Beagles are not just rabbit dogs

[One Eye]

The other thread made me want to share this and ask others about it.

How many of you have used a beagle for squirrel hunting? My dad's 3 year old female beagle is a better squirrel hunter than rabbit hunter. He had a similar experience with a beagle many years ago. The current dog will run rabbits, but she will leave that trail in a heartbeat to run a squirrel scent.

Just wondering if anyone else has seen this? Thanks.
Dan

[riverroadbeagles]

Had a few over the years that would try to run squirrels but would quickly break them. Use to have a couple that we used to hunt pheasants with. We started to attend some field trials so we only let are beagles run rabbits.

[jackbob42]

I've got one that will tree squirrels.
I just hunt him where there ain't none. LOL

[Wishin_Fish]

Our beagle gets teased by the darn squirrels in the back yard almost everyday. I don't know of much really good rabbit hunting around the Muskegon area so I have been working with her to tree squirrels also. When there is rabbit scent on the ground there could be a hundred tree rats barking at her and she doesnt care. But take her in the good squirrel woods where there is few if any bunnies and her eyes are on the trees. She is stalking the tree rats in the yard as I type :lol:

[Rocko0305]

Had a beagle awhile back that was a great grouse and woodcock hunter because she liked to stay pretty close.

[john warren]

thats interesting. id love to watch how they work on squirrel. beagles in general aren't treeing dogs. do they look to the trees to spot squirrel? or as i woule suppose mostly ground scent them?

[Wishin_Fish]

John with my beagle i walk her often in the woods by our house. I have seen her take scent and follow it up a tree then her eyes stay looking up and she hops on her front feet and will bay/bark at the squirrel.

Other times and more commonly if there is no good scent on the ground and she hears one bark (or if I point out an area and "get the squirrel") she will run around looking in the trees for a squirrel, she looks like she has ADD or something, its pretty funny to watch. Once she sees it she won't let it be untill I come over there. I never had to walk more then 40 yards or so to look up in the trees because she doesn't range off unless on scent. If she scents rabbit then her instinct takes over. Its a work in progress training her for squirrels but we are getting there.

She treed one in this pine tree a couple weeks ago while on a walk..
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn189/billsduster/100_5995.jpg