1.) Should we get males, females, or one of each? why?
My personal preference is for males, and IMHO a nautered male makes the best pet. Females can be more protective and a tad bit more tempermental in my experience. However, with well bred Beagles there is little difference between the sexes, they both have pros & cons which boil down to personal preference.
***I WOULD NOT*** advise acquiring two pups at once and especially two littermates. Siblings tend to have rivalry issues and raising two pups together is extremely time consuming, patience trying work. Beagles love one on one attention and require a great deal of it as pups. They are also a moderately high energy breed indoors.
They do love the company of other dogs and especially other Beagles. My best advice would be wait until the first pup is closer to a year old or so and *has been neutered* already before bringing on another pup. It will lessen the chance of adolescent aggression significantly, agian, in my experience. Also, NEVER do two females, whether or not they will be spayed. Some females do get along quite well, but its too high a risk and can easily end in bloodshed.
They will be outside during the day when conditions allow and sleep in crates at night. Should they be put together in one large crate or should they have their own?
I own six hunting/companion Beagles and while these hounds love to be outside and thrive on fresh air, exercize, they are NOT outdoor dogs. I believe that is probably the number one fallacy regarding the breed. Most people assume since they are a hunting breed, they should be left outside. Nope.
Your dogs will never reach the level of mental and physical stimulation in the yard that they would while hunting. You also need to realize that hunting dogs who are left outside or kenneled are one of two things: noisy or fearful. Beagles left outside howl, WHINE, dig, occupy themselves by eating feces, and are a general nuisance. A little known fact is that Beagles are prone to clinginess and can be very spoiled creatures. They like to be outside but don't want to be out for more than a few hours. When mine are out more than an hour at a time, they get into twigs, rocks, and make a mess of the yard. They're getting bored and want to come inside, where they demand to be fussed over on someone's lap. Yeah, these are hunting dogs, lol.
As for the crate, go with two seperate ones. They begin to view the crate as personal space and will fight over the space they think is rightfully theirs. Plus, it will be wise to feed the dogs while each is safely locked in their crates and that can't be done with one large crate.
JMHO, but pick up a few good Beagle books and talk with a reputable breeder about the breed before you make the final decision.
