Beagle: An Owner's Guide to a Happy Healthy Pet

By Richard Roth

An Owner's Guide to a Happy Healthy Pet is the series to turn to when you want a basic reference that's reliable, up-to-date, and complete. These guides feature:
* Expert authors, plus renowned guest contributors on specialized topics
* Full-color photos throughout
* Basic information on the breed, species, or topic
* Complete coverage of care, health, grooming, training, and more
* Tips and techniques to make life with a pet more rewarding

• Language: English
• Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
• Release date: May 5, 2008
• ISBN: 9780470369555

Richard Roth

Richard Roth is a pilot, instructor, airshow performer, and warbird rebuilder. British born, but now a resident in the United States, he served 14 years with the Royal Air Force.He has written for Hollywood and the Swedish film/television industry, and currently flies sailplanes, gliders, and other interesting aircraft from Tucson in the American Southwest.

Book preview

part one

External Features of the Beagle

chapter 1

What Is a Beagle?

Introduction to the Beagle

A Beagle, contrary to public belief, is not a dog. The Beagle is a hound, a member of a select fraternity within the canine world, bred for centuries to hunt as part of a large pack. He is the little cousin of the Foxhound so often depicted in the numerous paintings of horses and hounds in the English countryside. He is the more active, less melancholic cousin of the Basset Hound, and, like the Basset, his primary quarry is the hare or rabbit.

The little puppy asleep on your lap may not know all this, but it is important for you to know this, because it will help you better understand this marvelous little creature—how he thinks, why he does some of the things he does, and why he has been designed to look the way he does. And the more you know about your little hound and his kin, the better you will be at meeting his needs and keeping him happy during what should be a long and positive relationship.

Breeding to a Standard

As with any recognized breed—be it cows, horses or canines—there is a standard of perfection that describes what the Beagle should look like. You would do well to read it over a few times, comparing the word pictures with the illustration in the front of this book. This will give you a feel for the breed type—that which sets the Beagle apart from other breeds.

WHAT IS A BREED STANDARD?

A breed standard—a detailed description of an individual breed—is meant to portray the ideal specimen of that breed. This includes ideal structure, temperament, gait, type—all aspects of the dog. Because the standard describes an ideal specimen, it isn’t based on any particular dog. It is a concept against which judges compare actual dogs and breeders strive to produce dogs. At a dog show, the dog that wins is the one that comes closest, in the judge’s opinion, to the standard for its breed. Breed standards are written by the breed parent clubs, the national organizations formed to oversee the well-being of the breed. They are voted on and approved by the members of the parent clubs.

While the standard is used by show judges to select the best hound in a show class, it should also be imprinted in the mind of the breeder as he or she plans each mating, regardless of whether the progeny are to be shown or used for hunting. In fact, the Beagle standard was developed and approved by the National Beagle Club of America, whose mission since its inception in 1887 has been to improve the Beagle in the field and on the bench. Therefore, the standard describes not only a beautiful hound, but one who has been designed to do his job both effectively and tirelessly.

The Official Standard For The Beagle

The following is the standard approved by the American Kennel Club in 1957.

Head—The skull should be fairly long, slightly domed at the occiput, with cranium broad and full. Ears—Ears set on moderately low, long, reaching when drawn out nearly, if not quite, to the end of the nose; fine in texture, fairly broad—with almost entire absence of erectile power—setting close to the head, with the forward edge slightly inturning to the cheek—rounded at the tip. Eyes—Eyes large, set well apart—soft and houndlike—expression gentle and pleading; of a brown or hazel color. Muzzle—Muzzle of medium length— straight and square-cut—the stop moderately defined. Jaws—Jaws level. Lips free from flews; nostrils large and open. Defects—A very flat skull, narrow across the top; excess of dome, eyes small, sharp or terrier-like, or prominent and protruding; muzzle long, snipy or cut away decidedly below the eyes, or very short. Roman-nosed, or upturned giving a dish-faced expression. Ears short, set on high or with a tendency to rise above the point of origin.

Body—Neck and Throat—Neck rising free and light from the shoulders, strong in substance yet not loaded, of medium length. The throat clean and free from folds of skin; a slight wrinkle below the angle of the jaw, however, may be allowable. Defects—A thick, short cloddy neck carried on a line with the top of the shoulders. Throat showing dewlap and folds of skin to a degree termed throatiness.

Shoulders and Chest—Shoulders sloping—clean, muscular, not heavy or loaded—conveying the idea of freedom of action with activity and strength. Chest deep and broad, but not broad enough to interfere with the free play of the shoulders. Defects—Straight, upright shoulders. Chest disproportionately wide or with lack of depth.

Back, Loin and Ribs—Back short, muscular and strong. Loin broad and slightly arched, and the ribs well sprung, giving abundance of lung room. Defects— Very long or swayed or roached back. Flat, narrow loin, flat ribs.

This hound is waiting his turn to go in the ring at a dog show.

Forelegs and Feet—Forelegs—Straight with plenty of bone in proportion to the size of the hound. Pasterns short and straight. Feet—Close, round and firm. Pad full and hard. Defects—Out at elbows. Knees knuckled over forward, or bent backward. Forelegs crooked or Dachshund-like. Feet long, open or spreading.

Beagle breeders use the standard as a blueprint for what their dogs should look like.

