Found a Beagle

[happylabs]

I totally forgot about this.

Last Wednesday night I came home from having dinner with my son and daughter-in-law to be. It was dark and as I pulled into my driveway I saw a Beagle trotting off.

I called him and he came to me but was cowering a bit.

My neighbor Tom used to breed Beagles but hasn't had any for about a year. I thought maybe he had gotten one over the holidays so called him right away but he said no, it was not theirs.

Then I noticed the little fellow had tags on. I will a little nervous to check his tags because of the way he cowered but I did check them and found his owner's phone number. I called the phone number and it turned out they only live about 1/4 mile from my house.

The guy came to get the dog and when the dog saw the truck he cowered more. I told the owner I was concerned about this and he said the dog knew he was in trouble.

He said he was glad I called because now his two little kids would be able to sleep knowing the dog was home.

The Beagle was very dear and looked well cared for but I had mixed feelings about the whole thing.

I have never had a dog that would cower like that. Any thoughts?

[MoonandBean]

We had the exact same experience with a boxer that showed up in our yard. When we found his mom, the dog was nervous instead of being exuberant at seeing her. She said "he just knows he's in trouble" so my guess would be that "runners" have done it many times before and they do get scolded when they return but they probably are treated fine at home. I told the woman I would gladly keep the boxer and she laughed and said "we don't hit him, I promise". The next time he went missing, she came to our house looking and she was nearly in tears (it was cold out) so I know she loves him. She came by 20 minutes later so happy to tell us he was home which was good because we were pacing outside (in the cold) calling for him.

[Karen]

Gracie, our Great Dane (mix), would cower like you've never seen when she thought she'd been bad. She could cringe so her shoulders were about 12 inches off the ground, and for a great Dane, that's pretty impressive! The sad part was, sometimes she "thought" she had been bad, when she hadn't. She'd greet us at the door all cringing sometimes, and we'd enter to realize she had taken all the stuffed bunnies from my bedroom and carried them to the dining room and arranged them around herself. She didn't chew any of them up, so she wasn't really in trouble, but it took a lot to convince her it was okay! She had never been abused - we got her third hand, and she was malnourished but never hit by the prior owners, in fact we had to spend months teaching her NOT to jump up in your arms when you clapped - they were raising her like their prior miniature poodle.

Mind you, Gracie, when she had escaped and gone for a run, would come back when no one was looking, and lie in the spot she'd usually be on the porch if she was on her chain, like "I was here all along!"

[happylabs]

Gracie, our Great Dane (mix), would cower like you've never seen when she thought she'd been bad. She could cringe so her shoulders were about 12 inches off the ground, and for a great Dane, that's pretty impressive! The sad part was, sometimes she "thought" she had been bad, when she hadn't. She'd greet us at the door all cringing sometimes, and we'd enter to realize she had taken all the stuffed bunnies from my bedroom and carried them to the dining room and arranged them around herself. She didn't chew any of them up, so she wasn't really in trouble, but it took a lot to convince her it was okay! She had never been abused - we got her third hand, and she was malnourished but never hit by the prior owners, in fact we had to spend months teaching her NOT to jump up in your arms when you clapped - they were raising her like their prior miniature poodle.

Mind you, Gracie, when she had escaped and gone for a run, would come back when no one was looking, and lie in the spot she'd usually be on the porch if she was on her chain, like "I was here all along!"

Oh that is so dear that she would bring the bunnies down but not chew them! Maybe she was lonely?

Thanks for your response. I feel much better now.

[MoonandBean]

Gracie knew she had better be gentle with Karen and Paul's bunnies!

[boomersooner]

The beagle was probably just nervous and confused....I'm sure he'll be fine....I agree with everyone else....especially if you got an okay vibe from the owner....

[Karen]

MoonandBean, Gracie was our dog before I married Paul, belonged officially to my parents. She was the dog of the family when Paul got to know me, and the first dog to ever lean on him. And that is the question we started Pet Talk with!


And yes, happylabs, it was quite obvious she was lonely, she would arrange the bunnies in a circle around her self and lie in the middle with her "friends" when we awful humans had abandoned her so cruelly - like to go to church, or run errands ... Those bunnies became more hers than mine, and when I married and moved out, I left them for her, and after she passed away, dad put them up on the bookcase so the new pup wouldn't chew them!

[boomersooner]

This very same thing happened to me this morning on the way to work....I pass by this corner house with a brown pittie/lab mix in the backyard everyday. Anyway, I saw the dog running loose just a street over from her house. I went and knocked on the door of the house, and a lady came out. I told her I thought her dog was out, and as she went to close her door, "Honey" came up the driveway....she was wagging her tail crazily but she was cowering, sort of, too....I really think she was just really scared and skittish about being out of her yard. Hopefully, the lady was nice to her....she seemed to be....so, I think maybe being loose makes the poor dogs extremely scared, nervous, etc.