Beagle

The Beagle is the smallest of the British pack hounds bred to hunt hare, and to be followed on foot, hence appealing to those who could not follow the larger scent hounds on horseback. The breed was established in England by the 15th century. Queen Elizabeth kept a pack of miniature Beagles small enough to be carried in a saddle pannier or a pocket. The miniature version has fallen out of favour in the UK but in the USA the breed is shown in two varieties and the smaller one is known as the Pocket Beagle.

Read the breed standard

Images for this breed

The Hound breed group

Breeds originally used for hunting either by scent or by sight. The scent hounds include the Beagle and Bloodhound and the sight hounds such breeds as the Whippet and Greyhound. Many of them enjoy a significant amount of exercise and can be described as dignified, aloof but trustworthy companions.

Colour Watch

Category 0: Breeds with no NBS colour registration options.

Read more about Colour Watch.

Breed Standard colours

Breed standard colour means that the colour is accepted within the breed standard and is a traditional and well-known colour in this breed.

Breed standard colours in this breed include:

Badger Pied
Badger Pied Mottle
Black & White
Black & White Mottle
Blue White & Tan
Blue White & Tan Mottle
Hare Pied
Hare Pied Mottle
Lemon & White
Lemon & White Mottle
Lemon Pied
Lemon Pied Mottle
Red & White
Red & White Mottle
Tan & White
Tan & White Mottle
Tricolour
Tricolour Mottle
White

Other colour/s

'Other' means you consider your puppy to be a colour not currently known within the breed and one that does not appear on either the breed standard or non-breed standard list. In this instance you would be directed through our registrations process to contact a breed club and/or council to support you on identifying and correctly listing the new colour.

Non-breed-standard colours

Non-breed-standard colour means that the colour is not accepted within the breed standard and whilst some dogs within the breed may be this colour it is advised to only select a dog that fits within the breed standards for all points.

Colour is only one consideration when picking a breed or individual dog, health and temperament should always be a priority over colour.

Whether you're considering buying a Beagle puppy or breeding from your dog, it's important to understand the health issues that may affect the breed and how they can be managed or avoided.

Pre-breeding health screening

Good Practice schemes and tests

We strongly recommend that breeders, at a minimum, conduct these tests before breeding, as evidence indicates these conditions are a significant concern in the breed.

Best Practice schemes and tests

These tests address conditions that are still significant for the breed, though they may not be as critical as those listed under Good Practice. They might be less common or newly identified, and research is ongoing to determine their full impact.

To support the breed’s health, responsible breeders should ensure they complete all tests in both categories. Following our Best Practice guidelines means completing both the Good Practice and Best Practice tests for your breed.

Click here to find out more about The Kennel Club's health standard

Find out about a particular dog's results

Please visit our Health Test Results Finder to discover the DNA or screening scheme test results for any dog on The Kennel Club's Breed or Activity Register.

You can also view the inbreeding coefficient calculation for a puppy's parents, or for a dog you're thinking of breeding from.

DNA testing services

To support your health testing journey, we provide our tailored Beagle Breed-Specific Package. Giving you the information you need about potential health risks, this package includes Factor VII deficiency (FVIID), Imerslund-Gräsbeck syndrome/Cobalamin malabsorption (IGS), Musladin-Lueke syndrome (MLS), Neonatal cerebellar cortical degeneration (NCCD), DNA Profile (SNP - ISAG 2020).

5 essential tests valued at £295 for just £150, that screen for multiple conditions at once, saving you time and providing vital health information.

Breed health & conservation plan

The Breed Health and Conservation Plans

Our breed health and conservations plans (BHCPs) use evidence and data to help us understand the health issues found in each pedigree dog breed. These plans help breeders and owners identify health and welfare problems and use information, health tests and health schemes to avoid passing on those problems to future puppies. They also support and provide breeders with tools and specialist expertise to help manage genetic diversity, understand the impacts of close breeding, and find the best ways to preserve the population of their breed.

Working together for the breed

We’ve worked with breed clubs and breed representatives to gather all available evidence to help us determine the priority concerns for the breed and decide how we can work together to manage and reduce these problems.

The full evidence base is available at the discretion of the breed clubs, however if you would like to seek access to the full report, please contact our health team.

Health (The Kennel Club)

More about health

If you have any concerns about a particular health condition in your breed then you may wish to speak to your vet or you could contact your breed health co-ordinator.

Breed health co-ordinators are individuals working on behalf of breed clubs and councils who are advocates for the health and welfare of their chosen breed. They acts as a spokesperson on matters of health and will collaborate with The Kennel Club on any health concerns the breed may have.

To contact your breed health co-ordinator please email

Samantha Goldberg

Breed watch

Category 1

Currently no points of concern specific to this breed have been identified for special attention by judges, other than those covered routinely by The Kennel Club's breed standard.