Beagle

The beagle is a hound, often used in hunting, and selected for rabbits, deer, hare and more generally furry game. He has a very fine sense of smell which allows him to serve as a detection dog. Popular as a companion dog due to its size, temperament, and lack of hereditary health issues, these characteristics also make it a laboratory animal. The beagle has been depicted since the Elizabethan era in literature, and more recently in film, television and comics (notably with the character of Snoopy). Exports The beagle was imported to the United States in the 1840s at the latest, but the first dogs were intended solely for hunting and varied in aesthetic quality: they resemble rigid-legged dachshunds with a fragile head. The establishment of a quality bloodline began in the 1870s when General Richard Rowett of Illinois imported a few dogs from England and began breeding them. Rowett's beagles are credited with serving as the models for the first American standard, written by Rowett, LH Twadell, and Norman Ellmore in 1887. The beagle was accepted as a breed by the American Kennel Club (AKC) in 1884. In 1864, the beagle is brought to France by Paul Caillard to the Chabot brothers. These offer individuals to the Comte de Beauregard who forms a pack reputed to be excellent at hunting and allows the development of the breed throughout the country. In the 20th century, the breed spread all over the world. Rising to popularity in the 20th century From its formation, the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles ran a regular show in Peterborough which began in 1889, and the beagle club held its first show in 1896. The beagle continued to achieve success until to the First World War during which the exhibitions were suspended. After the war, the breed was again on the verge of extinction: the last Elizabeth beagles were probably lost at this time, and registrations declined. A few breeders, notably Reynalton Kennels, worked to revive interest in this dog, and by the time of World War II the breed was doing better again. Records still decline during the war but rise immediately afterwards. As a purebred dog, the beagle has always been more popular in the United States and Canada than in its country of origin. The National Beagle Club of America was formed in 1888 and as early as 1901 a beagle won a Best in Show. As in the United Kingdom, activity during the First World War was minimal, but the breed revived more quickly in North America. In 1928, the beagle won numerous prizes at the Westminster Kennel Club show and in 1939 the champion Meadowlark Draftsman won the title of the most awarded pedigree American dog of the year. In 1959, Derawunda Vixen won Best in Show at Crufts. On February 12, 2008, the beagle Uno won the Best in Show category at the Westminster Kennel Club for the first time in the history of the competition. In North America, the beagle has been ranked in the ten most popular breeds for over thirty years From 1953 to 1959, the beagle was the American Kennel Club's most registered breed, and in 2005 and 2006 it was ranked fifth on a total of 155 breeds. In the same years, he was only 28th and 30th in the Kennel Club record rankings. In France, the beagle is much less popular despite an increase in registrations in the French studbook for four decades: in 2007, it was only the 17th breed of dog in terms of number of registrations (2,701 registrations). The total population on French territory is estimated at 40,000 beagles. Smell Along with the Saint Hubert dog, the beagle is the dog with the most developed sense of smell. In the 1950s, John Paul Scott and John Fuller began a thirteen-year study of canine behavior. They tested the sense of smell of different races by putting a mouse in a one-acre field and measuring the time it took to find it. The beagle found her in less than a minute, while the fox terrier found her in fifteen minutes and other breeds, such as the Scottish Terrier, failed. The beagle smells the ground and is not very good at detecting a trail in the air. Health The longevity of the beagle is on average 12.35 years which is a typical life expectancy for dogs of this size. Beagles are prone to epilepsy, but this can be controlled with medical treatment. The beagle is also predisposed to hypothyroidism, meningoencephalitis, pulmonary stenosis, and hypercortisolism. Hip dysplasia, common to Harriers and large breeds, is rarely seen as a problem in Beagles. The beagle is affected by a particular form of dwarfism, chondrodystrophy, more familiarly called Funny puppy: the development of the puppy is slow and leads to bone malformations. In rare cases, beagles can develop autoimmune arthritis in the joints (attack of the immune system on the joints) even when young. Symptoms can sometimes be relieved by treatment with corticosteroids The beagle's long ears are sometimes prone to infections. Common