Bassett Hounds and Beagles, pros and cons please

[BaconAndAvocado]

We're considering getting a dog and the above breeds have always appealed.

Does anyone have any experience of either breeds?

We would like to have it from a puppy.

Also, what does KC mean? I've seen it a lot,on different dog sites.

[Hesdeadjim]

2 arseholes bassets here... if you have a good sense of humour, a strong stomach and the patience of a saint you might be alright!

Eric (the short dumpy one) we've had from 10 weeks old. His finer moments include stealing my knickers/ bras/ socks/ tights and hiding them in a specific plantpot in the garden... i found his stash and retrieved them all so he retaliated by taking 1 of each of my pairs of shoes and hiding them back in his plant pot

I've also attached a photo of what he looks like after a standard 30 minute walk.. This particular day was a heady bouquet or fox shit, rotting seagull corpse and canal water.. all 3 of which he's found and rolled in within 12 minutes of being outside the house.

Elvis (the taller one) is a rescue. When he came to us he was so scared of everything he'd wet himself if you spoke to him. Now he never bloody shuts up. Prime example: He decided that the buzzer noise on child genius (the TV show) was definately going to kill us all.. so spend the entire hour it was on barking in my ear every time the buzzer sounded.

Elvis also once ran into my living room with a banana. This would be fairly innocuous, were it not for the fact we dont buy or eat bananas and I was fairly certain there weren't any in the house. It turned out he'd escaped from the garden and stolen the banana from the boot of a neighbors car when she was taking her shopping inside.

All joking aside, bassets are not for the faint hearted. They are clingy, completely and utterly untrainable for the most part due to a lack of common sense, and will drive you up the wall for the next 10 years. I managed to get mine faily well trained, but whereas you might need to do 100 repetitions of a command with a normal dog, you need to triple that for a basset.

Then there's the health issues. Eric is well bred because we were able to choose the breeder and research carefully, so he's a healthy chap. Elvis is another story. Elv as I mentioned is a rescue and therefore we didn't know his breeding before he landed in our lives. He's not quite 2 yet and has cost us about £2k in vet bills (thanks the lord for insurance!) thus far. He has short ulner syndrome, so his foot rotates outwards about 90 degrees which causes him pain if he's walked too far. He also has an autoimmune condition. Both could be prevented by better breeding so if you do go for a basset, research like mad and go for a well established, health tested line. Buckadoe bassets (Eric is a buckadoe) are excellent, as are wolferloe and many others, so find a line you like and trust me, if the puppy is on sale for less than £800, it's not well bred. PAY THE EXTRA, it will save you a fortune long term.

Other than that, bassets are dumpy, heart stealing fur kids who will simultaneously ruin your life and make you laugh until you hurt at the same time :)

[nagsandovalballs]

Why not sign up for borrow my doggy or house sit for a friend by having their dog to stay while they are on holiday?

I've been a dog owner all my life and I won't have one as I can't deal with th commitment. If I get the urge to buy or rescue a dog, I go and look after a friend's and after two days of picking up shit and rushing back to let the dog out and I am totally over it!

[TwitterQueen1]

OP, you need to do a lot more research before you get a dog. You clearly know nothing about any of the breeds, temperament or habits - as you have said yourself.

Please think about your family lifestyle and about what kind of dog lifestyle you want. If you get a beagle or a husky your lifestyle will be spending hours looking for it, visiting vets, driving the roads etc, if you ever let them off the lead.

Labs are quite big and they have very strong tails. You will never be able to leave anything on a coffee table for example - its tail will simply swish it on the floor.

personally, I would suggest a show cocker - not a working one. Much easier all round.

Go to a dog show, as Frilly suggests.

[ChairRider4]

Should add I often walk around 3-4 hours a day plus obedience training and mines from show stock which people think is more laid back .

