Basic Care for a Beagle Puppy

Place a collar with identification tags on your puppy when it arrives home with you. If available in your area, consider tattooing or placing a microchip on your dog to help return it home safely if it becomes lost.

Ensure the health and nutrition of your puppy. Take your puppy to a qualified veterinarian as soon as you bring it home. Your veterinarian will evaluate your dog's health and provide you with a schedule for routine shots and checkups. Ask your veterinarian for recommendations for heartworm medicine and flea and tick control. Feed it quality puppy food designed to aid the growth of a puppy in its first year. Follow the feeding amounts provided on the food or by your veterinarian. Most puppies eat one to one and one half cups of food each day.

Groom your beagle puppy on a regular basis. Beagles shed gently throughout the year, but will also shed heavily for a few weeks in the spring and fall as they grow. Brush your puppy routinely using a brush or hound glove to keep it clean when it is not shedding heavily. During the spring and fall when the shedding becomes very heavy, brush your puppy each day to help remove the fur. As your puppy grows, trim its nails using a pair of nail clippers. Take care not to cut its nails too short or they will bleed. If the nail begins to bleed, use a styptic pencil to stop the blood. Ask your veterinarian to show you the correct length for your puppies' nails at your next visit if you are unsure. Beagle puppies do not need frequent baths as long as you keep them adequately brushed. If your puppy does need a bath due to dirt or odor, use a gentle puppy shampoo to keep its skin and coat healthy.

Play with your beagle puppy and take it for walks on a leash. Just like humans, puppies need routine exercise through play or walks to keep them healthy and active. Playing with your puppy for at least an hour per day will also allow it time to bond with you and the other family members in a fun setting. Allow your puppy to run freely in your back yard as long as it is fenced as you play. Watch over your puppy as it plays outdoors and with toys. Some toys, such as plush, can break or tear apart and become choking hazards for dogs.

Train your beagle using positive reinforcement techniques. Through repetition and rewards, puppies can learn to walk calmly on a leash, sit, lie down and come when called. Give your puppy simple commands such as "sit," "down," hustle," and "come" and reward it with a small treat when it obeys. If your dog has trouble learning simple commands, enroll in obedience classes to learn the basic skills and socialize with other dogs.

Crate train your dog to help it learn to use the bathroom outdoors. Choose a crate that is slightly bigger than your puppy and allow her to sleep in the crate or to play in the crate when you are out. Since dogs to not like to soil where they sleep, it will learn to wait until you let it out of the crate and take it outside to use the bathroom. It is important that you do not leave a puppy in a crate for more than a few hours. While the crate may be a happy home, a puppy needs to go outside and use the bathroom every few hours and be allowed time to exercise and play.