Yesterday we took in another Beagle. A girl this time, known as Millie, and about 1 and a half. She was the sweetest thing! Her and Oscar got on really well, there was lots of playing, lots of chasing, and lots of bowls of water!
She has zero training. She has never been in a house and isn't housetrained and she knows no basic commands. She was also pretty noise sensitive. Any loud-ish noise and she would run and cower away. She isn't great on the lead either. And while she is good with kids and dogs, she wasn't too comfortable with my Dad. She was also in heat! That didn't seem to cause any problems though, there was a little mounting on Oscars part but she wasn't slow to tell him off.
For a dog that isn't housetrained she went the whole night without an accident and today she was in, basically all day, without any accidents either.
The only problem was that only 4 hours into her stay with us, she climbed the fence and made a run for it to the neighbours garden! At that point the decision was made that we couldn't keep her. Its obviously sensible, if we can't keep her in the garden then she can't stay, but I'm devastated! She was so sweet, and while she was a little unsettled and unsure she bonded to me! She wouldn't go outside with my brother unless I went out too and she also took to following me about around the house.
She was smart too! In 5 minutes she had basically gotten the hang of 'sit' and she learned after only 1 meal that in order for the bowl to be put down she had to sit first.
She wasn't great on the lead but after 10 minutes she slowed down and stopped pulling so much.
For 21 hours we were a two dog household but now, now, we are a one dog household again! :-(
Oscar seems confused and maybe even a little sad that Millie is gone! Millie seemed happy to see her owner again though. I think she missed the kids more than anything else.
You could see that she wasn't well cared for though. Her coat was rough, dirty, smelly and her ears needed a clean, along with her eyes and her nails needed to be clipped. Getting her spayed wouldn't do her any harm either, especially since she is a Houdini dog!
It is such a pity that it didn't work out! If she hadn't escaped then she would still be here right now. If only we had a better fence, a proper wooden one! Why is my garden so big? And why are fence panels so expensive?
Life sucks, but maybe it wasn't meant to be. Maybe we could try again later (doubtful), with a different dog.