eye problems in beagles are glaucoma and corneal dystrophy; Harderian gland prolapse and distichiasis sometimes occur, both of which can be cured by surgery. A failure of the nasolacrimal drainage can cause dry eyes or on the contrary let the tears flow on the face: lacrimal hyposecretion is hereditary in the beagle. Blue-coated beagles can also suffer from dilute coat alopecia, a skin condition that can be treated but never cured. he is inactive, the recurring problem is obesity because he eats everything he finds and he is indebted to his owners to regulate his weight. Parasites such as ticks, fleas, cestodas and chiggers or even grass seeds can remain hidden in his eyes, ears and paws He can be in contact with many pathogens, including echinococcosis, and convey. This animal is the first to have been tested for its susceptibility to a strain of the H5N1 avian influenza virus. The laboratory study showed after an experimental inoculation that he could excrete the H5N1 virus for a few days without any symptoms. Several types of canine flu exist, with, as in humans, possible genetic recombinations of the virus in the same infected organism. The study concludes that pandemic planning should consider pet dogs and cats. Beagles can exhibit a behavior known as the reverse sneeze, in which the beagle's breathing is noisy as if choking or choking, but the air passes through the mouth and nose well. The exact cause of this behavior is unknown, but it is not dangerous for the dog Usefulness Hunting dog Historically, the breed was developed in England for hare hunting: beagles were seen as ideal hunting companions by the elders who could follow them on horseback without getting tired, by the young people who followed them on ponies and for the poorest on foot. With the fashion for rapid hunts, the beagle, which was too small, fell into disuse, but was still used for rabbit hunting. Hare hunting with a pack of beagles became popular again in the mid-19th century. Hare hunting has now been illegal in Scotland since the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002 and in England and Wales since the Hunting Act 2004. Hunting with beagles on foot is considered ideal for youngsters individuals and many British private schools traditionally maintain a pack of beagles. Packs are still maintained by the following British schools and universities despite protests from anti-hunting associations: Eton, Marlborough, Wye, Radley, the Royal Agricultural College and Christ Church. However, a pack from Wye College in Kent was robbed by the Animal Liberation Front in 2001. The traditional walking pack is made up of over 70 beagles, led by a boatswain assisted by a varying number of valets – whose job it is to find stray dogs. They are easy to herd dogs: they run very close to each other which is very useful for a long hunt, as it avoids losing dogs and the trail of game. Beagles can also be used alone or in pairs. Decoy hunting is popular where hunting is prohibited or for owners who do not wish to participate in a kill but still want to see the qualities of their dogs in action. In the United States they have been used mainly for hunting rabbits since the first imports. In France, the beagle is used for hunting rabbits and hares34. He is also the hound most used for hunting deer. He hunts foxes in the west of France and wild boars in the South. The beagle hunting chart also includes snowshoe hare, snowshoe rabbit, birds, roe deer, red deer, bobcat, coyote, wild boar and fox, and some hunting cases. ermine are listed. In most of these cases, the beagle is used as a beater. The beagle is better cut for hare hunting than the harrier, because of its very keen sense of smell and its endurance. In thick undergrowth, they are also preferred over spaniels for pheasant hunting Detection Dog Beagles are used as detection dogs in the Beagle Brigade by the United States Department of Agriculture. These dogs detect food in baggage entering the United States. After trying different breeds, authorities chose beagles because they are small and not very scary to dog-phobic people, easy to care for, intelligent, and good workers if they get a reward. They do the same work in other countries such as New Zealand (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry), Australia (Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service), Canada, Japan and the People's Republic of China. Larger breeds are generally used for explosives detection, which requires being able to climb over luggage, which is not easy for a beagle. Laboratory dog ​​Related article: Animal experimentation. The Beagle is the most used dog breed for animal testing, due to its size and gentle nature. Of the 8,018 dogs used in the UK in 2004, 7,799 are beagles (97.3%); in 2005, this percentage fell to 96.6%. In the United States, where the breed of dog used is not specified, the