What I Learned From A Beagle

Owning a pet is not what this is about. Puppy-sitting a fifteen month old Beagle for a couple weeks has to have some impact on one's personality. I maintain it has changed mine, if not temporarily and hopefully for the better.

Beagles have an acute sensory skill which gives them employable skills in all sorts of situations. They are known to be able to detect termites. That is strange because a dog breeder friend says they can't be trained for sniffing contraband. It's also said they follow their nose and have difficulty focusing to follow one particular scent. Other breeds are know to have been able to detect breast cancer, epilepsy and diabetes. If I were deaf, I would appreciate her barking down the stairs at the first call for dinner. She even barks when a TV program has a door bell or phone ringing.

In our house, Lucy's nose can smell something of interest almost as quickly as she can see it. Before she arrives we go through a "Lucy Proof" phase that must not be that much different from child proofing at Grama's house. On her walk, her nose is in overdrive and her white-tipped tail vibrates like an antenna.

It's no wonder Beagles where the choice for hunting because this little pooch is a good companion and likes to make herself comfortable in my lap or beside me in my chair. If she's left alone to her devices, she gets bored and starts destroying paper, carpet by pulling threads, shoe insoles, and socks. She knows this will get my attention for what ever reason. She is a clean, short haired specimen of her breed and a perfect size for a condo or apartment.

House trained and doing some entertaining tricks justifies the extra work and dog food and treats she uses. I would like to have her again if I could train her for something useful but that would need to be left to a professional.
R. Hiebert
www.lubedealer.com/hiebert