[HyPrice]

Hi all!
I'm new to the forum. I just bought a 10 week old beagle puppy, a female. We are calling her Peanut (we have a food name theme going with our dogs, Oreo, Popcorn, and now Peanut). Anyway, we've never had a beagle before. I kind of made an impulse buy, and saw her and her littermates for sale in the newspaper and went and bought her. We are experienced dog owners, though.

So, it's been a long time since we've had a puppy and she kind of seems like a mean little thing. When we're holding her and she wants down she growls, barks, and bites, and today my mom caught her in the bag of dog food and pulled her away and Peanut growled and lunged at her arm and bit her (mom was not phased, but I wasn't happy). She is teething and sinks her teeth into anything she can, but is this normal puppy beagle behavior, to be kind of mean?

Also, how old are they when they lose these sharp little baby teeth? We do love her, but gosh I hope I don't have a mean dog-to-be on my hands! I'm a college student and am moving into a house next year and got her to be my companion as I venture into my grown-up life, haha!
Ok, thanks all!

 

[Brisen]

Hi and welcome! Both barking and biting are commom behaviors in puppies, but probably not the growling when food is being taken away. I don't think the growling necessarily means she's going to be a mean dog, but at her young age it's something you'll want to work on to let her know it's not acceptable.

As far as when they lose their sharp baby teeth, Maggie started losing her's a couple of weeks ago, and she just turned four months. She's still doing a lot of biting, but it definitely doesn't hurt as much. We don't let her know that though...we still respond to her biting with a sharp NO. I believe the teething continues until they are about 7-8 months, so it's going to be a while before they slow down on the biting. Make sure Peanut has plenty of 'teething' toys in the meantime!

 

[HyPrice]

Thanks Gale!
I'm Chantel by the way *wave*
Anyway, I think we're going to get a spray bottle and when she does the growling/bit combo we'll spray her nose (with water). I don't want to spray her always when she bites, as most of the time she's just playing and looking for a toy and I think just does not know yet that the cuff of my sweatshirt or the sock on my foot is not for her, but the angry growling/biting deserves a spary--we'll see how that works!
She does have lots of toys--poor Popcorn's toy basket got raided! Haha. Your pup sure is a cutie!

 

[Brisen]

Sounds like you're on the right track Chantel! Now...we MUST see some pictures of little Peanut! /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/gaah.gif

 

[deb]

Wow! Another Peanut. My Peanut is 4 months old today. She does not have food aggresion, but she does sometimes get a bit carried away with her sharp little teeth too. Usually if I just say "easy" to her, she will stop biting and begin licking instead. But I also know that it is puppy teething. She hates being scolded though and turns the sad puppy eyes on me. She really knows how to use them.
Give Peanut some time. She will get it...and it is so worth it.

 

[HyPrice]

Deb, your Peanut is super cute, in fact my Peanut looks a bit like yours, I'll have to post some pictures.
Anyway, I'm not sure that it is food aggression, as I can stick my hand in her bowl when she is eating and she doesn't care, I think my mom just upset her by taking her away from something she wanted to inspect, as she does the growl/bite on occasion if we're holding her and she wants down. I do hope she gets it, as I'm attached and don't want a snappy dog in the future!

 

[Murphys Dad]

Welcome to the BW pack.

Peanut is a puppy. So the "mean" can be hopefully be trained out of her. That is up to you. I would suggest puppy kindergarten (socialization) now and obedience training, when she is old enough.

As for having experience with other breeds, beagles are different. The are smarter than most breeds, meaning they will obey you if they decide to do so. They take more work, but they are very trainable. They are STUBBORN, never forget it. You need to be more stubborn than she is. They are scent hounds, meaning that if she gets on a scent she wants to follow, the go deaf as a post. Hopefully you have a fenced in yard.

Good Luck to both of you.

 

[My2Beagles]

/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crazy.gif One thing I have found that works well for the Beaglebratz when they were pups - a very loud and high pitched, OW! Don't pull your hand or whatever it is back away from Peanut - she will think you are playing with her. And then as soon as she drops your hand then substitute a chewy.

By all means, be patient. Shiloh - my oldest & a male - was my first Beagle puppy. I've raised puppies before but I had never encountered ANY pup that was a challenge as him. Shasta was/is even a bigger challenge - I'm going to pass on a little something a friend told me about females "a female dog is a called a bitch - there's a reason for it"

 

[Shenniff]

Quote: "a female dog is a called a bitch - there's a reason for it"

/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/greendevil.gif 'aint that the truth!

 

[Murphys Dad]

/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/help.gif Chantel and Peanut!

Great advice you got so far. Make sure you don't allow any growling at you or any of the family members. The biting part wil fade as her teething will finish. She should be taught that she can't growl or bite you. When biting out of play, more like nipping, it's easier to make the distinction. Beagle puppies are hard! Puppies in general are very demanding, but beagle puppies also have the beagle antics thrown in to the mix - this is what makes this breed special in my opinion, but takes time getting used to.

Good luck! Would love to see some pics.... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/yay.gif

 

[Zookeeper]

Duke doesn't have a mean bone in his body, BUT......when I tried to take a bone away from him, he growled like he was the most dangerous dog on earth. I challenged him, didn't back down, took it away and then did it over and over until he realized it was MY bone and I was the one to decide whether he got to chew on it or not. Since then, we've done that with other treats, just to reinforce that the type of behavior he was displaying is not acceptable. Now he tries to hide the bone from us, but the crazy dog growling is gone.

