Teacup Beagles: Inbreeding, Crossbreeding, Traits and Where to Find

A teacup dog is just what it sounds like. Well, sort of.

A teacup dog is a dog that is of such small size that it can fit, fully, inside of a teacup. This is generally just when it's a puppy, and when it becomes full-grown it's at least twice that size. But the name has stuck.

The problem with teacups dogs, however, is that they are much more prone to health problems, are much weaker physically, and usually have a lower life expectancy. Trade off for trade off, teacup dogs don't take much work to take care of; they are easily groomed and - the best part of all - don't need a lot of food. That means cheaper, folks, much, much cheaper. They do need some extra attention during the first year to make sure they are trained properly. A lot of the times they grow up unaware of how small and weak they are compared to others and this can get them into serious problems. Train them well, though, and there shouldn't be any issues.

It's only in the last five years that the popularity of teacup dogs has risen. Maybe it's because we love to put things in our pocket (not that you should ever put a dog in your pocket) or maybe because we like convenience. Either way teacup dogs are here to stay.

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One of the main health issues with having a teacup dog is that their life expectancy is greatly reduced. This isn't the case with all teacup dogs, but is so for the majority. Be forewarned to take special care of your teacup dog as it is more vulnerable to certain diseases.

There are two ways to breed a teacup beagle - also known as a miniature beagle or toy beagle - and both are a little controversial. They are:

1. Inbreed Continuously. What this means is that a breeder will take two runts of the litter, or two of the smallest puppies, and breed them together in hopes to have an even smaller litter. They will repeat this process - in accordance that each litter is smaller - until they have a litter of teacup beagles. The most controversial part about this is that by taking the runts of each litter you're making the new litters much more vulnerable to health problems; a lot of runts are already the weakest of the lot and so by further breeding them together you are just increasing the chances. Therefore when the desired teacup beagle is achieved they are usually much weaker and are likely to be born with health problems.
2. Cross Breeding. Not as controversial as inbreeding, but still a little shaky, cross breeding, is when two different breeds of dogs are bred together. For the example of the beagle, this would be crossing a normal beagle with a much smaller dog; breeding a beagle with a poodle would likely produce a teacup beagle.

Beagles are one of the most popular dogs on the planet and teacup beagles are no different. They both exhibit the same type of personality - fun loving, easy to take care of, friendly in almost all manners. Below is a further list of what you can expect from a teacup beagle.

• Beagles eat a lot. In fact they will eat almost any thing. Now, whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is up to you; it is nice, though, to be able to call the dog to clean up the kitchen floor from time to time.
• A teacup beagle required very little in the grooming department. Maybe once every two weeks if you really want to.
• Beagles are somewhat sensitive. They love attention.
• Beagles used to be commonly bred for hunting purposes and therefore love to walk a lot. Be careful with a teacup beagle, though. It may believe it has more energy and strength than it does, so make it rests from time to time.
• Difficult to house train but once trained one of the best dogs on the planet.
• Don't like cats.
• A wonderful family companion.
• Will bark at strange noises; either a good thing or a bad thing considering where you may live.

Also known as pocket beagles, toy beagles, or miniature beagles, teacup beagles are a hard breed of beagle to find. That doesn't mean they aren't out there, though - because they are. You can find teacup Beagles from the following breeders:

Pocket Beagles USA:

A 40 acre kennel in Texas this is the most well known place to find toy beagles. They guarantee that the teacup beagles are a 100 percent purebred. Now remember what this means - it means that they are inbreeding their beagles, breeding the runts continuous until they get a teacup litter. The kennel further promised that the beagles are some of the healthiest in the country, are played with and loved daily, and, if have any health problems, they will be dealt with before being sold.

Their beagles come in many different colors - a quick look at their site will show you a white beagle, a black a white beagles, a classic brown beagle, and even a few more. The prices are reasonable too, some $500, some upwards of $1500.

Pups Heaven.

This kennel is up north in Canada but has the same kind of guidelines as its counterpart in the US. They gurantee a 1 year health guarantee and they have a deal where you will receive a puppy kit, including food and training guides, when you buy a teacup beagle. They will also be given their first vacinne and receive a good health certificate from the vet.

They don't say whether these teacup beagles are inbred or crossbred, but from all the health checks it seems its the prior. That means you'll probably be receiving a teacup beagle that is purebred and in good health. Not a bad combo.

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