Learning to be a Beagle | Missy the Beagle Home | Mounting medical problems

One of the great things about Missy (I think this is true of all beagles) was the sensational greeting I got when I arrived home. There are a lot of days when its nice to have at least one creature who makes you feel wanted and important.

When I first got home, I pushed the button that opens the garage door. This made a racket, and that's when the dogs knew I was there. Missy immediately climbed up on the back of the sofa and looked at me out the front window. I saw her face, with her eyes fixed on me intently. One of my deepest regrets is that I never took a picture of Missy looking for me out the front window.

As I got out of the car (if I wasn't pulling in), or started driving into the garage, she disappeared from the window and I knew she had run to the door. Then she began to howl.

She howled and howled and howled until I came inside. But if it took me a while (say, I had to bring in the garbage cans), then she switched to the most pathetic, mournful howl that you can imagine. It sounded as though every friend she knew had just died. To make matters worse, Barkley joined in with the same mournful howl.

As soon as I came in the door she ran up to me, jumped on me, and sniffed at me (to see where I'd been and what I'd been up to).

I gave her scratches, but she wouldn't lick my face the way BJ and Barkley did. Missy never licked a person -- this must have been something her first owners taught her was wrong. I tried to get her to lick, but the closest she would come was to nip slightly at my ear lobe. I think she was trying to lick, but without extending her tongue from her mouth.

Watching Missy run was hilarious. This may be because she grew up in a limited space, with no chance to practice running. She didn't just run with her legs -- she threw her entire body into it. Her head and shoulders rocked down while her hind end flew up in the air, then her head and shoulders flew up while her butt rocked down. This left her ears flapping up and down wildly, while her tail flew all over the place. Another one of my regrets is that I never made a video of her running.

Missy was also a girl who knew what she wanted. For example, if she wanted breakfast, and I wasn't up yet, she'd jump up on the bed and swat me with her paw. Or if I was sitting and typing, and she wanted to be scratched, she would get up on my leg and drag my arm down with her paw. She made it impossible to type.

Missy was completely fearless (unless we were going to the vet <g>). She weighed 24 pounds, for example, while Barkley weighed 80, but if they got into a fight -- say, over some food -- she attacked fiercely and he always backed down. And when a potentially dangerous stranger (they are all potentially dangerous <g>) came through the door, Missy always led the pack of dogs waiting to meet him or her.

(Aside for dog tip: Don't try to separate fighting dogs -- you'll just get bit. Instead, throw a glass of water on them. They will stop instantly, and all you will have to do is mop up.)

Here's another story of Missy's courage: When the dogs go into the yard, Barkley would sometimes push his way out first, then spin around and stand in the doorway. As BJ came out, he'd try to grab her head in his jaws. He was just playing -- he was still a puppy at heart -- but BJ did not appreciate it. She was much older, much smaller (20 pounds to his 80), and had bad eyesight.

One night Barkley was standing just outside the door, waiting to attack BJ when she came out. She was standing in the doorway, barking fiercely but afraid to go out. I was also standing there, trying to drive Barkley away. When suddenly a white-and-black-and-brown torpedo shot by us and laid into Barkley so fiercely that he went reeling backwards! It was Missy to the rescue! Driving Barkley back so BJ could go outside.

I have two MPEG videos of Missy. They're each about 1.4Mb. One shows Missy eating a piece of cheese, and the other shows her barking at potential intruders. Both were made when she was already sick, so she wasn't at her most energetic. Also, the barking at intruders is pretty dark, but it does give you a chance to hear her voice (every beagle has a voice). Here they are:

Having a piece of cheese
Barking at intruders

Learning to be a Beagle | Missy the Beagle Home | Mounting medical problems