I've Grown to HATE a full length tail on a beagle!!

[scrubkennels]

I cant see where removing an inch or two from the tail prevents it from hitting thorns or that the hair grows so thick now that thorns cant reach the hide. im thinking its eather BS or the tail is now injured and the dog no longer whips it side to side or now runs with it lowered. im sure it would be like us injuing are selfs if it hurts when something touches it we quit doing that. so you may be hurting more then helping. ive never know a dog too die from a bloody tail, or stop hunting because of one. but like many people have said they are your dogs do with what you want. a guy down this way use to freeze brand his dogs ears, never understood that either.

[BCBeagles]

Huntsman I respect your choice and I assure you it would not make me hesitate to book a pup from you if I wanted one.......scrubkennels....it equates out to about 2-3 inches less tail......thanks for your comments...everyone is entitled to their opinion....

Good running to all!

[Newt]

[quote="LR Patch" I don't see or understand that comment . If one quits hunting for a sore tail then IMO it lacks grit , I've seen my dogs run with bloody tails , cut / ripped pads , barb-wire cuts on legs , necks , ripped ears and one poked-out eye but they don't quit .
rv[/quote]

Have you ever seen one whose tail was so bloody that an artery was squirting blood each time its heart beat.
They will quit or die when the blood starts to get low.

[wingmaster_01]

I have to agree with Jim. I've done the duct tape, that just caused more problems when I had to cut the bloody tape from their tails at the end of the day. My motto has always been, they have 15 minutes to bleed or they don't stay at the 4016. So why make their lives harder than it has to be. I too dock a tail now and then. Their his hounds, he's entitled to do what he thinks is best. Jus sayn.
Good Luck and good running during the artic blast,
Alan

[snowshoehareguide]

, ive never had a dog quit because of a bloody tail ,not in one day or even several days of it - ive had them gradually over days or weeks ,, get weaker-- even very close to death-- -- one of toughest beagles ive ever seen was like this---and i never did dock her tail but every winter would be a few weeks id have to lay her up and a couple years almost lost her--

that dog changed my mind about it-- - i had one going that way this year- banded him and kept hunting - no more bleeding , he has gained weight,,looks shinier-- more energy-- i dont do pups but i dont think its a bad idea- i will do any dogs that bleed excessively and feel pretty stupid that once again , i waited to the point dog is getting weak-































































































that dog changed my mind about it-- i dont hesitate at all now--

[Alabama John]

I'm surprised that no one I know of has bred for a shorter tail! Some have bred for shorter or longer ears, why not tails.

[gwyoung]

Jim, If you made this post to bring attention to the pups you have for sale, then you are a marketing genius, over 2200 views! If you just wanted to let prospective buyers know whats up and talk about dogs you did pretty good there also. Anyhow, my hounds probably have shorter tails than most and also are not thin and rat-tailed, but they get bloody , bare, and raw. They will paint their sides red, the hounds around them red, etc. I guess they are in the wrong place on the hound and I should probably start breeding them to have their tails sprout from the back of their necks and lay nicely down along the top of their backs. I am not sure how docking a couple inches from tails will prevent them from getting raw as when you dock a couple inches from most hounds they will not be any shorter than mine generally are? But I dont know. How long are the hounds tails after docking ,on an adult. Maybe Joeyman can answer and post some pictures. Hounds that hunt hard in the Briars will slack off some when their tails become raw and painful, if some have hounds that dont they should consider my hunt hard in the briars remark. Hounds will try to prevent pain, this is why E- collars are so effective. I guess the hounds that dont learn after a couple lessons with the e- collars are not stupid, they just have a lot of grit! That reminds me of a childhood friend of mine, we called him Crazy willie. When kids we had a couple feet of snow and we couldnt get out and about and he came to my house to spend the day. pot-bellied stove was glowing red he got the idea that if he touched it and removed his finger fast enough he wouldnt get burned , after burning four or five fingers my mom came into the room saw what was going on and made him stop. (Moms were the E- collar of the day) I thought Willie was stupid , but have since learned that he just had grit! Been thinking as to whether some ole boys on here just have a lot of grit!