Puppies can act mean even when they aren't. It's their way of testing their boundries. Show him that won't work and eventually he'll learn how to behave the way you want him to. Just remember, there are no overnight fixes. It takes time, patience, consistency and love.

 

[Murphys Dad]

/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/help.gif to BW! I am not going to be much help re puppy issues as I have a senior beagle who was past the puppy stage when I adopted her. You will get some great advice and suggestions from our many members who are experienced with puppy behaviors and you must post pics as soon as possible -- that's how I get my "puppy fix"!

 

[HyPrice]

Thanks everyone-
My mom is taking care of her this week well I finish up my college finals, and I told her to really watch the growling. My dad did give her a little flick in the nose today when she did it when he picked her up, and he said she stopped right away. Hopefully if we just teach her she'll grow out of it. I sure am addicted to my little girl, so she'll have to, haha. I will post pictures for everyone on the introduction board!
Zookeeper--I'm glad to hear that Duke figured out he can't growl! /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/eek.gif

 

[Murphys Dad]

Good luck in your finals. Try not to flick her on the nose, beagles don't respond very well to negative acts. And you should never hit a dog.

 

[Marley's Mommy]

I went thru this with Marley. You are right on target, work on it now. She will more than likely grow out of it or be trained out of it. Marley didn't growl with food but he did with a toy, he was young too around the same age. It's dratically better but was frustrating to go through that stage and have to train it out of him. You can do it.

 

[HyPrice]

Chloe's mom---I'll let them know, thank you for telling me. We don't ever hit her, and sometimes dad gets a little more harsh than he needs too, but thank you for the tip!

Marley's Mommy---glad to hear he went through the same thing. Peanut's is not really over food, actually it's mostly if we are holding her and she wants down to go play, she does the growl thing! We'll get through it!

 

[HoundMusic]

Originally Posted By: PeanutsMotherHi all!
So, it's been a long time since we've had a puppy and she kind of seems like a mean little thing. When we're holding her and she wants down she growls, barks, and bites, and today my mom caught her in the bag of dog food and pulled her away and Peanut growled and lunged at her arm and bit her (mom was not phased, but I wasn't happy). She is teething and sinks her teeth into anything she can, but is this normal puppy beagle behavior, to be kind of mean?

There are dominant pups in this breed, that are strong willed, assertive, and have a tendency to nip when young and untrained. *However* what you're describing is a puppy with a very poor, abnormal temperament. Ok, yes, it IS normal for them to get their teeth on anything and everything, but to actually resource guard (biting your mom because she puleld her away from teh food bag - the pup was actually guarding the food) at 10 weeks old /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/pureevil.gif Oh boy. That is not a good sign. To be perfectly honest, as a breeder, I have a massive responsibility to the breed & to the families who purchase a pup from me. Sure, I have pups that are nippy little pirhannas, lol, but puppy mouthing and dominance aggression in a 10 week old pup are just at two completely different ends of the spectrum. Honestly, I would not have sold a pup if she displayed the behavior you mention ...

Pups sold through newspaper ads are from reputable breeders less than 1% of the time. Unfortunately, it's an outlet used by breeders who want a quick sale to anyone with cash in hand, or "backyard breeders" who don't know about genetics and just breed Muffy to Fido down the block because they're the same breed. I would seriously advise you to seek the help of a professional trainer - your Vet may be able to give you a recommendation. This should not be treated as normal puppy behavior, and if you think it's bad now, just wait until her adult teeth come in @ 4 months. Or when she goes through adolesence /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/rotatesmiley2.gif Honestly, you may be facing a pup with some serious aggression issues as she ages.

For now, get her on the NILIF (Nothing In Life Is Free)program. http://www.dogguide.net/nilif.php She NEEDS obedience training with a professional, the sooner the better. I know you mentioned this behavior did not bother your mom, but it really should. Again, all pups are nippy to a degree, but this is not simple puppy nippiness, this was resource guarding which is a sever behavioral problem. She's an aggressive, poorly bred pup and needs training. Your mom needs to know that she has to correct the pup for this behavior and not let it slide.

I hope I did not come across as cold - that was not my intention. But I really want to impress on you how serious it is for a 10 week old pup to behave like this /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif If left untrained, she can end up really hurting someone.

 

[HyPrice]

Thanks for the info.
I live in a VERY small area, and I'm not sure how many professionals we have around here, I'll look around.

I guess I don't appreciate you calling her aggressive and poorly bred, as I don't know yet that she is aggressive, and there are MANY beagle-mix's out there, some people on the forum here have them, are those poorly-bred dogs too?

I knew when I bought her that the lady had a registered female (I saw the papers) and a male who she had rescued when he was a puppy. I saw both parents and played with them, they were very friendly. I figured she was at least half beagle, thats good enough for me. The lady told me that she has the two dogs and once and a while breds them and sells the puppies. So yeah, I guess she is a back-yard breeder, and I would have gotten a dog at a shelter, however I was looking for a dog the size of a beagle and most dogs around here at the shelter's are big. So her breeding is not a concern to me.

Anyway, your info. was appreciated, but I guess I took a slight offense to calling her poorly bred and aggressive. Thank you though.