I am a newbie (to dogs and the board) with questions….
Sorry to just jump in like this, but we unexpectedly rescued a purebred beagle on Thursday from the pound and I have a few questions to run by those of you who have spent lots of time with them. Also, this is my first dog, I’ve only ever had cats, so I’m pretty in the dark on all fronts.
First, let me say that we LOVE our new addition to the family. She’s the single most sweet-natured animal I’ve ever met. My hubby and I have been taking a crash-course in Beagle-ometry the past few days, so we are learning the basics. Plus, she seems to be crate-trained already and loves to hang out in her crate when she’s not with the family. That’s a good sign! She's not great on the potty issue, though, so we've got our hands full with that right now.
She’s between 2 and 3, has most likely had several litters, and is scheduled to be spayed on March 14. We’ve run all the tests that we can to ensure her health, and all is good except for testing very faintly positive for heartworm. Our vet said that she’s not showing any signs of failure yet and we are committed to treating her.
My questions—at least the imminent ones—are as follows:
1) Millie (short for Millicent von Beagle) adores my husband and gets very upset when he leaves in the morning. My son and I try to give her extra attention and distract her, but her anxiety over him leaving just breaks my heart. I make sure to tell her that he’ll be back, and when he comes home he goes right to her to assure her that he has indeed returned. But will she ever come to understand that he’s not leaving her for good? Or will she suffer this forever? We believe that she was abandoned at our family business by owners who felt that she no longer served a breeding or hunting purpose. Which probably only adds to her separation anxiety.
2) We have read about them living by their noses. This raises several issues. First, we have a huge back yard that is not fenced. We’d love to eventually be able to play fetch, etc., with her, but we are very worried about her picking up a scent and taking off, never to be seen again. Right now we are only taking her out on a leash, but will we ever be able to play freely with her while we are outside in nice weather? Also, should we allow her to roll in every scent she wants to? I did yesterday and came in to find that she’d rolled in mud. I feel badly for stopping her from rolling in her beloved scents, but it could be ugly when she finds the wrong thing to roll in.
3) Ugh. She smells. Worse than the usual dog smell. The vet said that spaying her should help, and my daughter, who owns a beagle mix who was also a stray, said that it takes a few baths. Millie was filthy and I had the vet bathe her, but she still stinks. Granted, I think I’m more sensitive than many, but even my husband and son are commenting on it. Will this go away? Should I have her bathed again?
4) I screwed up Friday night and left her crate unlocked while we were gone for about two hours. In her distressed state, she scratched the front door to death and was running around the living room and pooped all over. I don’t believe that she officially went to the bathroom in the living room—I think that she was anxious and it came out while she was running around. We have, however, seen her squat to pee twice in the living room. She's not going potty outside very well for us, but we understand that she’s still nervous and her system is probably off a little bit. But the hubby read that beagles are one of the worst to have accidents indoors simply because of their amazing noses. We extracted the carpet yesterday, but she's not showing good signs of having to pee, so it's hard to read when to take her outside. Is there such a thing as taking her out too often? I think we are, and when she doesn't have to pee, she's not associating going outside with going potty.
5) We have 4 cats, one of which is just coming out of kittenhood. Millie doesn’t seem to mind them (the vet took her by the office cat before we brought Millie home to see her reaction). She will growl at them if they get too close, but surprisingly, the cats are very interested in her. So my hope is that after a week or two and things calm down, they’ll be able to at least be on the couch or bed at the same time, even if they aren’t cuddled up and snuggling. Is my hope out of line?
That’s it for now. Sorry for barging in like this and being so long-winded, but I want to be sure we’re doing what’s best for Millie and that we are all getting off on the right foot!
jennifer
Sorry to just jump in like this, but we unexpectedly rescued a purebred beagle on Thursday from the pound and I have a few questions to run by those of you who have spent lots of time with them. Also, this is my first dog, I’ve only ever had cats, so I’m pretty in the dark on all fronts.
First, let me say that we LOVE our new addition to the family. She’s the single most sweet-natured animal I’ve ever met. My hubby and I have been taking a crash-course in Beagle-ometry the past few days, so we are learning the basics. Plus, she seems to be crate-trained already and loves to hang out in her crate when she’s not with the family. That’s a good sign! She's not great on the potty issue, though, so we've got our hands full with that right now.
She’s between 2 and 3, has most likely had several litters, and is scheduled to be spayed on March 14. We’ve run all the tests that we can to ensure her health, and all is good except for testing very faintly positive for heartworm. Our vet said that she’s not showing any signs of failure yet and we are committed to treating her.
My questions—at least the imminent ones—are as follows:
1) Millie (short for Millicent von Beagle) adores my husband and gets very upset when he leaves in the morning. My son and I try to give her extra attention and distract her, but her anxiety over him leaving just breaks my heart. I make sure to tell her that he’ll be back, and when he comes home he goes right to her to assure her that he has indeed returned. But will she ever come to understand that he’s not leaving her for good? Or will she suffer this forever? We believe that she was abandoned at our family business by owners who felt that she no longer served a breeding or hunting purpose. Which probably only adds to her separation anxiety.
2) We have read about them living by their noses. This raises several issues. First, we have a huge back yard that is not fenced. We’d love to eventually be able to play fetch, etc., with her, but we are very worried about her picking up a scent and taking off, never to be seen again. Right now we are only taking her out on a leash, but will we ever be able to play freely with her while we are outside in nice weather? Also, should we allow her to roll in every scent she wants to? I did yesterday and came in to find that she’d rolled in mud. I feel badly for stopping her from rolling in her beloved scents, but it could be ugly when she finds the wrong thing to roll in.
3) Ugh. She smells. Worse than the usual dog smell. The vet said that spaying her should help, and my daughter, who owns a beagle mix who was also a stray, said that it takes a few baths. Millie was filthy and I had the vet bathe her, but she still stinks. Granted, I think I’m more sensitive than many, but even my husband and son are commenting on it. Will this go away? Should I have her bathed again?
4) I screwed up Friday night and left her crate unlocked while we were gone for about two hours. In her distressed state, she scratched the front door to death and was running around the living room and pooped all over. I don’t believe that she officially went to the bathroom in the living room—I think that she was anxious and it came out while she was running around. We have, however, seen her squat to pee twice in the living room. She's not going potty outside very well for us, but we understand that she’s still nervous and her system is probably off a little bit. But the hubby read that beagles are one of the worst to have accidents indoors simply because of their amazing noses. We extracted the carpet yesterday, but she's not showing good signs of having to pee, so it's hard to read when to take her outside. Is there such a thing as taking her out too often? I think we are, and when she doesn't have to pee, she's not associating going outside with going potty.
5) We have 4 cats, one of which is just coming out of kittenhood. Millie doesn’t seem to mind them (the vet took her by the office cat before we brought Millie home to see her reaction). She will growl at them if they get too close, but surprisingly, the cats are very interested in her. So my hope is that after a week or two and things calm down, they’ll be able to at least be on the couch or bed at the same time, even if they aren’t cuddled up and snuggling. Is my hope out of line?
That’s it for now. Sorry for barging in like this and being so long-winded, but I want to be sure we’re doing what’s best for Millie and that we are all getting off on the right foot!
jennifer