[ChairRider4]

Labs can be fantastic family dogs my boy is the best

Couple things to consider as puppies they are known as land sharks .They moult like crazy .They also require walking twice a day one of them must be a good long walk ,even when it is chucking it down and cold .Also they like a job to do so brain work
Water and mud is labs beauty treatment mine often covered in both but mud drops of well

They are and can be very strong on the lead so start from puppy .My boy is easy on the lead does loose leash walk
They are greedy buggers bit this is also the saving grace as makes training easier

I would not be without my boy now but at times when teenager I could happily given up

[squeak10]

Have a look at the lab rehoming site. A few friends have had labs from them

[Flippetydip]

Do you know anyone with a lab? Our neighbour has one who we borrow regularly for cleaning the floor after children's tea parties walks and our fill of dog-love. They are brilliant but from what I know they need a lot of exercise otherwise they have a terrible disposition to getting massively overweight. There was a study done about labs and a gene they carry which makes them have no "off button" when it comes to food.

www.theguardian.com/science/2016/may/03/labradors-could-be-genetically-hard-wired-for-greed

[Frillyhorseyknickers]

Do not get either a beagle or a bassett as a first time dog owner. They are both working hounds and require a lot of time and both physical and mental exercise. They are not really great pets, they work best in a pack of 16 couple hunting - that is what they are bred for.

Do not get a husky or malamute, they have horrific recall and are certainly not a first time dog.

Please don't buy a designer cross breed like a "juggle" or some other ridiculously named mongrel, they are often bred for profit and no thought put into their lineage or inherited defects.

Look at going to Discover Dogs at Crufts - you can wonder round and meet owners of different breeds - they will be able to explain their temperament and their needs - you can decide whether they will fit in with your life.

We have a Golden Retriever who (asides from being a little bit hairy!) is the perfect pet for families. Ours is a working breed and she shoots with my husband, but she is fantastic with children, very loyal, biddable, placid and not bouncing off the walls. Ours gets 3-5 hours a day exercise, but 1-2 hours would be perfectly acceptable.

Honestly - go to discover dogs, it's a great day out.

[Pooky77]

We got a beagle a year ago from dogs trust had never owned one before. He is the best dog ever. He can be left alone and causes no trouble, mostly just sleeps. He loves his walks, most of which are spent sniffing everything in sight and trying to eat whatever smells good to him (even if it's really gross!) he's quite independent and not needy, likes his own space but will seek out cuddles and a warm comfy spot at times. He is greedy (currently in a diet) but will do anything for a treat. The only things we have not been able to train him to do is come back once off the lead and stop barking for no reason! He really is the best dog I'd recommend them highly.

[BaconAndAvocado]

Thanks lumela I really know nothing about dogs.

We're thinking a lab might be the way to go.

This will sound like a really really stupid question but is there any way I could look after a lab for a day to see how it goes? bracing myself for a good scolding

[Crispbutty]

Our Bassett definately didn't stink usually but certainly shed hair constantly. When he scratched there was a huge cloud of it every time.


By the sounds of it we were lucky as he was reasonably obedient in mos... scrap that, no he wasn't.

I'm thinking back over 30 years ago now and getting quite a few memories.

He would abscond the moment he was let off the lead. He would come home, usually about 3am and howl, very loudly. My dad would get up and put him in the shed til morning as he was usually covered in whatever he could find to roll in, so thinking about it, the reason he didn't smell was due to frequent baths.

He impregnated a couple of other local bitches. I recall some bloke coming round to rant at my dad... evidence in hand.. - strange looking puppies that were tri colour with exceptionally long ears.

He bit the tv repair man from radio rentals on the arse. We had to switch to Granada rentals.

He went for the bin men (this was in the days when they came through your drive and round the back of the house to get your bin).. possibly my dog can be blamed for the introduction of wheelie bins and having to put them out yourself.

He liked the milkman - he brought him cheese and bones.

Speaking of said bones, he would eat them in the middle of the lawn and growl at anyone if they dared to step foot on the grass, then buried it for a while, usually in my mothers best flower bed.

He would flip the tortoise on its back , where it would remain until one of us found it and put it upright. The tortoise went missing one summer and was found at the bottom of the pond. Suspicion fell on the dog - probably quite accurately.

Then we got a cat...

Basset fell in love, the cat ruled the house. No longer could the dog lie in front of the fire at night.. he got a quick swipe of a black paw and retreated. Cat was in front of fire.

They did become a partnership though and my mum had to be more cunning with hiding food as the cat could get to places the dog always dreamed of reaching, and would pass the ill gotten gains down to him..

Happy days!

[LumelaMme]

OP, if you go for a lab, aim for show/pet lines, not working.

Show/pet lines are nice and quiet and behave themselves. Working ones can be quite different.

