Advice Needed-Got a New Pup...

[thetreble 19]

So, on the 12th we got a new beagle puppy. He's pretty cute and he's healthy.

As you may remember, we already have a 1.5 year old basset hound.

The puppy has turned our lives upside down a little bit. I don't think we really remembered how hard it was living with a puppy and we talked between us Sunday about possibly giving the dog up. I contacted some Beagle Rescues in NJ but now I am having second thoughts.

We wanted to give him up because we are EXHAUSTED between our jobs and long commutes. We obviously are up through the night with him. His potty training is tiring us. We started to argue a little bit over the past week or so and it seemed to stem from our exhaustion with the puppy. It was a mistake to get him in the first place, that I will admit. We didn't think it through very well and didn't realize how comfortable our lives were!!

I'm just really not sure what to do. I feel like when I purchased him we made a promise to love him and care for him. I don't want to abandon him and by all means would not bring him to any shelter.

Any suggestions or maybe you can help me talk it out a bit?

[trailmix 77]

Maybe this isn't the right time for you to have a new puppy (as you mentioned).

As you already know, it will grow out of this oh so tiring puppy phase eventually, whether you have any sanity left or not is another question!

How old is he now?

If you can do it without feeling too horrible, you might want to consider just finding him a new home?

[Flames9_RN 358]

Sorry it not working out. My inlaws have 2 beagles, which drive me nutz,lol Takes a certain person to love a beagle, they are such head strong pups, which is a reason why you see soo many in the shelters available to adopt.

[Emancipation 2]

Hey gal.. I'm not sure what finances are right now, but perhaps you could hire a dog walker/ trainer (or maybe there is someone you know closeby who would love company on a walk every day) to take the puppy out during the day while you are gone for some exercise and training? That way when you get home the dog has had some help with running off the exercise, and a little bit of training. I have a friend here who does this for a living and she's a whiz with animals and really does make the dogs behave when they are in her care and is great at caring for them. I'm not sure what they charge for those services, but it might get you over the hump of this first few months.

Puppies are hard work and I can't imagine trying to train when you are also working as well. Ugh..

[thetreble 19]

E- We actually have a guy already that was taking our Basset hound out daily while we are at work and has agreed to take the puppy out too.

Part of me wants to just tell myself to get over it and eventually in another 3 or 4 months when he is house trained things will be easier. He's already doing much better then our basset hound did when we were training her. Bassets are stubborn and I know beagles are too so that we are used to.

I guess I just can't make up my mind. I've had some responses from the beagle rescues where they will take him from us and re-home him, which is what we are thinking we should do. The latest email I got was from someone saying, "Are you SURE you want to give him away? You've only had him for over a week..."

And it's made me doubt the decision.

I think the hard thing right now is that I don't have any time by myself. Bella is old enough to do her own thing and she gets walked and played with daily with the trainer and by us in the evening. When I get home from work I can fix myself a snack and then take her out and feed her. It takes all of about 5 minutes. With the puppy, man it is sometimes 2 hours before I can even sit down after work. I have to watch and make sure he doesn't go on the carpet and Im taking him out every 20-30 minutes. The normal puppy stuff but it just seems to be really hard with the two of them.

I guess I just don't know what I want to do...every time I think I want to go one way, I start thinking about the other.

[Sprailenes 47]

I think you should keep him. A new puppy is always super overwhelming at first, but in a few months you'll be well on your way! Plus Bella would be sad.

You will be fine, at first its always overwhelming but you have him now and theres no point to giving him back. You can do it. All of this is temporary... just think about it that way.

[SapphireDreams 71]

I think that beagles are particularly hard to train, but I do think that once he gets settled, things will be much easier.

Are you crate training at all? My best friend has a beagle and she was crate trained and that really helped to get her less hyper, control how many times a day she needed to go outside etc. When she needed an hour without the puppy, they would put in the crate and since she was trained to like the crate, it was muych easier and they didn't feel like they were being cruel.

[thetreble 19]

Nev- I think you are right and I just need to suck it up!!

Sapphire- We are indeed crate training him as I believe that is the best method to train a pup. We had bella trained pretty quick with her crate.

I think I am just going to suck it up and keep him. I don't like breaking commitments.

[SapphireDreams 71]

I think that once you get into a routine with him and he matures, things will get a lot easier and you'll be happy you kept him. Sounds like you are doing everything right and it will just take time for everything to fall into place.

Good luck and I want to see pics!!!

[Gypsyangel 11]

I think you should keep him too. There was a reason why s/he came into your life at this time. Also, if they're a tough dog to own then s/he probably needs someone like you who can see the big picture. Also, you've also already been trained by your first dog, so the new dog should find you to be easy to train!

Does your other dog enjoy the company?

[Allie 5]

We bought a Min Pin last April. She kept us up the first 3 nights we had her from 8 till 1 with steady whimpering and howling.

We didn't know what we were going to do she just wouldn't stop. I put a clock in under her blankets, along with a heating pad and left a radio on low so she wouldn't feel alone and the 4th night she wasn't as bad.

She only cried when we put her to bed for about an hr. Each night after that got better and after about a week she was okay.

I know the crying and howling is nerve wracking but hang in there and try to block it out and eventually you'll have a nice dog. Once she gets accustomed to the place she'll stop the sooking

[DeadPoolX 9]

Beagles are pretty cute. They're not my favorite breed, but they're high up on the list. My wife's best friend has a beagle. According to my wife, the dog is a fantastic companion, but a little hyper.

I remember I'd tell my dog I'd "trade him in for a beagle" when he acted up.

[Carlawarla 1]

I think puppies are much like children. While yes, after the initial house training is complete, you might get more sleep, two dogs are a lot of work, especially if you don't have a yard. I can't remember if your new place has a yard. Do you have at least an hour a day, at the end of the day to exercise your dogs? On weekends, you'll want more time to do this.

We had a beagle Max, and he required a lot of exercise. All dogs do in fact. You'll see the results in your house if you don't give them enough exercise.

I wouldn't think of it as "failure" if you find it's too much with two dogs. I personally would find it a bit overwhelming with everything else you have going on in your life...work, commute etc. and would really think twice about keeping him/her.

[Tankgurl38 0]

I had a beagle, had him for 15 years, just had to put him down last Friday, was the saddest day of my life.

Beagles are wonderful pets and usually get along well with other dogs and children.

I had two beagles at one time, my youngest one passed away at 8. He was a little bit of a handful as a puppy, but I wouldn't have traded either of my little guys in for the world. They were both totally unique and had way different personalities.

Give your new addition a chance to get settled into your family, once you get through the initial stress of having a new puppy in the house, it will be all worth it.

[Carlawarla 1]

I had a beagle, had him for 15 years, just had to put him down last Friday, was the saddest day of my life.

Beagles are wonderful pets and usually get along well with other dogs and children.

I had two beagles at one time, my youngest one passed away at 8. He was a little bit of a handful as a puppy, but I wouldn't have traded either of my little guys in for the world. They were both totally unique and had way different personalities.

Give your new addition a chance to get settled into your family, once you get through the initial stress of having a new puppy in the house, it will be all worth it.

So sorry to hear of your beagle Tankgurl. I hope your heart heals soon. We had to put down our beagle two years ago now, and we can now smile and remember all those wonderful fun times with him.