Beagle Dog
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House Training a Beagle
Preparing to House Train Your Beagle
The most important element for success in housetraining your Beagle will be your consistence. This means that you must choose a method and stick with it...every day...every time..without fail.
When a dog is shown the same routine over and over, even the most stubborn dog will learn what is expected. Your puppy (or adult dog who needs housetraining) will have no idea what is expected & will not know the difference between your yard or the living room floor...until you make it clear to them in a loving & supportive way.
Reasonable Expectations
You may begin training when your Beagle puppy as soon as you bring him or her home, this will generally be at the 8 week mark. At this young age, it will be a slow yet steady process; not an overnight success! Owners should have reasonable expectations, take the Beagle outside frequently and reward them for their successes.
Training should be done by following these rules: A Beagle puppy can hold its needs for 1 hour per month of age, up to six hours maximum. Example: A 3 month puppy can hold its needs for approximately 3 hours. A full grown Beagle dog can usually hold its needs for up to 8 hours (no health issues permitting).
If your Beagle is not taken outside at the proper times and not often enough, housetraining is doomed to fail. Unless your dog is older & you have a doggie door that your Beagle can use... it will be up to you to "offer use of the bathroom" to your dog. Therefore, taking him or her outside will be very important.
It is recommended that you take your dog outside:
1. Immediately after any confinement
2. When he/she first wakes up & before bedtime
3. Ten to fifteen minutes after your Beagle eats
4. Every 2 hours for a 2 month old, every 3 hours for a 3 month old, etc.
Training should be done by following these rules: A Beagle puppy can hold its needs for 1 hour per month of age, up to six hours maximum. Example: A 3 month puppy can hold its needs for approximately 3 hours. A full grown Beagle dog can usually hold its needs for up to 8 hours (no health issues permitting).
How Often to Take Your Puppy (or Dog) Outside
If your Beagle is not taken outside at the proper times and not often enough, housetraining is doomed to fail. Unless your dog is older & you have a doggie door that your Beagle can use... it will be up to you to "offer use of the bathroom" to your dog. Therefore, taking him or her outside will be very important.
It is recommended that you take your dog outside:
1. Immediately after any confinement
2. When he/she first wakes up & before bedtime
3. Ten to fifteen minutes after your Beagle eats
4. Every 2 hours for a 2 month old, every 3 hours for a 3 month old, etc.
Choosing a Method
You will have faster success if you choose just 1 method to train your Beagle. However, in some circumstances due to life's schedule, this will not be possible. In those cases, it is recommended to choose 1 main method and then only use the 2nd method when absolutely needed. Both will need to be reinforced.
For example, you may choose the Umbilical Cord Method for outdoor training, however when you are at work, you will want to have the secondary training for newspapers in a gated area.
For example, you may choose the Umbilical Cord Method for outdoor training, however when you are at work, you will want to have the secondary training for newspapers in a gated area.
Let's first look at the 3 Methods for Outdoor Training
- Umbilical Cord - You will fasten a 6 to 10 foot leash to your Beagle and the other end to you. In this way, your dog will have the freedom of walking around; however will always be close enough to you that you can easily see when they are about to urine or eliminate. You will use this method to catch any potential "accidents"; while you bring your Beagle outside at all of the designated times.
- Gate Method - This works well if you will be needing your Beagle puppy to go outside and also on newspaper for those times when you will not be available to take him or her to the designated spot. You may set up a gated area in any room is easily accessible with linoleum underneath (for easy cleaning)....or you may choose to gate off your kitchen. It is not recommended to gate off your bathroom, as the room is too small for a dog and will severely limit much needed socialization.
- Crate Method - We do not recommend using a crate for house training your Beagle. A crate is great for traveling, it is often needed when bringing your dog to the veterinarian...and there will be times when your puppy will want its own "den" to retreat to. However, crating a puppy or dog all day and only taking them out of it to go to the bathroom is not a good life for your Beagle. We highly recommend only bringing a Beagle into your home if you have the time, resources & energy to spend time with them to train them, have play time, perform needed grooming, have bonding time and socialization times. In addition, if a puppy needs to urinate... a puppy will urinate.. whether they are inside a crate or not. Being confined to a crate does not control a pup's bladder.
Tip: If you just brought home an older Beagle, do not rely on any previous house training. You may not know the dog's "signals" for having to go outside. In addition, your new dog will not know the area you wish to use and will need to be trained to follow your schedule. Your Beagle can be trained to go in any area you choose, within a matter of a week or two an can be done even with the most stubborn dog.
You must decide exactly where you wish for your Beagle to go. It is important to choose 1 area and remain consistent. For example, your dog will become very confused if lead out to the front yard one day, and the back yard the next.
In addition, always take your Beagle outside to the designated area before going for a walk. You will want your dog use the designated spot as often as possible. If not, your dog will start to associate walks with eliminating. This causes confusion.... he or she will not know if you expect them to use the back yard or the street.
When your Beagle is very young, you may need to pick up your dog to quickly bring them outside. The bladder and bowel muscles are not fully developed and it is difficult for a little pup to "hold on" while you find the leash, put on your shoes, etc.
Be ready to pick them up and gently put them down in the designated area outside at a moment's notice. In this way, you will not feel frustrated with any accidents and your Beagle will gain the self confidence of knowing that they did "Good".
You Choose the Area, Your Beagle Chooses the Exact Spot
After any nap, 15 to 20 minutes after every meal, in the morning & in the evening and any time your dog shows a sign that he or she is about urinate or eliminate....put your dog on the leash and bring them to the area you wish for them to use.
Stand in the middle of the area, allowing your Beagle to roam the length of the leash. Within the radius of your chosen area, your Beagle should have the say in the final spot.
Be patience, as your Beagle sniffs around for what may seem like forever. Let your dog have the freedom to choose any place within the selected area. It can take up to 10 minutes to find a spot to urinate and up to 20 minutes for a dog to choose a spot to eliminate.
Once done, be sure to reward your Beagle with happy, excited praise. Never slip and allow your dog to roam elsewhere for potty needs. Within weeks, the area you chose will be the only place that your dog considers to be the bathroom.
A Pup Urinating as Soon as They Come IN the House
Many owners have written to us concerning a puppy who does not go to the bathroom outside, but then urinates as soon as they comes back inside! This can easily be fixed. Wait the 10 minutes or so and if nothing happens outside, bring them back inside, but hold them on your lap. They will be hesitant to have an "accident" on you! T hen, in 5-10 minutes, go back outside again.
More Information
The Details You Need to Know: If you have a puppy or dog, then you already are aware... all of the training information cannot fit inside 1 website! Therefore, we have collected all of our training instructions, behavior information and much more into a very easy-to-download ebook format for you. Learn more
