Beagle Escapes...Again

In my last post, one of the things I shared about myself is that I'm an expert escape artist. Now, my humans thought that with old age, this beagle has mellowed, along with the urge and instinct to escape. After all, my last successful escape was way back in October 2008. Back then, my humans thought that a faulty automatic gate may have been my escape route...

Two days after that post, I proved my humans wrong. Despite being 8 years old (approximately 56 human years), this beagle still has the moves of an agile escape artist. My humans went out for dinner, leaving me home for an hour and a half. What kind of trouble can a beagle get into in 1.5 hours?

Well, the first thing my humans saw when they opened the automatic gate was shredded grass blades on the porch floor. "To be expected", they thought. The next thing they expected to see was a beagle running out to greet the car. Usually, they can tell if our neighbour has taken me over to their house because Aunty C leaves her wooden door open so I can look out for my humans' return. Since her wooden door was closed, they expected their little beagle to be home. Their heart sank when no beagle came out. They quickly rushed next door to check with Aunty C.

There were lots of confusion as to where this beagle had disappeared to. As it turns out, at the very moment my humans returned home, Aunty C heard the sound of dog tags (I wear a tag with my name and my humans's phone number as well as my dog licence) tinkling on the back lane. Since she is very in-tuned with this beagle, she decides to check out the sound and pops out back where she found this very beagle sitting outside her house! Aunty C rescues me from the backlane, and brings me to the front for a happy reunion with my humans! My escapade left me exhausted!



The next day, my humans check out my potential escape routes. Despite reinforcing our wooden fence with extra dog fence to increase the height of the fence, they think I may have managed to climbed over the fencing, in between our house and Aunty C's house. This area had new muddy paw prints and fresh broken leaves from the potted plant next door.



A second possible escape route may be where our post box is. Either way, my humans continue to be perplexed at how a medium-sized, 8 year-old canine managed to climb over 6 to 7 foot fencing...


Can anyone enlighten them please?

Actions...and consequences...

This is the beagle in action...

Digging the muddy garden when my humans are out. Hey, this beagle only wanted to have some fun


Trying to climb the wall when my humans are out. Check out the muddy beagle paw prints on my humans' newly painted garden wall.


This is the beagle facing the consequences of her actions...

Check out the mournful look on my face as I face bath time to get rid of the mud mask on my nose and mouth (my humans didn't buy the facial argument - but hey, human ladies pay good money for mud masks and I get it free from the garden...)



This is the beagle trying to undo the effects of the bath by rolling on the floor (my humans were not pleased!)



Having a game of tug of war over the bath towel with my human. Probably the most fun part of bath time. Check out those paw prints on the wooden gate. Yeah...part of my high jump actions when my humans are out.



Finally, a happy and mud-free beagle (at least until my humans go out next!)


"No beagle ever did, or ever will escape the consequences of her choices" (at least not if she belongs to my humans)
paraphrased from a quote by Alfred A. Montapert

In the Doghouse

Here are the many reasons why I land my beagle butt in the doghouse - defined as "being out of favour, and in trouble with a person or people, (i.e. my humans), because of an offence".

1) Killing my humans' precious red palm (Notice how thick the trunk is!)

2) Opening the bag of soil that was meant for re-potting my humans' plants(I was only trying to help spread it out...)

3) Having a bath in the mud during a thunderstorm whilst my humans are out (I don't understand why I need a second bath after that!)

4) Biting my humans' shoe cabinet and destroying their bright red special "Chinese New Year" tissue box cover (It's their fault for leaving a lonely beagle at home when they go out)

And now for the finale:

5) Scratching my humans' lovely wooden gate with my many high jump attempts (They don't buy the excuse that I am trying out for the Olympics)

Well, here's proof...First, the run...


Then the jump!


Now I ask you - should I really be sent to the doghouse for any or all of the above? Tell me what you think.

"Dog" Series
1. It's a dog's life
2. Fighting like cats and dogs(Beagle Identity Crisis)
3. Gone to the dogs
4. Let sleeping dogs lie
5. It's dogged as does it
6. The Underdog (vs. Top dog) (The Awesome Blog Award Nomination)
7. Every Dog Has Its Day
8. Dog Star
9. Hot Dog (Yikes...Man eats dog)
10. Dog days are here
11. Puppy love
12. Raining cats and dogs (Oops...Spoke too soon)

In Defence of Beagles

I have received overwhelming support from the dog bloggers community over the newspaper article on "Slow Dogs - Meet the World's 10 least intelligent dogs", which listed beagles in the list. Thank you dear friends for your comments and support for beagles.

