years before that as scent hounds for tracking prey.

So how does this compact, energetic and occasionally wilful dog fit into a family household? Very well, as it turns out. For all of their preoccupation with the world of exciting smells and following where they lead, beagles are right at home with families.

While fashion dictates a fair amount of movement in top 10 lists of the most popular breeds, beagles have maintained a steady spot around about the middle. “Beagles have always been popular because they’re a smart little dog,” says Nancye Lee, a beagle breeder for 40 years and an officer of The Beagle

Club of NSW. “Beagles have been a recognised breed for centuries.

They’re very sturdy.”

Affectionate and tolerant, beagles happily coexist with children and other pets, but they don’t like being left alone for long periods – Mum and Dad at work and the kids at school all day is not an arrangement that will work for them.

Don’t expect your beagle to be a guard dog, either, because their innate friendliness makes them pretty affable with strangers. Especially strangers who bring food.

Yes, beagles are somewhat of a greedy guts. And while that works to your advantage in training them – they respond very well to an order if there’s a food treat as a reward – they can easily become overweight.

“They’re very food oriented, which is why they’re so good at detecting it,” says Nancye. “But if I gave a beagle a

20kg bag of dog food, it would most likely sit down and eat the lot.”

On the other hand, being very energetic and keen to get out and follow a scent, beagles readily burn off the calories. The lure of an interesting trail occasionally makes them heedless of their owner’s calls, but that strong-mindedness can be countered with early, consistent training of your pup.

And you can’t deny them their heritage. Besides eating, a beagle’s greatest joy is experiencing the world through that fantastic nose. “A walk provides both mental stimulation and exercise,” says Nancye. “Beagles love to get out and about. You can’t leave them sitting in the backyard.” #