[HyacinthsBucket]

I've always adored bassett hounds and when we got our 1st dog, that was what i wanted but DHs parents used to breed them and he said no way! Apparently they slobber everywhere, they moult year round, are impossible to train and stink to high heaven! We ended up with a rescue tibetan terrier (he was amazing, 8 years old and the best little dog imaginable with young children) then we also had a rescued labrador puppy. We've now got a cocker spaniel and he's totally amazing but I'd never advise a spaniel for a 1st time dog owner. In honesty, get a labrador. They are such wonderful loyal loving dogs and by far the least trouble of any I've experienced.

[Crispbutty]

It was the basset that was the master criminal. He could reach amazing heights for such stumpy legs!!

After I left home and got my own place I had a staffy (9 mth old) rescue and he was the most loving obedient and easy going dog ever. Never bolted his food, never chewed anything he wasn't supposed to. House trained to perfection. Sociable with anyone - utterly crap guard dog as he would run and hide if anyone knocked at the door.

[leighdinglady]

Speaking as someone with a spaniel I'd warn you they're high energy and stubborn too! labs are good first time dogs. Or lap dogs like wedgies

[YoureAllABunchOfBastards]

Beagles are amazing but so much hard work. We had two - could never let them off the lead, they ate anything and were buggers for howling. Wilful- properly wilful!

I miss them loads - such affectionate dogs - but I don't miss the drooling, the relentless hunt for food or the habit of taking off if they saw the slightest opportunity

[AlmostNQT]

DO NOT GET A BEAGLE!

Trust me, I have 3 (5 sometimes!) and I am crazy

Seriously though. If you have anything precious left out, they will ruin it. I once had my dissertation shredded, and that was on a shelf!

They can jump fences, dig their way out under fences and have selective hearing!

I recommend a nice calm lab, or a spaniel 😅 (especially if you haven't had a dog before)

[leighdinglady]

Wow you really like the hard work breeds! Working dogs are very high energy.

[blueistheonlycolourwefeel]

Oh yes, and fox shit, horse shit, basically anything stinky!!

[blueistheonlycolourwefeel]

I've got a beagle. She's very lovable, calm, great as a family pet, equally happy to slob on the settee as go out for a walk.

BUT she stinks. Farts constantly, smells very doggy (she's a hound so this is expected!). She is greedy, utterly utterly good obsessed and we can't leave food ANYWHERE that she can reach.
My partner had her from a puppy and spent hours years training her. She'll recall when she wants to but we have to take her on set walks and she goes on and off the lead at set times or we'd never get her back!
Think long and hard about getting one because they are not an easy breed to have!!

[AuntNancy]

Labs are generally considered one of the best family dogs - they're patient, biddable, and gentle.

I don't mean this to sound as rude as it does (!) but as a newbie dog owner, it's less heartache all round to start with what you can offer a dog, rather than what it can offer you, then find a fit that way. Have you made a list of your living space/time for exercise/dog hair expectations/mess threshold into a breed guide? The Kennel Club Breed Guide is a good place to start, but to be honest, you're probably better off going to a rescue and explaining to them about your lifestyle and expectations. They'll match you with a dog they know will fit and can offer support if you need it.

Just as a general warning - puppies are hard work! I'm really glad we rehomed an adult dog first time round, as she was already housetrained and reasonably obedient - it was much easier learning the dog-owner ropes.

[BaconAndAvocado]

tinymeteor I hadn't considered a lab.......are they good with children?

[tinymeteor]

crispbutty he's gorgeous. The beef joint heist is impressive even for a beagle!

[tinymeteor]

ray our beagle had the toddler trained for a while too! He thought the high chair was a treat dispenser. He'd sit on the floor and if I turned my back he'd be up like a meercat and sneaking food, then back down before I turned back. My mum shopped him when she saw him do it via FaceTime and I put a stop to that game

OP, if your other half is the one who's most keen for a dog, have you sorted out who'd be mostly responsible for it day to day? Especially if you get a puppy, the work involved is relentless for months. Make sure you are keen too, or you'll quickly resent both dog and husband.

Re breeds, huskies are the most high energy dog you could think of. Seriously hard work. Unless you're a distance runner don't do it. German Shepherds are wonderful but very much what you make them, and need confident handling. If you're inexperienced with training you could end up with a very needy and difficult animal.

Sounds like a traditional family dog like a lab might suit you better? They chew everything as puppies and need training like any other dog, but the breed characteristics are a bit less specialist IMO.

[Flippetydip]

crispbutty ....but so impressive on the intelligence front to be able to thieve like that!

We are looking at dog breeds too at the moment (although I'd be happier with a mutt) and I have definitely ruled out either bassetts or beagles for this time in our life!