[Zookeeper]

I foolishly decided to decorate our house for the Holidays. What I didn't plan on (well, I did, but hoped it wouldn't be so bad) was Duke's behavior on his first Christmas.

My little boy is a heathen. I knew this already, but he has only re-enforced it in the past week. The snow blankets I used to put on my end table and sofa table are gone. He tugged on them so that he could pull them down along with the decorations on the table. The puffy, pillow-stuffing fake snow? Oh, long gone...it lasted less than an hour. Garland on the tree? No way! The ornaments all have to be on the top half of the tree. He has a co-conspirator with the cat, she knocks things off for him.

Actually, it is frustrating and worrysome. We keep the front room blocked off (which is where the tree and most of the decorations are) with a baby gate, but he can jump the gate now. I'm more concerned about him eating something that will hurt him than anything. We have no icicles and the garland is off the bottom of the tree and any table tops. But yesterday, the cat broke a bulb. Luckily I saw it right away, but I realized that if Duke had found it and ate it, it would have been very harmful.

How do you all keep your beagles from turning into decoration-destroying maniacs this time of year?

 

[Murphys Dad]

I don't know how much decorations you have, or how large the decoration area (mainly the tree area), but you can always try spraying it all with bitter apple..... many beagles don't really care, but Chloe doesn't like it (lucky me... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif ).

 

[BeagleBabe]

Abby was 6 months old her first Christmas. I don't recall any issues with her and the tree or decorations, nor are there any now. Other than the cat sleeping under the tree they both ignore it.

How old is your beag? If he's still young you may just have to "puppy proof" much like we have you "baby proof" until he grows up a bit.

If he's older....Maybe a little squirt of water from a spray bottle for him and the cat when they're playing with something they shouldn't?

 

[PFR]

Oh boy, I can see you have your hands full. My two last night were smelling the tree and I had to raise my voice to get their attention.

We try to keep there toy box nearby or get there attention on a bone. They do eventually learn.

As for jumping gates, my two are terrified of them. On one door way we just lean it against it and I guess from having it fall so many time they run from it... :hi:

The other gate is pressurized in the door way, but I guess not that good and they got scared one day when it came loose... OOOOPPPSSS!!!

Good luck!

 

[Marley's Mommy]

will be our first with Marley, but our cocker Charlie never messed with the decorations. He would knwock one off the tree occasionally if he brushed by it or something but that was it.

With Marley we hope it will be similar. The tree goes in the Living Room, and he rarely goes in there. He is in the family room instead most of the time.

Can you get a higher gate?

 

[Guest]

This will be our first Christmas. I'm hoping my baby doesn't want to mess things up. :thinker:

 

[threedognight]

Our first Christmas together was just Chloe and Ginger, but I made the mistake of putting a cranberry garland on the tree. The bottom half didn't last one day!

 

[GallinaBeagleX2]

I lean a baby gate against doorways - and my two have never figured out that just one nudge of the nose and it would fall down - though that would scare LUna, and lemon won't walk over the gate... Silly girls.

Mine don't seem to bother decorations too much, though i've only put up a tree once - last year - first time i put up a full size tree (didn't have a house). And I suspect of the soft fuzzy ornaments were too low, Luna'd steal them like she steals my mom's refrig magnets.