I decided that it wasn't enough to voice my indignation about the article on my blog. So, last weekend, I sent the following e-mail to the Editor of the Weekender to present our views. Hopefully, this gets published so that readers of the paper do not get the wrong impression about beagles.


Dear Weekender Editor,
I refer to your article “Slow Dogs -Meet the world’s 10 least intelligent dogs” published on 11 October 2008. The article lists the Beagle as one of the “slow dogs”. As a beagle, I have a duty to defend my breed from being wrongly identified as a “slow dog”. The following points are my views and that of my fellow dog bloggers.

The criterion of “hardest to train” which was used to rank a dog’s intelligence is faulty. A dog that is hard to train does not mean that the dog is not intelligent. Yes, beagles are challenging to train. By nature, beagles are hunting dogs. This means that we are strongly governed by our nose and are easily distracted by scents. Unlike some breeds which are bred to work one-on-one with humans and have a strong desire to please their handlers, beagles are bred to work in a pack with other dogs. Hence, the desire to please our human handlers is a lot less. This leads to the perception that beagles are stubborn.

The challenge in training a beagle is using the right motivation tool. Beagle owners know that the one thing that never fails to motivate us is food. Beagles are intelligent and learn quickly when motivated. In fact, airports around the world use beagles as sniffer dogs to prevent illegal items from being smuggled into the country. This shows that beagles can be trained to provide service, if humans know how to motivate us. Of course, our intelligence can be a bane to our humans. Beagles are notorious for being escape artists because we are able to figure out how to get out from our enclosures - this requires both intelligence and agility. (I have escaped from my garden many times by scaling the fence, much to my humans’ chagrin.)

The article certainly does not do justice to beagles. Whilst I can understand that the title “Slow Dogs - Meet the world’s 10 least intelligent dogs” is certainly more catchy than “Meet the world’s 10 most difficult to train dogs”, it is incorrect and irresponsible to equate "difficulty to train" with "intelligence".

By Kess, the Beagle











P.S. My humans didn't have to teach me to carry my leash when going for walks. I learnt it myself.

Oops...I Did It Again

Inspired by Sophia's amazing stunt, and determined to prove that beagles are NOT slow dogs, I did it again...Yes, I managed to escape this morning when my mum went to town to run some errands. It is still a mystery to my humans how I did it.

Based on our neighbour (and my occassional sitter) Aunty C's account, I was found in the arms of a "good samaritan"heading towards my home. It appears that this gentle lady found me roaming down the street and carried me back. Aunty C did not recognise her but was very thankful (as are my humans).

As it turns out, Aunty C found our gate open. Now, mum is certain she closed the auto gate when she left in the morning. Upon closer inspection when she returned home, she saw patches of dirty paw prints (it has been raining cats and dogs everyday!) on the wooden gate. So, their theory is that I have somehow managed to bulldoze the autogate open. Further checks on the gate revealed that the latch is now somewhat loose.

Anyway, mum has called the technician to come and inspect the gate to prevent further escapes. She is also contemplating installing a CCTV to capture my escapades. Until then, I'm not telling how I did it. Who says beagles are slow?

P.S. I am still peeved at the allegation that beagles are slow dogs, so I have decided to do a poll to seek the views of my fellow dog bloggers. So, do take part. Terima kasih (Thank you in Malay).

Beagles...Slow Dogs???

I AM PEEVED! My humans came across an article on the Star last Saturday on "Slow Dogs...Meet the world's 10 least intelligent dogs".

1. Afghan Hound
2. Basenji
3. Bulldog
4. Chow Chow
5. Borzoi
6. Bloodhound
7. Pekinese
8. Mastiff and Beagle
9. Basset Hound
10. Shi Tzu

Apparently, this list is according to international kennel clubs, after a survey on 80 established breeds. The criteria for intelligence, get ready for this...is "how difficult to train the dog"! Duh! The article states "Snoopy, from the Peanuts comic strip will never recover from this rankinig, for beagles are happy-go-lucky and merry, and enjoy the company of humans and other dogs. Curious and comic, they follow their noses and often end up in mischief and hilarious situations."

If you have seen the video on Sophia, the ultimate beagle escape artist, you would know that beagles not only possess extraordinary agility abilities (beagle owners can attest to that!) but also great intelligence. How else do you think, we, beagles are able to figure out a fail-proof escape route?