[Newt]

, ive never had a dog quit because of a bloody tail ,not in one day or even several days of it - ive had them gradually over days or weeks ,, get weaker-- even very close to death-- -- one of toughest beagles ive ever seen was like this---and i never did dock her tail but every winter would be a few weeks id have to lay her up and a couple years almost lost her--

that dog changed my mind about it-- - that dog changed my mind about it-- i dont hesitate at all now--

The same thing happened to me. I had a bitch, Josie, by Kalagha that hunted non stop. One day I noticed that she was lethargic and was slowing. She was the type dog that if you called her she would come, but would hunt through the bushes as she came back. That day I called and she came and sat down. I looked and there was blood coming from her tail in little squirts. I took her home, banded her tail, and she was back to normal the next time I ran her.

In response to AJ's question," why don't we breed for shorter tails with less whip action?". I'm ready to breed to a young male that has that characteristic . If it works I'll respond in about a year.

[gwyoung]

I could hardly believe the timing of this thread as it came right as I as finishing up my stud ad for the magazine. I am only going to breed to 25 females so those on this board will get a jump on the folks that have to wait for the magazine to come out. Here is the ad in it's entirety. 15" male , brown in color , naturally short tail with no whip action! I don't see why it would be necessary to list anything else but if you want to know about some of his traits of lesser importance, pm me. ( of course I will put my phone number in the magazine ad)

[letumrun]

I had a jack russel once it had a short tail

[gwyoung]

If it would have been hooked onto the back of it's head you would have had a gold mine! All of mine are located on their rearends which I understand is a fault.

[BCBeagles]

Thanks for the replies....this was SIMPLY me stating my choice and opinion....NOT a publicity stunt...

Some support it...others were offended(that truly equals out)...even accused me of covering flaws....believe what you will.....you are GREATLY entitled to your opinion and hope you respect mine...many many fine men and women died so we can speak our mind....I greatly respect that.

Carry on if you will....

[gwyoung]

Jim, I hope you didn't take my post wrong, I support you 100 percent. The only thing in your posts that I disagree with is when you said you apologize if you offended anyone! You apologized for exercising and opinion you have every right to and an action you have every right to take. We live in the land of the easily offended, Of course you have every right to make an apology anytime you want, but I wouldn't worry too much about it, I suspect some of them go around offended all the time concerning other people's business! Some are of the opinion the tail is in the wrong place and that is the problem, I simply suggested putting it on the back of the head where it will be out of the way, I think this is a good solution that all of us could live with.

[S.R.Patch]

One time us kids was chase'n each other round the house and out to the barn. Well, we'd cut through the garden and grab a old mater or two to chuck at each other along the way. Well, I stepped on a corn stubble one of the trips and run it in my foot, boy did that hurt, but we kept it up as we was have'n to much fun,... but I'll tell you what, any the kids we ever tricked into pee'n on the hot wire round the hog lot never did it again! ... there's pain and then there's volts/amps and believe me there is a difference... ...but on that shock collar some can take more and some can't take but a little... jmho

I think folks who've had hounds over time have had a "bleeder", one who always come out after a hunt the worse for wear when you know the others have been through the same brambles and done as much work. I always look at my own hounds as they're wearing themselves out excessively over nothing, a weakness that hampers their usefulness and durability whether it's thin skin or lack of coat or tail whipping, some designs just fail where others just hold up better.
Cutting down a tail won't make the weakness go away but may save the hound alot of grief. But like Randall said, "the more we take on to do for hounds, the more we create a job never finished."

[BCBeagles]

No offense taken....thanks for your comments. Best of luck with the hounds you chose to chase....it is a lot of fun these little old beagles....

With full tails or not......