I had a little time this afternoon so we took the beagle out to a friend that has too many cottontails. Rabbit dogs are a pretty new thing to me, but the dog seems to be coming along okay. She worked three different rabbits and I managed to get a shot at one. I'm hoping to have some time come winter and try to put this little dog to work.

I've always wondered as a first generation hunter, how on earth do you take a dog and train it to be a bird or rabbit dog? we got a rescue from texas. sweet dog but loves sniffing and chasing for the most part (she's a total coward) she looks mostly beagle, maybe a touch of pitbull and a few others.

Any tips for getting them started training?

Great shot by the way!

I would love to give you tips, but I'm unable. This dog took to chasing rabbits pretty naturally and I just encouraged her every chance I got. I presume it's just in their genes. I know that there are some good beagle folks on here, so perhaps one of them will chime in with some advice for both of us.

Decent dogs can be trained. Great dogs are born knowing what to do…no training necessary.

My best beagle was out in the back yard at 6 weeks old and came upon where a rabbit had just been…I had tried to walk the litter near it in hopes they’d see it run and take after it. It took off without any of the pups seeing it. He stopped when he hit the spot and scratched the ground a few times. He stuck his nose in the track and lifted his head and sounded like he blew his balls out his mouth when he barked. He took to the track and it got better and better every time out after that. He wasn’t my fastest dog but he sure was a natural!

I agree a dog needs to have the instinct to hunt. Then it's just a matter of putting them on the prey you want them to hunt consistently. Praise them when you do what you want, and reprimand them when they do what you don't. And of course obedience goes a long way.... vital in some hunting dogs (think waterfowl, for instance), while less important but still very helpful in others such as trailing hounds.

Not much different than people really. You might have 3 kids and take them trapping with you every day for 10 years and by the time they're 18 one might be ate up with trapping while the other two want nothing to do with it. The "want to" has got to be there. A good hunting dog would rather hunt than breathe.

Oh and BTW, Sam... love your posts.... raising those kids right!

Nice! Looks like a good time. Always thought beagles running rabbit would be a hoot!

way to go

You cannot hunt a Beagle enough. Great to watch and hunt in the winter with a few inches of snow.

Take it easy on that Hound, you done run the black off her! LOL

This right here, if they have it they have it. The more you take em out the better they get.
You need at least 1 more the music is great!

I absolutely love running my rabbit dogs.
I run three rabbit dogs, their music is great.
The best thing to do is let that hound run rabbits. Don't kill everyone, feed it tracks to learn and build experience. The hound needs to be accountable for the rabbit, whether it is killed or goes to a hole. The need to know the it has ended not lost. Rabbits will try to lose the hound and pull all kind of tricks. The group I hunt with, we never kill the first rabbit of the day, we let the hounds run.
Have fun

I don't know how many times I've been asked how to train a hound on Rabbits. My response has always been, "You can't teach them how, you can only take them out and let them."

Thank you for the comments and advice everyone. It is appreciated. Just had her out again this morning. She ran two different tracks, one ending in a large brush pile, and one ending in a hole under a root ball. She ran them both for a couple loops before they holed up. I'm really looking forward to some snow and working her on some hares.

Very good stuff, but a big gun for bunnies. lol Too bad you don't know anyone in your state with a bunch of guns that would make you a good deal on a .410 or something. Maybe someone you could play on their feelings about your kids...

Love to hear beagles singing!!!

We only have one beagle now, per my wife’s comprise, our newest beagle is not to be hunted..
I’m okay with that… I’ve got wayyyyy too many outdoors pursuits anyway.
And my granddaughter and the beagle “ sissy “ are best buddies.

Try to run an uneducated dog with and experienced dog

no dog enjoys their job more than a rabbit hound.

You are right about the gun, certainly more than I need. The decision to bring it was a combination of wanting a bit more shot in case I jumped a grouse in the thick brush, and I just really like hunting with that particular gun. And I'm pretty sure if I bought a sub gauge from that fellow that he would find a good way to pick on me for it.

She has run with experienced hounds twice, and I'm hoping to get her back with them a bunch this winter.

Very nice

Leftlane, you might be right. I'll have to see if he has a little rabbit gun around. We can all drink a beer and poke fun at each other. Thank you for correcting my thinking sir.

For future reference Sam, any excuse to get a new gun is a good one.

You guys will like this old cartoon

ADC, you are absolutely correct, and I'll try to find a new rabbit getter. Smash, that cartoon was entertaining, had the kids laughing.

You would probably paint it pink with flowers like your others. This is why you can't have nice things.

You're just jealous that I'm manly enough to carry a pretty gun.

I've shot a lot of pheasants with a .410 too Sam. Maybe more than any other gauge shotgun, so you won't feel under gunned for them grouse.

I've killed a bunch of grouse, rabbits and squirrels with.410s and 28s. I think my biggest problem is that I like shooting that old shotgun so much, that I'll make excuses to hunt with it. That's a pretty cool picture by the way.

That's an old picture, but the only one I have with the gun in the picture. My boy is a big bigger now. lol Still makes a good dog though. lol Here he is shooting our CZ Bobwhite .28 SxS.

Take them out and run them. I like nothing better than good dog work. I had a great beagle pup when I was 15
I loved that dog. Took her a while to circle one. She would trak a short distance ball a few times and come back. I keep taking her and one day she took off over some spoil banks balling tell out of ears shot. I was worried she would get lost though she was maybe on a deer because I had just gone through and stompwd the brush she started balling on. eventually she came back around and I shot my first rabbit she circled. went to get it and a 2nd one came down the same trail I missed it. sh cam by and keep after it tell it made it in a hole. After that she was a rabbit running machine. I got lucky with a fresh snow on and was just a step behind her when she stuck her nose in fresh deer trscks started that tail wag and Emma's ready to rais the head to ball. I had an aluminum arrow I had found and picked up in my had an swatted her across the rump and hollered no!!! Her tail went between her legs and head down. we went a different direction. To my knowledge she never ran a deer. Hounds are born with it or not but you can make them great by running them a lot.

I dont have any rabbit dogs or bird dogs now because I dont have the time to dedicate to running them. Used to run my bird dogs at least 3 time a week. I also don't want to put the responsibility of caring for my dogs when im away on the family. So my daughter has her German shepherd she has trained/ is training for a service dog and my wife has her Boarder Collie they share with me and I get my dog fix that way.

Put that pup on as many rabbits as possible as often as possible.

The best squirrel dog my brothers and i ever had was a female Silver German shepherd. she would tag along with us as a puppy and I suppose figured out if she would locate the squirrels, we would shoot them and she got to bite something. to say she got very good at it would not be justice to her. she hunted mostly by sight and sound but could sure as hec use here nose.

I was talking with a guy who is part of a kennel and field trial club , they have people who mentor new hunting dog owners. we haven't done that , it would be good.


we mostly got the dog out for a bunch of obedience training , then hunted pheasant without a dog and brought the dog home wings and when we gave him wings clapped wooden blocks loudly around him to make him not afraid of noise while he was birdy as heck having that wing

then we would drag wings around the yard while the dog was in the house , then let him out and let him sniff out the wing , he got to keep it

lots of fetch even though he is a pointer not a retriever

then running on a check line got him out in the field , worked in the electronic garmin TT25 while still on check cord and then more training on collar no leash

we aren't done and I have no idea if what we did was right , we read what we could and we just did it.

but we are happy with him putting up and finding birds