I brought a Beagle puppy but I think it is a Harier Hound

Well he is taller than a beagle, his head is narrower, his legs are full of musle, he is very narrow in the body. He has so much energy. A farmer whom we collect our hay from said he looks like one.
 
He was brought from a breeder by the first owner. The only contact details where an email address. The breeder said he did not believe in KC registration. They saw the mum and said she was quite tall for a Beagle. I am third owner. The other two could not cope with him.

I just want to know if he will calm down, or will his hunting instincts get worse.
 
I know the the two previous owners. I took him on as he was going to Battersea dogs home. I have three acres of lane, which I am currently having to re-fence as he always finds a way out. I also have two other dogs, so even though I really did not want this type of dog (i love him dearly) I felt I could offer him what he needs, alot of time out, also I felt so sorry for him, I know he has been hit, and locked up alot to prevent damage to the home.
 
If he is a harrier...think about original purpose and usage....they're not pets.
Yes, some may be calmer and fit into a pet home, but as a rule, they are working dogs and to deny them their instinct or to not channel it, is not fair IMO.


This is not a dig but a general observation.

My own dog is working bred....yes, he comes into the house at night and I pat him on the head and feed him and we play ball but he is a working dog and he needs a job to occupy him.

Likewise, even if your dog is a Beagle, a lot of Beagles are still very much working dogs - they are pack animals, they want to sing and dig and run all day with their noses on the ground hunting stuff.

Who are we just to expect them to know how to act differently in the face of hundreds of years of breeding for this, just because we want a cute dog in our home.

You can't fit a square peg into a round hole.

You sound like a good person who could offer him a good home. You might just need to rethink your management a bit and channel his instincts as opposed to suppressing them.
 
CaveCanem said:
If he is a harrier...think about original purpose and usage....they're not pets.
Yes, some may be calmer and fit into a pet home, but as a rule, they are working dogs and to deny them their instinct or to not channel it, is not fair IMO.


This is not a dig but a general observation.

My own dog is working bred....yes, he comes into the house at night and I pat him on the head and feed him and we play ball but he is a working dog and he needs a job to occupy him.

Likewise, even if your dog is a Beagle, a lot of Beagles are still very much working dogs - they are pack animals, they want to sing and dig and run all day with their noses on the ground hunting stuff.

Who are we just to expect them to know how to act differently in the face of hundreds of years of breeding for this, just because we want a cute dog in our home.

You can't fit a square peg into a round hole.

You sound like a good person who could offer him a good home. You might just need to rethink your management a bit and channel his instincts as opposed to suppressing them.
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This x 10

I have 2 dogs with a strong hunting instinct (whippet / lurcher) and they are so much happier when they can do their job. If you ride, and have off-road hacking, can you train your dog to come out with you. At least that way you can get some miles under his belt each day.

PS. our local hunt when I was growing up was a harrier pack and we puppy walked once - and only once!! It was a nightmare to provide enough exercise and stimulation and to keep the darn thing contained even as a puppy so you have my full sympathy dealing with an adolescent with ingrained bad history!!
 
No I do not want to suppress his instincts, just want to know more about the breed, rather than relying on googles dog descriptions.

We are currently runing electric fencing all round our 3 acres of land where we keep our horses to stop him getting onto the road. We spend alot of the time at our yard which he will soon have free rein with my other 2 dogs. He goes for a one hour walk every lunch time, and we also have a very large garden, so I think I am on the right track.

I would like to know if they calm down a little as they get older and get a bit more obedient, I would like him to beable to go on a hack with my daughter.
 
Thanks, I think it is so bad that people miss sell puppies, and potential puppy buyers looked more carefully when they are buying and only buy a puppy that is suited to them.

It is very hard going on our walk, he has bells on his collar, I have whistle and fresh meat.
 
Brownmare said:
This x 10

I have 2 dogs with a strong hunting instinct (whippet / lurcher) and they are so much happier when they can do their job. If you ride, and have off-road hacking, can you train your dog to come out with you. At least that way you can get some miles under his belt each day.
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Same here! I dont hunt with mine, but I do walk them for hours on the moors and in the woods, and I lure race them. My young dog was a nightmare until I started to understand his instincts and his need for hard work and stimulation. I call the walking we do work, to try and differentiate between that and the walks most pet dogs get. A tired dog is an easy dog! :D
 
They're bred to run and run and run and run all day, in a pack, through tough terrain, through fences, ditches, etc. They're tough and they're hardy...they're not bred for classical 'obedience', they would have no reason to sit, stay etc.

The hunt I follow are harriers, I would not describe any of them as calm but that's because I'm used to seeing them piling out of a horsebox and running all day!!

You might be able to get him to hack out, you might not - he might get a scent and off he goes - if your daughter is mounted you will have no way of controlling that.

I'd look at jogging him or biking him first to get some control in him, as mentioned on an other post - he must follow, he must turn when you turn and stop when you stop.

Unlike some breeds, I would say they are not used to 'suiting themselves' pottering around a yard while the humans do things. If there is something to hunt, they will hunt it. If he is an escape artist, I would look at kennelling him when you cannot supervise him, plenty of firms now do good flatpack jobs with roofing etc. Packs of hounds are kennelled and it does them no harm.

Different breed, but mine is kennelled and I bike him for exercise, walking him would not be enough.
 
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Harrier hounds are very sharp...much more so that Beagles or Foxhounds. When having them to "walk" there comes a time when you are glad to send them back to the hunt. If keeping one as a pet, plenty of bike riding/horse riding with them is ideal if you live in a suitable area. They can be very single minded!!!

Look forward to seeing a pic. Have you checked his ears in case he has a tattoo?
 
We had a harrier who didn't like being in a pack. She lived on our farm and was a lovely dog but very hard work. She would hunt all day, and all night if she went missing (happened occasionally). Luckily we don't have any livestock or pheasant release pens anywhere near or she would have been a nightmare. SHe was a wonderful hound though, a real character.
 
Yes, no tattoo.

I think he is getting the exercise he needs as by 7pm his goes to sleep, woken for bedtime pee, then straight back to sleep. He sleeps with me and my other dog on the bed and is happy to stay there till I get up, then he is a wake all day.

He is a lovely dog, it took a long time to bond with him, but understanding his nature makes him easier to cope with. Patience is all you need when his nose takes over in the woods, lots of whistle blowing and he returns.
 
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