5 month old Beagle

I have a 5 month old Beagle and he is soooo bad.... He hates to be alone even for a second... I have tried everything and he just cries like he is going to die.. What should I do... I don't want people complaining about him... I have had him since he was 6 weeks old and he use to like his crate now he hates it... he will cry himself to sleep but he has to cry for a long time in order for that to happen.... and then if he hears me he starts up again... He has all the bad Beagle habbits I have read about..but I love him...

First off the first rule of thumb - NEVER give him ANY attention for this behavior. If he sees you coming to give him attention, every time he wants attention he will know to cry for it. So its going to be very hard, but you NEED to be persistant in his training! Crate him and place a blanket over his crate at night, perhaps have a radio turned on low to keep him company. But DO NOT give him attention if he's crying for attention!

I do sometimes cave :( cos he gets soooo loud!! I do the radio part...

Well you can't cave, ever. You HAVE to be consistant in the training. Even if you cave in only once, it can revert everything back to square one ;)

It's true what everyone says -- its not the dog who needs to be trained, but the human. ;)

very true. i agree with jessika. NEVER EVER give in. you will never train him if you give in- even once. i know its hard, i have a cocker who is EXTREMLY annoying and loud when he cries because he howls. he wakes me up at like 5:00 in the morning so i get up, shut my door, and put the pillow over my head. lol thats the down side of having a cute, cuddly puppy.

i really hope he starts to behave himself. and remember- never use his kennel for punishment. Good Luck!

-Danielle, molli, and sammy

Yup I agree with Jessika as well. Training ANY & ALL behavior, commands, tricks etc... must ALWAYS be very consistant!!

And never ever use the crate for anything negative at all. Make sure the crate is always a happy place for the pup.

Is he enrolled in an obedience class? If not I strongly advise you to do so. That will help tremendously with all sorts of important commands, it will also help you two to bond better and it will give him something to do to keep him busy & give him something to look foward to.

And lastly this is something that should of been researched before getting the breed. He is a beagle after all, and they sure are known to bark & make noise. The can also be independant & seem stubborn which is another reason to enroll him into a class.

Good luck with him! :D

consistency... do NOT let him out of his cate when he cries/whines/barks - ignore him. Make his crate a 'good place' - when you carte him give him his favorite toys and a treat for going in on his own (he should be happy to go in to get the treat), place a cover over the crate on the top and 3 sides (makes it more 'den-like') and don't fuss about putting him in - put him in and then ignore him (no lovey sounds, etc) -- do not make it a 'big deal' that he's in there. Cowboy goes in his just to hang out or sleep (I leave the door open when I'm home). Start by enticing him in with a treat - then once in give him several - leaving the door open -- he can come out when he's done with his treats (of course you are home at this point). When you need to go out - in his crate, treat him and leave (he will know you are not there to hear him) - no fussing on your part either.