Tricolour Beagle Training Secrets

Although training your Tricolor Beagle puppy can seem like a challenge, it is easier than you might think if you have the right know how. Initially I was completely lost but having taken expert advice from Beagle expert Richard Romero in his excellent book I soon found training a rewarding and enjoyable experience. Dog training requires a little patience, persistence and repetition and with your Tricolor Beagle this is no different. It is important to note that whilst all dogs and all breeds are unique they do have many common behaviors. Once you get to know your beagle, facial expressions and posture will tell you exactly what your dog is thinking and feeling and help you to identify and control any behavior problems. Tricolor Beagles are very happy and friendly dogs by their nature. When your Beagle wants to play he will have ears that are perked up, a wide eyed, look, wagging tail and an mouth with an open 'smile' expression. An aggressive dog will have his lips open to show his teeth with his tail straight back with hairs sticking out and a challenging look. As the beagle owner you will soon learn to identify his mood and this will help when you start training.

The first and most important rule in any puppy training is to let your dog you are the boss. Once you get your beagle to respect you as his leader everything else will become much easier. Dogs in the wild travel in a pack with a leader and this trait has of course followed to the tricolour beagle breed. A good tip is to let your dog watch you eat, then feed him after you are done. This follows the situation in the wild - the leader of the pack feeds on the prey first then the others eat. If your dog begs while you are eating, growling at him will let him know that begging is not acceptable. This may seem harsh - and you may feel silly! - but it's worth it for you and your beagle in the end.

Richard's book is a goldmine of information and will prove invaluable to you and your beagle over time. For information -

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To further establish yourself as leader of the pack there are many further subtle techniques. If your Beagle is in your way, gently nudge him to make him move out of your way rather than walk around him. Rubbing your dogs belly is a further way to teach him submission - and one which tricolor beagles love in particular! Encouraging him to lick the back of your hand to show him that you are the leader.

Training a tricolour beagle like any animal training requires a lot of patience and consistency. Dog training sessions should be 10 to 15 minutes a session and ideally several times a day. Tricolors are very intelligent beagles but you must remember the importance of repetition and that any dog will havea short attention span. Keep consistent in your training - If you always let your dog out the back door don't change and use the front door. Dogs are easily confused and changing things up can undo all your hard work. Be sure to reward good behavior rather than punishing bad behavior - the gently nature of a tricolour beagle will become confused by harsh punishment. It is important though to correct bad behavior while it is taking place not after.

The intelligence of the tricolor breed means that besides the basic behaviours we would expect in any dog they can be taught tricks and more advanced behaviours. For further information I strongly recommend this detailed book covering all aspects of beagle training -

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Tricolor Beagles are a very intelligent breed but don't expect miracles with a puupy - patience is required in house training. Puppipes are highly active and as they burn up energy they will need to eat and drink more and of course ultimately to expell this! At a young age your tricolor will not have developed bladder or bowel control and so can't 'hold' like fully grown beagles.
Very few of us can monitor our beage puppy 24 hours a day and so you will need a strategy for leaving them on their own. Ideally when you go out you need to confine your tricolor to one room or area and 'puppy proof' it - cover the floor in absorbent paper and leave the beagle's toys etc to entertain him in your absence. You will find they will 'relieve themselves' anywhere and everywhere - I found this very frustrating at first but you need to accept this as part of the puupy's development.
Eventually over time you will find your beagle does start to relieve himself in one area of the room and this is the start of the house training process. Gradually you can remove other paper from the room and the beagle will learn to control himself and only use the covered area leaving the rest of the room clean. There will always be minor setbacks and try not to move too quickly. Ulimately this is the path to a fully housetrained tricolor beagle.