Our Beagle World Forums banner

Is the Beagle Right for us?

6849 Views 43 Replies 26 Participants Last post by  Pop_Rivit
Hi everyone, I understand that this is a forum for current beagle owners, and I hope to soon be one. I thought I could get some good advice from you on whether my fiance and I should get a beagle or not. We've been doing research and talking to breeders for 4-6 months now, but we're still not sure if our situation is right for us and the dog. We both think beagles are adorable and would love to have a fun, cuddly family pet, but we keep hearing horror stories that make us think twice. We know several people that have beagles, and they have mixed reviews. Here is a quick breakdown of where we're at:

We live in Boston. Our neighborhood is extremely dog friendly. We live next to several parks, and specifically a fenced in dog park that is usually quite crowded. We are both active young adults (late 20's/early 30's) that like to be outside and get exercise. I work full time during the day, but only about a 10 min drive from home. My fiance is in med school, so she has long but odd hours. Sometimes she leaves later in the morning, sometimes comes home early, but basically I assume that she is out of the house for most of the day, and sometimes until 8 pm or so. We do not have any children, but hope to in the next 5 years or so. We own our condo, and it is about 850 sq ft with a private, fenced in back patio that is probably 15-15 in size. The fence goes right to the ground (which is concrete around the edges) so there's no way a dog is digging under it.

We're thinking of getting a male tri-color puppy. I plan to come home at lunch everyday for at least month or two to let the dog out, and we're committed to going to puppy school, working with the dog at night, etc. I'm worried that leaving a puppy alone for 3-4 hours for the first 6 months will make it lonely and cause it to act out (ie bark a lot while we are gone, etc). We could potentially get a dog walker for the first few months to come let him out every 2-3 hours. Also, we've recently heard that beagles have a problem with seizures. A person we spoke to in our dog park mentioned their beagle has seizures every 3-4 months. Is that a common occurrence?

So, that's where we are at. We're trying to make the right decision for us and the dog. Any advice would be much appreciated!!! Thank you.
See less See more
1 - 1 of 44 Posts
First off welcome to the forums and I commend you for taking the time to do your research first. I wish more people did that.

It sounds like your living situation would be fine for a beagle. But be prepared to do crate training for the first few months. This will mean letting your beagle out every few hours initially, and longer intervals later. But you will both need to be committed to a puppy schedule in the beginning stages. But after a few months you can leave him outside during the day and he should be fine.

The one thing I would be cautious against, is getting a field trail beagle. They are breed to track and that inherent trait would make city living more challenging. Your beagle would start baying/beagling when he smells a cat, squirrel, dog, etc. And if you've never seen or heard it before, I strongly suggest you do so beforehand. Decide if that behavior is acceptable with you and your fiance. Aside from their friendly demeanor, beagles are very smart and easy to train if you're consistent and dedicated.

Good luck with your decision.
See less See more
1 - 1 of 44 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top