Help my beagle is dumb!?

Question

My mom adopted a beagle 2 years ago from a breeder who no longer had funds or time to care for it. She has assigned the dog to my care and I'm having one hell of a time trying to train her.

Every time I walk her, she insists of going her way and I have to yank her back around 70+ times during the course of a half hour walk. She also defecates in the house when it's raining outside and when she doesn't get attention. She barks at everyone that goes nearby her except little children and insists on staying nearby me when a thunderstorm comes since she doesn't like thunder. Her idea of going around a barrier is to ram through it instead of just walking around it like a smart dog would.

She's gotten a bit overweight now through training treats just to teach her to sit, lie down, and shake, but that's it. What can I do to tame her and actually teach her stuff?

Answer 1

Beagles are hard to train, because they a completely distracted by smells. They have a super-nose, and all scents will a tract their attention.

I imagine that when you are walking, she stops to sniff everything 70+ times. If you understand that, maybe there are a few things that you can do:

1. Teach her a modified clicker training. Bring her in the house with no distractions. Cut up some treats into very tiny tastes, smaller than a dime. Now click your tongue and give her a tiny treat when she looks at you. Keep doing this for 5 min or 10 min, then stop.
2. Do it again, later in the evening. Then repeat for about five days. Your goal is to get her to look at you whenever you click your tongue. Now go for a walk.
3. Everytime she sniffs, click your tongue, then give her a treat when she looks. Pay attention to when she looks. Don't expect her to stop immediately, but expect consistency.
4. After a week of doing this, try to anticipate when she will sniff and click beforehand. If she looks at you instead of sniffing, give her 5 treats, a jackpot, one at a time. She may not learn this. Accept what happens.
5. Now walk with her and click to keep her going.

House Poop.
You have to treat her like a puppy, and watch her, then take her out immediately, when she starts to sniff around. If you can't watch her, then put her in a crate.

Thunder
She is scared of thunder. You can try habituation training. Also, try yawning and making a little sigh. When she is frightened, don't soothe her, just yawn with noise about every 20 seconds... for 2 - 5 min. This is a calming signal that relates that everything is OK.

Barking
Try to anticipate when she is going to bark, and stand in front of her, with your back to her, tell her to sit, and give her a small treat, if she doesn't bark.

Answer 2

There is a very good book out from Animal Planet on training your dog. Beagles are hard headed dogs, but if you've trained her to sit, then she can be trained. On walks, Don't allow her to pull. When she begins to pull, just stand there. It takes a while and it can be frustrating, but she will learn that if she wants to take a walk, she will have to walk nicely. As far as house breaking, make sure you are taking her out enough and that she is fed only at specific times. Leaving the food out all day means she has to poop more and that she will get fat(ter). Crate training may also be a good option.

Answer 3

They (the experts) say to let the dog just do/go where it wants to during a thunderstorm. Usually they will ride it out in a closet or basement or someplace like that. If you try and comfort/protect them they will think that there is something actually wrong. As for the other problems, I suggest obedience training.

Answer 4

She sounds like a beagle I used to have.

Beagles are scent sounds and they must smell everything when they go for a walk -- it is just part of their nature. I found it frustrating, but I just got used to it.

My Beagle also did not want to go outside when it rained, and I finally got him outside with a dog rainjacket.

My guy also barked at just about everything and he was just protecting his territory.

He hated thunder and would try to crawl on my lap and shiver.

Your girl isn't dumb, she is just the average Beagle!

Try to be patient with her and if you are concerned about her weight, try giving her carrots or other veggies as training treats -- my Beagle and current dog (Corgi) love them.

Here is a helpful website on how to specifically train your Beagle: http://www.yourpurebredpuppy.com/training/beagles.html

Answer 5

Congratulations. You have a normal beagle! They are independent and follow their noses into whatever it leads them to. I suggest trying to find a good training class to attend. Different dogs require differnet training methods. Food is usually a strong motivation for beagles, but as you have learned, they pack on pounds rather easily.

Answer 6

I don't think the Beagle sounds dumb... I think it sounds like you haven't done much training or proper training with the Beagle.. I think she's tame, I think she needs training.. Take some classes, they'll teach you how to train your dog.

Answer 7

Sounds just like my beagle. And i got him from a breeder too. And his father was best-in-show 7 times. And he pulls a lot on walks, because its natural, they want to hunt and stuff like that. But mine doesnt run into walls.

Answer 8

As a professional dog trainer for over 16 years, I have to tell you my strong opinion that you need these group classes for obedience training. http://OnlineDogTraining.enle.info/?Gnm2

Other pet warehouses are there to get you to buy their products and hang around their strore. And their trainers are their employees...never forget they have an agenda. Most of the trainers have very little education--if they had actual training and skills they wouldn't be there making just over minimum wage--trust me on this. But even if they did have experience and talent...a group setting is a terrible place for learning to take place. It's distraction training and it is the LAST phase of training not the first. You wouldn't have your child try to do their homework in a toy store, would you? Of course not...the level of distraction would be too high! It's the same with dogs. Having said that, these classes can be an excellent way to socialize dogs...but not to train them. And while they appear to be cheaper than a professional trainer...you have to attend many more sessions to get the same results because of the poor learning environment--so you wind up spending MORE money for less training than you would with a professional. Save your money and go to someone who actually knows how to train dogs. OR, read books and try to train your dog yourself. There is nothing they train at a Petsmart or Petco that you can't do yourself with a couple of hours of reading.

Answer 9

I ensue to be observing the Brady Bunch movie good now, so I could desire to answer a question from Johnny Bravo! :-) I continuously take the "clever dogs" scores with a grain of salt, and that i on no account think of of dogs as obdurate -- some are centred and desperate to get what they want, yet i think of it relatively is a good element! maximum breeds have been created for specific purposes -- in the event that they're properly-bred, they have specific inclinations. Beagles are meant to get exhilaration from working with different dogs, fairly independently from the human (for this reason the loud baying -- the hunters are in simple terms meant to pay attention and seize up). they're meant to concentration on a fragrance and follow it without letting something deter them. Asking dogs bred for a working purpose to be pets could properly be a topic, yet i think of that, as long because of the fact the human knows them, beagles could make super pets and are very trainable. i've got labored with beagle proprietors as a coach, and that i've got one myself -- a former stray who mandatory fairly some artwork. i've got continuously discovered them energetic and attracted to discovering. maximum are attracted to nutrients, toys, interest, play, going out, coming in, going interior the motor vehicle, being permitted to stay with a fragrance . . . a dogs who needs fairly some issues is basic to inspire, and so, basic to teach! "Gonna save on, save on, save on, save on dancing all contained in direction of the evening . .. " Oh, sorry -- have been given distracted. :-)

Answer 10

As far as the pulling when walking it a BEAGLE. they are yery good dog s but driven by there nose. you should try using a halti or gentle leader. they may fight for control at first but once they ajust they are much easier to walk