annual number of tests carried out on dogs has fallen by two thirds, from 195,157 in 1973 to 64,932 in 2004. In France, the breed is also not specified, but the number of dogs used in the laboratories has been stable since 2001, with an average of 5,500 dogs. In Japan, the law does not require the species and number of animals to be disclosed. In the UK, laboratory beagles are 'bred' specifically for this purpose by companies like Harlan, who must obtain permission to breed their dogs for science. However, anti-vivisection groups have reported abuses of laboratory animals and exerted pressure to put an end to these activities, which they consider barbaric: for example, the breeding company Consort Kennels closed in 1997 under pressure from associations for the animal rights. In 1997 footage secretly filmed by a freelance journalist in the Huntingdon Life Sciences shows staff punching and shouting at lab beagles. Beagles are used in many disciplines: fundamental biology, applied human medicine, veterinary medicine, protection of the human and animal environment. Testing of cosmetics on animals is prohibited in member countries of the European Union. It is allowed in the United States if other methods are not possible, but when it comes to testing the toxicity of food additives, drugs and certain chemicals, the FDA uses beagles and pigs Vietnamese as substitutes for testing on men. Other roles Beagles are used as termite detection dogs in Australia and have been reported as possible candidates as anti-drug and anti-explosive dogs. Due to their friendly temperament and size, they are also frequently used in animal therapy, visiting the sick and elderly in hospitals. The beagle is also a very popular companion dog, although it is used more for hunting (only 4 to 5% of beagles are companion dogs) Appearances in culture References to the beagle appear as early as the 16th century in the works by writers such as William Shakespeare, John Webster, John Dryden, Henry Fielding and William Cowper, and in Alexander Pope's translation of Homer's Illiad. Thereafter, the references multiplied. The beagle appears in comics and cartoons in the 1950s with Snoopy the character of Peanuts, Les Rapetou (The beagle boys in English) of Walt Disney and Beagle Beagle, the companion of Grape Ape. He appeared in many films, with some main roles like in Cats and Dogs, Shaïlo (adapted from the book by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor) and in the non-animated version of Under dog. The secondary roles are numerous with among others Audition, The Monster Squad and The Tenenbaums Family (The Royal Tenenbaums) in the cinema, Porthos the beagle from Star Trek: Enterprise, EastEnders, Les Années coup de coeur (The Wonder Years), and To the Manor Born on television. Bagel, one of Barry Manilow's two beagles, appears many times on the covers of his albums. US President Lyndon Baines Johnson had many beagles and caused an uproar when he grabbed one of them by the ears during an official meeting at the White House. The ship on which Charles Darwin made his second voyage which gave him the basis for his travel book The Voyage of the Beagle and the inspiration for the book On the Origin of Species was named HMS Beagle after the breed of dog that later gave its name to the Beagle 2 lander.

The Beagle ([bigl] or [big?l]) is a small to medium sized breed of dog originating in England. Its appearance is similar to that of the beagle-harrier although it is smaller, with shorter legs and longer ears. Although small hounds existed 2,000 years ago, the modern breed was developed in Britain in the 1830s from different breeds including the talbot, northern hound and southern hound , breeds now extinct, and probably the beagle-harrier. Etymology and semantics The first written appearance of the word “beagle” dates back to the 15th century with the Book of Saint Albans by Juliana Berners; in English literature it dates back to 1475 in Esquire of Low Degree: in both cases the word is used as a generic term for small hounds, not the current dog breed. It is not known why the Kerry beagle, black and tan, present in Ireland since the Celtic era, took the name of a beagle: with 56 to 61 cm at the shoulder, it cannot be qualified as a small hound . The origin of the word is uncertain, it could derive from the French bégueule (from "béer" and "gueule") or would come from the Celtic word beag, which means "little" which we find traces of in the words begle in Old English and beigh in Old French. The word could also come from the French "beugler", in reference to the powerful voice of the beagle. In French, the spelling "bigle" was used, it is a partial phonetic transcription of the English term. The current pronunciation is [bigl] or [big?l]. In English, the expression "singing beagle" (literally "singing beagle"), used by Queen Elizabeth I, refers to the harmonious