@DebraDownSouth Well, I'm sure your dogs love it!
An update-escaping and training
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Like with all else with Basenjis, early and good socialization is the key to being "bomb" proof… Breeders will have lots of loud noices in the house, drop and bang pans, blast the TV/radio, rattle things, run the vacuum... One thing that will usually freak out Basenjis is other dogs barking. And if your breeder lives in a area where getting to outdoors is not really an option at a young age (as early as 5wks) and they don't have neighborhood dogs around that bark, it can make that noise pretty scary.
Chain link is an invitation for a Basenji to climb or jump... however that said, you boy must have really been totally spooked to jump a 5ft fence, that is pretty high. We had solid board fence that is 8ft with another 2 feet of lattice on top. And in some places it is up to 12ft. With the solid fence there is no place for them to get a foot hold to climb.
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When I was putting our chain link fence in, I purposly left it loose. I also have bells on the fence. Sugar will climb it and I knew she would, but with it being loose instead of tight, by the time she gets to the middle it is starting to fold in leaving her kind of hanging inside. The bell rings, and I go running. They are never left alone outside simply because anything can, and does, happen. I'm glad Cody got back safe and sound. I know the feeling of your heart in your throat too well.
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We have a 5 foot wire fence. Bungwa is a great jumper and climber so we put another foot on top but left it quite loose and the top leaning inwards. That has done the trick. I find that once they've jumped over they will keep trying. I have never found chain link very good as all my Basenjis climb and can easily get over.
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Hopefully we will have our fence lengthened by next week! The back yard has little appeal when he's stuck on a leash and can't run free. We are going to try what Patty was talking about, adding another foot or so to the top, leaving it loose to lean inward. I found out that the back fence, where he was jumping, is actually about 4 to 4 1/2 feet, where over the years, erosion of the slight hill that we live on has buried the bottom by about a foot or more. Our trainer suggested a light, nylon training leash (50ft) to test whether he will be able to jump or climb. I'm hopeful though, because as much as he misses running, I miss watching him run.
Training has been going well. The trainer did more research on basenjis before we started, so I'm satisfied that I picked the right person. As I said, I was leery going into this. The only real problem we had in class was something Tanza mentioned: the yappy dogs freaked Cody out a bit. He has become accustomed to Moe's deep bark, but with the yappy barking of the puppies and smaller dogs, he was a little on edge. For the most part, he just sat stiffly by my side and watched them all, but applying the things from class at home, in the yard, and on walks has gone well.
Kipawa, I've been working with Cody on bomb-proofing, almost literally. We live near a military base, and during all hours of the day and night they do practice bombing and artillery fire. We are close enough that we no long keep pictures on our walls because the house shakes so much that they fall and break. There is no schedule to the practices. For the first few months, he was nearly inconsolable-jumping, pacing, and whining, sometimes for hours. He is getting better though, the artillery doesn't bother him at all anymore, and when the bombing is "mild" or more spread out over time, he will only get up, grumble a bit, and then find somewhere else to lay. When the bombing is at its worst, we have learned that turning the dishwasher on actually sooths him, strangely enough.
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Ah yes, the calming hum of a bomb…. er.... dishwasher. I can believe that Cody must find the constant hum of the dw much nicer than the abrupt sounds from the military base. In time he, no doubt, will be bomb proof!
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Crystal, glad to hear Cody is doing well at his classes.
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. The first time I was told to forcefully put him on the ground to show my dominance, I'm sure Cody and I both looked at her like she was stupid. While that may work for some dogs, I know my boy, and that would have just made him mad and even more defiant.
Someone told me to do that while I was trying to get Shaye to walk better - I tried it one time. She never stopped struggling, and the entire walk after that was one big war. Although she is easily distracted and will try to run after squirrels, etc., she has learned on her own to walk better with me. We didn't get Gemma until she was 14 months, and she's 2 now - she still pulls like a Clydesdale with her nose on the ground, and throws flipping fits when we pass anything with a loud motor:mad:!
