[akodo1]

note, make sure you check your game laws. Here in MN it's legal to shoot any dog chasing deer which is true in most states. Many states include chasing any game animal out-of-season. Same goes if the dog is harassing livestock.

Even without a leash you are responsible for your dog, for what it does AND for what might happen to it.

 

[akodo1]

I've been hunting either both seriously and just for kicks (lol) a few times a year with Beagles since about 1994, and never heard that from any Beagler except the show breeders. Not sure where they got that one from, but there's no such requirement in the breed Standard, you can't see their tails in the brush when they're wagging it like a neurotic rudder, and many hunters love blueticks, redticks and black & tan's that will generally have dark colored tails.

show breeders like to throw in 'legends' about their no-longer-working dogs. I roll my eyes whenever someone tells me that Rhodesian Ridgebacks were 'lion hounds'.

 

[akodo1]

How do hunters ensure their beagles will not get lost and come back? Is there something I can do for fun to explore this side of my beagle?

Well, in my experience, hunters (and farmers) have follow-through. If you are done working or hunting and are back at the pickup and you call the dog and he doesn't come...get in the truck and leave. Most farmers and many local hunters will expect the dog to find it's way home, or will show back up to that spot the next morning. After that, the dogs generally come when called.

ALSO, a dog gets less interested in things when they get tired. A dog running all day is easier to recall than a dog that has just been on the ground for an hour or two.

FINALLY there is what I like to call the 'never before/never again' factor. Take your average show dog or pet dog from some sort of hunting breed. Maybe one time in his life he smells rabbit, duck, or whatever it is that he is bred for. He's going to get really excited and not want to recall. A dog that's been out hunting a dozen times, it knows when it gets recalled that likely you are moving to another hunting spot or something, so there will be more opportunities.