My Life with Beagles

Some people say I’m crazy but I know I am blessed to have 5 Beagles at home currently and 3 in my past.

Growing up, I always had a dog in my life. First it was Shadow, the terrier mutt that was really my brother and sister’s dog (they are a bit older than me). But then, something amazing happened, my mom let me pick my own dog. I’m not sure why but I picked a beagle who I named Ralph. He was the sweetest dog. He would sit with me waiting for the bus and then miraculously be in the same spot when the bus brought me back home. Sadly, the bus ended his life. Then, I knew I had to have another beagle. So, my mom being the wonderful woman she is, helped me find another beagle, Samson. He was a rough and tumble kind of dog. Going on 2 – 3 day trips to God knows where (we lived in a rural area) but always returning home. He too enjoyed waiting with me at the bus stop and showing up when the bus dropped me back home. Looking back at my high school slumber parties, he was always in attendance. Stealing forbidden M&M’s or putting muddy paws on someone (he enjoyed the water fights we had at the end of every school year). Eventually I went off to college and he stayed behind with my mother. He was always the first one to greet me when I came home for a visit. I think somehow he also helped my mom in my absence. Unfortunately he was poisoned by antifreeze my Junior year in college.  So, time passed on and I met my hubby. I made it very clear to him that top priority for me was to get another beagle. He said we had to have a house and fence before that could happen. It took 2 long years but one evening after returning from a business trip, my hubby opened the garage door and the cutest little Beagle you’ve ever seen came running out to greet me. I knew I was home! That was Ralph, our (my hubby and I) first and now oldest beagle at 15 years old. Not too long after that came Rosie (because of course Ralph needed a friend)! After several years, Ralph and Rosie seemed to not be exercising as much and seemed to need a bit of a pick-me-up. So, much to my husband’s chagrin, I found a good breeder a ways from our house and we got Riley. Now, Ralph and Rosie perked up and became a lot more active and Riley was just the cutest puppy you could ever imagine. My husband had to agree that the 3rd beagle was a good idea. However, he sternly told me NO MORE. By this time, I had been able to persuade him that having the dogs in the house part-time really wasn’t a bad idea (hee! hee!). Well, as our careers matured, we were able to build our dream house on 5 acres of land. We had the 2 older B’s and then Riley who was looking a bit lonely for a younger B pal. The day we moved into our new home (it had been a very stressful time), I got a call from a breeder who said he had 1 beagle left, did I want to come see him. OF COURSE I DID. I drove up to the new house with Reggie in my arms. My husband took one look at him and said TAKE HIM BACK! Of course, I persuaded him that since all the other dogs loved me more that Reggie could be his dog. This worked! Now Riley had a friend and we were a family of 6. Things couldn’t be better until the crazy day we walked into PetSmart on Adoption day. First let me say that I love visiting the adoption dogs but I’ve never had the urge to take one home. After all, I had 4 of my own fur babies. Well, on this day, we saw Yo-Yo, to be named Rex and then to finally be named Roscoe. Roscoe is 85% beagle and 15% some other small dog. When I saw that dog, something in me screamed out. We just connected. My hubby was saying absolutely NO WAY are we going to take him home. After 45 minutes of begging, fighting etc in the PetSmart, Roscoe was on his way to a new home. No one knows how old he is but the vet estimates somewhere between 10 and 12. He has been the dog that has taught us patience. He was very abused and extremely shy when we got him. 3 years later, he will let me pet him and pick him up (not so much my hubby which causes him great sadness). On the worst of days, you look at Roscoe and see how far he has come from an abusive situation, through major back surgery (he had become unable to use his back legs in Jan 2010) to this wonderful pet who despite the odds made a full recovery from his 2 blown disks. He is an inspiration. So now to the very sad part. In October of 2009, Rosie succumbed to Kidney and Congestive Heart failure. It about killed me and my husband. After a few months, the house just seemed empty. The 4 remaining B’s were mopey and sad. So….. you guessed it, we got a new beagle, Rigby. He is an absolute joy. The one thing I can say is that each and every one of our Beagles has their own personality and they always have so much love to give. They have been there for me through the best times in my life and the worst. They have taught me patience, kindness and understanding. You just have to look into those deep brown eyes and you know they love you regardless of your weight or other flaws. My life would not be complete without them. If you have a pet, make sure you rejoice in their life everyday because you have been blessed!

- Tricia