Beagle refuses to leave the house

Question
I recently brought home a 12.5 wk old beagle and for the first week he was loveable & docile and then about 3 days ago he became destructive, naughty & defiant. He loved going outside and for a walk up to a few days but he now refuses to leave the house. Hides when you say "outside" or even show him the leash. When I put his leash on anyway he throws himself on the floor & protests. If I carry him to the outside he just sits by the front door and won't walk any where & cries to go back in. What do I do to break this and why is he acting this way?

Answer
This is just a developmental stage, and common among many young puppies.  Your pup isn't being "defiant" he's just frightened.  If you don't make a big deal of it, and you encourage him with some tasty treats (don't be afraid to use some small bits of real meat), then he should be over this phase in short order.  If you scare him more by admonishing him or dragging him, then things won't improve nearly so fast.  Some people have found it helpful to carry the pup a bit away from the house, and let him walk toward safety, rather than try to drag him out toward the unknown;-)
I think it would be very, very helpful for you to get this dog in to a positive puppy class very quickly.  He is within the optimal socialization stage right now, so you will get a great head start on his life by doing that.  There's a really helpful article here to help you understand why it's so important: http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Position_Statements/puppy%...  If you are in the United States, you can find a positive trainer at www.trulydogfriendly.com.  Other good sites: www.peaceablepaws.com, http://www.karenpryoracademy.com/find-a-trainer or http://positively.com/dog-training/find-a-trainer/


"Destructive, naughty and defiant" is a much different description than "sleeps all the time" - I would say that you really should speak to your veterinarian.  Good luck and let me know how you make out.