Basenji Health Issues & Questions

Hair loss

Vesna — Tue, 01 Apr 2025 07:38:33 GMT

Hi everyone, my 4-year old Frida (tricolor, spayed) has lost almost all of her fur on her belly, chest and now even throat and inner side of the legs. Also the sides of her torso are starting to discolor and the hair is thinning there as well. we have been to the vets and all her test are coming back negative, or normal. Yesterday we were at vet-dermatologist and she says it's probably alopecia X, even though basenjis are not a typical breed to get it. She did draw blood from her again to test for the sex-hormones balance, but that was rather on my insistence... The skin is otherwise completely healthy - no redness, soreness or itching.
Did anyone else ever had this problem with their basenji and how did you deal with it - should i consider dressing her in thin layers on hot days to prevent sunburn?
Any advice would be welcome!

thank you

Fecal incontinence after possible spinal injury

njdeb — Fri, 06 Dec 2024 14:46:45 GMT

@Saving Thanks so much for the information! I am researching further and continuing with her rehab exercises as best I can. Glad you recovered from your spinal injuries.

Belly Rash

Saving — Sun, 21 Jul 2024 17:53:55 GMT

Did she always have them or did they start after something/some time? Do antihistamines clear the problem?

Bordatella and Canine Influenza Vaccines

Saving — Thu, 02 Feb 2023 19:27:14 GMT

@elbrant said in Bordatella and Canine Influenza Vaccines: @Saving said in Bordatella and Canine Influenza Vaccines: divisive I guess I'm a dreamer.... but I believe that adults can have discussions and opinions without resorting to name calling and rude remarks. Your input is valuable. Thanks, because it's become a religion as soon as you speak against it people get so offended. The last 3 years has shown that quite clearly @Saving said in Bordatella and Canine Influenza Vaccines: Another friend's dog has a swollen leg at the vaccination site of his booster which is not resolving I"m sorry to hear about your friend's loss and understand the concern about the other friend's swollen leg. I had a similar experience, one of my dog's (not doodle) had a grossly swollen leg following a vet visit. The Vet told me it was cancer and I opted to let her go. Month's later I read online that it could have been the result of an allergic reaction. Please advise your friend to research possible answers before she makes a decision. Will do, a lot of the medication/vaccines cause inflammatory responses so it could just be that, it's still not nice for the dog to have that experience @Saving said in Bordatella and Canine Influenza Vaccines: dry food ... suffering from malnutrition omgosh! That is so scary!! I doubt the big manufacturers would ever allow a real study to see the light of day, but I would love to see one done. Just the thought makes me want to keep feeding my girl human grade foods. Yeah the same here, her research indicated that raw chicken wings were the optimal food and contain pretty much everything needed. I guess if you think of some of the processed crap they have in supermarkets trading as food for humans you can imagine how low the bar can go for pet food.

Crystals in urine (cystine)

senjisilly — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 16:28:48 GMT

Sorry to be so late on commenting here. There are several Facebook groups you may want to join. 2 are Basenji specific. Bladder Stones Basenji - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1505737939475808/ Canine Cystinuria - https://www.facebook.com/groups/1264949876904169/ The third group is secret and you need to be Facebook friends with a member in order to join. Contact me if you are interested in joining - Basenji Cystine Bladder Stone Awareness.

Weight issue

tanza — Sat, 08 Oct 2022 15:17:18 GMT

@Rebel - Full blood workup including full Thyroid panel (full panel no just what the normal vet workup that is not a full thyroid panel)... as they say make sure that he is in good health. Also what are you feeding him? How much total are you feeding a day? Also with reducing food, add veggies to his food to fill his belly... green beans are good to use... I use Cauliflower and Broccoli... Note also that low normal is typically too low for Basenjis.

Harness Bold Spot

Vesna — Tue, 06 Sep 2022 14:33:05 GMT

thank you everyone! The collar is ordered :-)

spotted stomach

Kembe — Sun, 04 Sep 2022 17:08:52 GMT

@serenjane My Kembe had the freckles on her neck - more pronounced in summer months w/ the sun and also as she aged. I use to call her my little 🦒 giraffe. 😂

Hives all over

eeeefarm — Tue, 28 Jun 2022 14:36:03 GMT

Had you opened a new bag around the time this started? Sometimes they change ingredients or suppliers of ingredients, which is the way an allergen can sneak in....

Fecal Incontinence Post-Surgery

senjisilly — Mon, 27 Jun 2022 14:10:23 GMT

A quick Google search suggested that diarrhea isn't unexpected with either of these drugs. Could the leakage be a result of the combination of the drugs? Rimadyl ... potential side effects, which can range from mild to serious.... Diarrhea The most common side effect of Flagyl (aka metronidazole) is diarrhea... I don't know how long the drugs will stay in his system, but I'm leaning towards the idea that he would return to normal once the drugs dissipate. I am also (curious) why your DVM didn't think about the side effects of the medication(s) as possible contributing factors and jumped straight into another procedure. (Doggie diapers are always an option until the issue is resolved.) I agree with elbrant the side effects from the drugs are likely causing the fecal leaking. As the human, I had to be on a long course of Flagyl having contracted Amoebic Dysentery in Nepal. Believe me, I was never far from a bathroom while taking this drug.