barking of the beagle. Beagle, on the other hand, is a hunting term meaning “to hunt with beagles”. In French, we speak of "Elizabeth beagle" to designate a variety of beagle that has now disappeared, which was characterized by a very small size (less than 25 cm high); the English terms designating the same variety insist more on this miniaturization (gloves Beagle, dwarf Beagle, pocket Beagle - literally satchel beagle, dwarf beagle, pocket beagle). History Ancestors of the beagle Small hounds, similar to the modern beagle, are present from the time of ancient Greece: Xenophon, in the 5th century BC. AD, described in the Cynegeticus of small hounds hunting the hare and followed on foot by the hunter. These dogs were probably imported into Roman Britain by the Romans, although no document attests to this. We find the trace of these small hunting dogs in the laws of the royal forest of Knut I of England: they are then exempted from an ordinance which required to mutilate a paw with the dogs being able to run behind a deer. If Knut's laws are genuine, it confirms that beagle-like dogs were present in England before 1016; however, these may have been invented in the Middle Ages. In the 11th century, William the Conqueror introduced the Talbot to Britain. It is a breed with an almost entirely white coat, slow, with a deep throat, close to the Saint-Hubert dog. A cross with greyhounds, made with the aim of increasing their speed, gave rise to the hound of the South (southern hound) and the hound of the North (north country beagle): in the 17th century, these two breeds were developed to hunt the hare and the rabbit. The Southern Hound, a large, heavy hound with a square head and long, silky ears, is common south of the River Trent. Although slow, he is tough and has a keen sense of smell. The Northern Hound is mostly bred in Yorkshire and is common in the northern counties. It is smaller and faster than the Southern Hound, less heavy with a more pointed muzzle, but its sense of smell is less developed. In the 18th century, fox hunting became more and more popular and these two breeds tended to decrease in number. These beagle type dogs are crossed with larger breeds, specific to deer hunting, to produce the English Foxhound. The numbers of hounds of the size of the beagle decrease and these dogs are then close to extinction: some farmers ensure their survival through small packs specialized in rabbit hunting. Reverend Phillip Honeywood established a pack of Beagles in Essex in the 1830s, forming the basis of the beagle breed. Although details of the lineages of this pack are not recorded, Northern Hounds and Southern Hounds probably form the bulk of the breeding. William Youatt suggests that a majority of this beagle lineage descended from the Harrier, but the origin of this breed is itself obscure. Some writers still suggest that the sharp sense of smell of the beagle comes from a cross with the Kerry beagle. Honeywood beagles are small (about 25 cm at the shoulder) and totally white. Prince Consort Albert and Lord Winterton, a well-known cricketer, also had packs of beagles, and royal interest in the breed probably enabled its return, although Honeywood's pack was of the highest quality of the three. The credit for developing the breed is attributed to Honeywood, but it produces dogs for hunting only: Thomas Johnson is working to improve the breed in order to have dogs that are both beautiful and good hunters.

The beagle has a gentle, good-natured, peaceful temperament. Described in many standards as cheerful, he is amiable and generally neither aggressive nor shy. Reputed to be kind and very affectionate, he is an endearing companion. Although he can be aloof with strangers, he enjoys company and is generally sociable with other dogs. A study by Ben and Lynette Hart in 1985 shows that it is considered the breed with the highest level of excitability ahead of the Yorkshire, the Cairn Terrier, the Miniature Schnauzer, the West Highland White Terrier and the Fox Terrier65, Note 5. The Beagle is intelligent, but having been bred for years to chase animals, they are also stubborn and headstrong, which can make them difficult to train. He is generally obedient when there is a reward, but is easily distracted by smells around him. In 1994, in his book The Intelligence of Dogs, Stanley Coren ranked the beagle 72nd, which in his opinion makes it a breed with low obedience and working potential. Although he can sometimes be abrupt without meaning to be, the beagle is perfect for children of all ages because he is very playful: this is one of the reasons why he is a popular companion dog for families. He is a dog accustomed to packs and he can suffer from separation anxiety. He is not a good guard dog, although he will bark or howl when faced with something unusual. Not all beagles howl but some will bark when they smell potential prey.