Hips, Thighs, Hind Legs and Feet—Hips and thighs strong and well muscled, giving abundance of propelling power. Stifles strong and well let down. Hocks firm, symmetrical and moderately bent. Feet close and firm. Defects—Cowhocks, or straight hocks. Lack of muscle and propelling power. Open feet. Tail—Set moderately high; carried gaily, but not turned forward over the back; with slight curve; short as compared with size of the hound; with brush. Defects—A long tail. Teapot curve or inclined forward from the root. Rat tail with absence of brush.

Coat—A close, hard, hound coat of medium length. Defects—A short, thin coat, or of a soft quality.

Color—Any true hound color.

General Appearance—A miniature Foxhound, solid and big for his inches, with the wear-and-tear look of the hound that can last in the chase and follow his quarry to the death.

Varieties—There shall be two varieties:

Thirteen Inch—which shall be for hounds not exceeding 13 inches in height.

Fifteen Inch—which shall be for hounds over 13 but not exceeding 15 inches in height.

Disqualification—Any hound measuring more than 15 inches shall be disqualified.

You can see that the standard is fairly specific in some cases and rather open-ended in others, but that the authors had a clear idea of what a Beagle should be.

Various Types of Beagles

Today there are several distinct types of Beagles in this country, and considerable variety is available to the new Beagle owner in terms of size, appearance, temperament and inherited hunting ability, but a working understanding of the standard will give you some idea of what the breeder of your puppy considers most important. For example, if he or she has no hounds in the establishment who look anything like the ideal, it is safe to conclude that showing is not a priority.

If the population in the kennel is significantly below the standard, it is questionable whether these hounds would be suitable for serious fieldwork. In extreme cases, they may even be unsuitable in the least demanding of pet homes, where serious conformational defects may lead to health problems.

The Beagle’s eyes reveal honesty, loyalty, affection and intelligence.

Reviewing the Standard

If we examine the standard in more detail, we may find it interesting to note that color and markings are not considered important. There is a saying A good horse cannot be a bad color, and this applies to Beagles as well. Beagles come in many colors, including the most common black, tan and white; lemon and white; red and white; chocolate (or liver), tan and white; and some colors whose names come from out of the hunting past, like Belvoir (oddly enough, pronounced beaver) Tan and Badger Pie.

Many of the Beagles appearing in photos taken in this country early in this century were predominately white, with the occasional patch of color, but the majority of today’s Beagles are black, tan and white, with a tendency to have solid black backs, which is described as being black blanketed. If a hound has flecks of color either tan (red) or muted black (blue), this coloring is called ticking, and when one refers to a Blueticked Beagle, the name refers only to the coloration and not to the Coonhound of the same name.

It is understandable why the authors of the standard would put such emphasis on the body and running gear of our little hounds. Originally they were expected to hunt for hours over all types of terrain, to overtake through courage, patience and persistence a hare capable of reaching speeds of forty miles per hour.

Why, then, so many points for the head? Well, when the cranium is described as full and broad, we are of course assuming it is to be full of brains, and the wide nostrils and moderately long muzzle should help with the olfactory wizardry required of a hound expected to follow the

THE AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB

Familiarly referred to as the AKC, the American Kennel Club is a nonprofit organization devoted to the advancement of purebred dogs. The AKC maintains a registry of recognized breeds and adopts and enforces rules for dog events including shows, obedience trials, field trials, hunting tests, lure coursing, herding, earthdog trials, agility and the Canine Good Citizen program. It is a club of clubs, established in 1884 and composed, today, of over 500 autonomous dog clubs throughout the United States. Each club is represented by a delegate; the delegates make up the legislative body of the AKC, voting on rules and electing directors. The American Kennel Club maintains the Stud Book, the record of every dog ever registered with the AKC, and publishes a variety of materials on purebred dogs, including a monthly magazine, books and numerous educational pamphlets. For more information, contact the AKC at the address listed in Chapter 13, Resources, and look for the names of their publications in Chapter 12, Recommended Reading.

Not able to attain speeds like that themselves, the little hounds had to use their highly developed sense of smell, pack instincts and intelligence to stay in the chase till their quarry tired. Therefore all the emphasis is on strength, propelling power, sound, firm feet, freedom of action, ample lung capacity and other elements decidedly structural rather than cosmetic. trail of the rabbit, the game animal that leaves the least amount of scent of any quarry.

What about the concern about the eyes? Again, we may speculate that part of the reason derives from the Foxhound, of which our Beagle is a miniature. Masters of Foxhounds were also horsemen, and the kind eye is one measure of a trustworthy mount. Regardless of the origin of this element of the standard, the typical Beagle expression is one of the things that makes the Beagle so compelling. If eyes are, indeed, the windows to the soul, then looking into a Beagle’s eyes should reveal the honesty, loyalty, affection and intelligence that make the Beagle so beloved in the field, in the home and in the show ring. These eyes are also responsible for Beagles being given too man}’ treats, but we will discuss that later.

The key to evaluating a Beagle’s conformation is in assessing the overall picture. Basically, a good Beagle will be square in appearance; have good bone; a straight front; a deep chest with a pronounced tuck-up; strong, well-angulated hindquarters; and a good head with a pleasing expression. There should be symmetry and fluidity in his motion. Proportion and balance are important dimensions in assessing good Beagle type (it is possible to have a hound with acceptable parts that just are not knit together properly). Very often, a relative novice to the breed can select the best hound in a show ring or the best puppy in a litter just by assessing proportion and balance.

The Beagle was built to hunt for hours over all types of terrain.

Disqualifying Faults

Perfection aside, let’s talk about disqualifying faults. One of the most common faults in today’s field-bred Beagles used for brace trials is the tendency to become Basset-like.

Brace beaglers, wishing to slow their hounds down due to a current fad