Cough not going away

eeeefarm — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 18:39:40 GMT

To give you an idea of the contrast between Basenjis and Border Collies, my BC once spit out a pill, I said "Blackie" in a disapproving tone, and he picked it up from the floor and swallowed it!

Sudden Behavior Change (desperate to go outside)

Scagnetti — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 19:07:50 GMT

For the record, I'm not claiming to know the cause or reason for the behavior. What I did was give a prescription; Irrespective of what the problem or issue is, increased exercise would probably be a healthy way to decrease anxiety (whether it's seasonal, mood-related, etc.). If a dog has anxiety (about anything for any reason) then their need for exercise goes up; this is required to healthily decrease stress. Whatever the cause for the anxiety, a simple and (usually) effective way to deal with it, is through increasing exercise time and/or mental enrichment time. This also holds true for dogs with pent-up energy/restlessness/boredom/reactivity/etc. The posts directed at me were deleted, so I can't reply to them. All the best.

Serento Flea and Tick collars

elbrant — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 21:11:33 GMT

@italeigha I had such high hopes!

Biting at the air

basenjimom2 — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 16:21:40 GMT

This is from my friend who's dog as "fly biting" episodes. This is what she said: "Have then pull a full thyroid panel on their pup usually a low thyroid is part of the problem as well as Fly Biting is gastrointestinal based seizures." If you are on Facebook, I can give you her name. Just drop me a line privately and I can give you her name. I didn't want to post it publicly. Not sure if that is allowed. She has much first hand knowledge of fly biting with her dog and can probably give you some pointers.

The Non-stop itching!

Roux — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 15:01:37 GMT

@elbrant LOL you're right, I have 0 experience with eradicating ants! Taipei doesn't have fire ants hahaha though the huge flying roaches are a big problem and apparently cause Roux to have diarrhea if she eats one (I NEARLY HAD A FIT WHEN I SAW THIS) so thank you for the clarification! Hopefully y'all get down to the reason!

Heat cycles, the Basenji way

JENGOSMonkey — Sun, 05 Jun 2022 18:28:22 GMT

@elbrant 😁👍

Runny nose, sneezing?

Zande — Mon, 23 May 2022 14:10:34 GMT

It doesn't have to be cut grass - this time of year there is pollen in the air. Some of my (human) family suffer runny noses and weepy eyes now for a month or so.

Gallbladder/liver issues

Zande — Mon, 16 May 2022 23:53:05 GMT

@channingsmom said in Gallbladder/liver issues: He is getting enough to eat that he hasn’t lost weight That in itself is very good news. It can be very difficult to keep weight on a picky, elderly Basenji. Once they really start to lose it, often there is no putting weight back on. Good luck !

Help - Kiya is having a diarrhea bout for months

elbrant — Sat, 30 Apr 2022 18:50:13 GMT

@zande said in Help - Kiya is having a diarrhea bout for months: wish we humans could get the same benefit from Vitamin B12 as an aside: Humans need all of the B Vitamins for B12 to work it's magic. B12 alone will not do the trick, I take a "Super B Complex" vitamin every day for exactly this reason!

Puppy Ear Build-up?

dandydog — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 16:33:36 GMT

@elbrant That's good to know! We are in Kansas where pollen and allergies are rampant lol, I am wondering more if that's what it is since the build-up isn't increasing very quickly at all. Seems to be worse after we spend a while outside.

Soft-Serve Stool

Zande — Tue, 22 Mar 2022 12:00:50 GMT

@scagnetti said in Soft-Serve Stool: I wouldn't be surprised if you found studies that report conflicting results. That is almost always the case, isn't it ? One man's meat is indeed another man's poison - - -

2022 Flea, Tick and Heartworm Season...

Zande — Mon, 07 Mar 2022 22:02:07 GMT

@lustopher You should not use Frontline as well as Drontal and Nexgard. I will phone my vet if you like to check. But I am sure he took me right off Frontline when he put the pack on to Nexgard. Drontal - three monthly - should not be given within 14 days of Nexgard. So wait a fortnight after a dose and then give it. That I am sure of ! It is written on the packets -

spaying 8 yo female

Zande — Mon, 21 Feb 2022 07:42:13 GMT

@emilia May we know just why you have decided to spay her now ? Unless spaying her is going to substantially improve her quality of life, I would advise against it.

Puppy and cold weather

tanza — Sun, 13 Feb 2022 14:57:08 GMT

@lustopher - Well, when you see him sniffing around the house, pick him up and take him out... and tell him to go potty... you might want to try if it is really that cold and the ground is cold, get a bale of straw and put that on the ground.... might encourage him to pee there... same with pooping, when he starts to run around take him out to the straw area... might help..

Frito Feet

tanza — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 20:30:51 GMT

@sanjibasenji - Unless you know what the problem would be or the result, do not just try "home" stuff... Frito Feet is comment in Basenjis for feet and DO not indicate a problem! If they are not excessive licking their feet, it should not be a problem.