Obviously, the training criteria used to define "intelligence" is faulty. We beagles are governed by our nose, which means we are easily distracted by scents. We are also an independent lot, This may make it more challenging to train us, it is by no means an indication of our "low intelligence". In fact, I constantly amaze my fans (i.e neighbours, family and friends) with my clever escapes and tricks for treats, of course. Apart from cleverly providing home entertainment, beagles have important jobs to protect security as sniffer dogs at airports and borders.

If you ask me, it is not us beagles that are slow dogs. The author of the article, while human, may fall into this category coz he/she can't count. There are 11 dogs on the list. Duh!

The Ultimate Beagle Escape Artist

My humans have always wondered how I managed to scale the 6-foot fence in our garden. Now, they know how. No, they didn't catch me in action. Instead, their Thai friend sent them this video. My humans were so intrigued, the googled it on Facebook and found the original video of Sofia's escape caught on tape. Way to go Sofia! Beagle power!

Check it out now. Do persevere with the download. It is worth watching!

Sit, Look Left, Look Right, OK!

Safety is paramount. So, road rules are very important for suburban doggies. My humans always makes me sit and stay before we cross a major road. They then look left, look right, and left again to ensure the road is clear before releasing me with the "OK" command. Initially, they tried to follow this rule at every road crossing, but because there were so many little roads, I would have ended up sitting every 5 minutes or so! So, now, it applies to major roads only.

The picture that mum took of me and dad, whilst not planned, shows me looking to the left, and dad looking to the right which fits in perfectly with look left and right before crossing! Aahh...it's one of those Kodak moments!

Back to the road, let me tell you about a little adventure of mine. As you can see from the picture, this is a 4-lane road. Buses use this route and the road is busy during peak hours in the mornings and evenings. A couple of years ago, I decided to visit grandma and grandpa who live about 5km from our home. To get there, we have to cross this road. Now, mum & dad walk me to their place very often so I know the route by my "pee markings". So, one rainy afternoon, when mum & dad were at work, I wanted some company and climbed over the fence to make my way to gramps' home, which included crossing this busy road by myself. I arrived at gramps' home wet, but safe. They were pretty surprised to see me, to say the least. Until today, when we share this story, people are amazed that I made it without being injured in an accident or getting lost or dog-napped. Mum & dad are so thankful that God and His angels had their eye on me the whole journey. It was a lovely adventure for me, but I think I almost gave mum, dad, grandpa and grandma a heart attack! Pups, don't try this at home...

Rainy Day Adventures

"Rain, rain go away. Come again another day" Remember this chant? Well, we've had more than enough occassions to recite this in recent days. In a tropical country like Malaysia, the rainy season is part and parcel of our weather. But, is it just me or does it seem that the rainy season seems to get longer and longer?

A couple of days back, I was in a 1.5 hr car ride. No, I didn't cross inter-state borders... My humans and I were stuck in KL's infamous traffic jam that occurs each time it rains. My human dad was wondering why he should pay toll when the traffic jam started way before the toll and continued way after the toll. A 0.5 hr journey became 1.5 hrs. I'm glad I wasn't driving so I settled down for a nap instead. Good thing my humans took me to pee before the journey (Doggie tip). Otherwise, I might have an embarassing accident in the car.

Like most dogs, I don't like thunderstorms. I'm fine with the rain if I'm with my humans. I may bark when the wind blows the door shut, but otherwise I'm OK. But when I'm home alone, I get scared and want to look for my humans. I've actually escaped from my home a couple of times during thunderstorms.

My most recent escapade took place just a few weekends ago. My humans had gone out for dinner. As the rain got heavier, I decided to go over to my neighbour's house. After a couple of attempts (did you know that beagles are very persistent?), I managed to push the planter box off the gate post and using the auto gate box for leverage, I managed to get up and jumped down from our 6 foot fence. Then, I sat outside Aunty CK's house and waited patiently for her to open the door. I knew I wouldn't have to wait too long coz Aunty CK checks up on me regularly when I'm home alone. Aunty CK was pretty surprised to see me at her gate (it has been a long while since my last escape)and quickly let me in. She towelled me dry and kept me at her home.

I was a happy doggie once again, now that I had good company. Dry and contented, I settled down for a snooze at Aunty CK's home (hey, escaping is hard work)and waited for my humans to return. Boy, you should have seen the look on their faces when they came home and found me next door! Stay tuned for the next episode of rainy day adventures...