Beagle breed guide

Fanciers call the breed merry: loving, happy and companionable. Beagles were bred to hunt in packs, so they enjoy company and are easygoing.

A Beagle left alone inside or outside for long periods will become destructive, AKC warns.

The Beagle lives 10 to 15 years. Responsible breeders screen for hip dysplasia, hypothyroidism, epilepsy, luxating patella and eye disorders.

The smooth dense double coat gets heavier in winter, so spring is shedding season and Beagles shed moderately all year. Weekly brushing with a medium-bristle brush, a rubber mitt or a hound glove removes loose hair.

Beagles need at least an hour of exercise every day. AKC says that does not mean just letting them out in the backyard. Treats are a huge aid in training and harsh techniques do not work.

The breed's origins have been debated for centuries and even the name is a mystery: some experts trace it to the Gaelic beag for little and others to a French term for the sound hounds make while hunting. Small pack hounds were hunting rabbit and hare in England long before the Roman legions arrived in 55 B.C.

By the 1500s most English gentlemen kept packs of large hounds for deer and smaller hounds for smaller game.