Rooikopjes Beagles

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Welcome to our web page! The website aims to capture important information for prospective owners or beagle enthusiasts to better understand their dogs, breed, habits and how to interact with them.

Beagles have been around since the Roman times and are very outgoing, steady and affectionate dogs. Although the exact origins are not known, the modern day Beagle ancestors lived in England around the Roman Empire era and became popular with the rise of fox hunting. The breed name is probably derived from the French word bee gueule meaning gape throat or loud mouth, and refers to a tonguing (type of barking) made by a pack on the hunt. In Celtic the word beag means small, is also a plausible origin, since the early beagles were small or pocket size (eight to nine inches high) and were later bred into the larger hunting dogs as we know them today. They have been used in packs, alone, and in pairs, for hunting hare, pheasant and quail and also served as an excellent narcotics detection dogs (often seen at airports around the world).

 

Beagles have about 220 million scent receptors in their noses compared to humans that only have about 5 million. This distinct capability have a significant impact on their habits and personalities. As a consequence, beagles runs after their noses and are very responsive to any reward that is associated to smell or taste. If you for example want to train them new tricks, you must reinforce positive behavior with a tasty reward. As a result they learn quickly.

 

Another interesting fact about beagles is the white tip of the tail or flag that is unique to the breed. The white tail was selectively bred to make them more visible when their noses is to the ground, when following a scent.

 

We have been breading with Beagles since 2007 and still enjoy their companionship every day. Their coats are always neat and if brushed periodically do not shed hair. They are also tough dogs and not likely to get diseases. If you follow the normal deworming and inoculation program when they are young and you regularly check for tics, it is very unlikely that you will have expensive vet bills to settle.

 

Popularity of beagles

 

 

 

 

PS. You can also find us on Facebook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Snoopie is probably the most well known beagle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Snoopie in The Peanut movie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The American President Lyndon Johnson had two beagles called Him and Her.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Largely thanks to photographs in Life magazine in 1964 including a colourful cover portrait and an unfortunate ear-pulling one inside Johnsons beagles, Him and Her, became national celebrities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hundreds of phone calls, telegrams, and letters came in from angry dog lovers. (If someone picked you up by the ears, you would yelp, too) an ASPCA spokesman said.

Although he was amazed at how big the controversy became, LBJ eventually issued a public apology. The often outspoken president however, made this aside to reporters after his apology: (I have been pulling Hims ears since he was a pup, and he seemed to like it.)