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Glad to hear that you've now got a Basenji friendly trainer. The bad ones can do so much damage.
The calming dishwasher reminds me of when my human family were small - they used to love lying down by the dishwasher or the washing machine and going to sleep!!
We often get low flying jets coming over on trainig flights and my Basenjis have great fun chasing them in the garden (they make me jump but never the b's). Much to their disgust they've never caught one!!!!!
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Last week at training Malaika was reluctant to sit and the trainer kept Physicaly putting her in position which didn't go down well.
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To my mind this is very negative trainig for a Basenji and the trainer should have this explained. I have always found and (I used to tell the trainer at obedience classes) that the best way to get a Basenji to perform an action that it's not keen about is to lavish praise and then command rather than the conventional approach of command - praise.
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To my mind this is very negative trainig for a Basenji and the trainer should have this explained. I have always found and (I used to tell the trainer at obedience classes) that the best way to get a Basenji to perform an action that it's not keen about is to lavish praise and then command rather than the conventional approach of command - praise.
Yes i agree. Mostly i do like the trainer and she has good advice.
She did say when i asked about something to forget she was a Basenji, as she is a Dog first and most Dogs behave the same way :rolleyes::rolleyes: -
Ha Ha - I think if you continue at her classes, she'll change her mind!!!
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We finally finished our fence! We actually built another higher fence and gate to block off the very back half acre where our vegetable garden is, which is where the fence was shorter and where Cody was jumping. This still gives him a very large area to run and play, and makes it easier to keep an eye on him since the view of the back fence is obstructed by the garden and trees.
I took him out on the long leash this evening when we were finished and let him sniff, push, paw, and generally inspect the fence. When he realized that he couldn't break into it, he huffed and walked off. I let him off the leash, and for a few seconds he just looked at me, and then he took off running at top speed. I was still a little scared for a minute since the side fences are still chain link (we are still working on lengthening it), but he just ran the B500 around the yard. We ran and played for hours. He's so happy! He didn't want to come back inside, but he finally got thirsty and tired. It was great to see him run happily around the yard again.
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@Shaye's:
. The first time I was told to forcefully put him on the ground to show my dominance, I'm sure Cody and I both looked at her like she was stupid. While that may work for some dogs, I know my boy, and that would have just made him mad and even more defiant.
Someone told me to do that while I was trying to get Shaye to walk better - I tried it one time. She never stopped struggling, and the entire walk after that was one big war. Although she is easily distracted and will try to run after squirrels, etc., she has learned on her own to walk better with me. We didn't get Gemma until she was 14 months, and she's 2 now - she still pulls like a Clydesdale with her nose on the ground, and throws flipping fits when we pass anything with a loud motor:mad:!
Cody does the same thing as Gemma: pulling with his nose to the ground, but even a loud car doesn't break his concentration. The only thing that does is the smell of the restaurants that we pass. Then it's nose in the air, pulling as he follows the smell of the food.
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Okay, so I am really not a big fan of pushing down on a dog to get it to sit. I'm pretty sure most dogs, and really basenjis, find that disrespectful. I've always found that holding a treat slightly behind the head can get a dog to sit after a couple of tries. Then, lots and lots of praising.
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I'm so pleased to hear that Cody is happy again!
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Cody is an Obedience School Dropout! Well, not really. The group classes weren't working out well. He was too stressed to concentrate on anything but the other dogs in class and he wouldn't even take treats (cheese!!!). He was doing fine at home, but in class he wouldn't do anything but rigidly sit and watch the others. Their yappiness continued to freak him out. So we switched to private classes and are going to work one on one for a few weeks to get him comfortable in places other than home and continue training, and then for our last few weeks, our trainer will be bringing in her dogs to help him with socialization and learning with other dogs. Since our run-ins with the aggressive neighborhood dogs, he has been scared and growly with new dogs, so we are hoping that this will help him. This is a particular concern of mine since my future roommate has a dog too (a catahoula leopard dog), and we hope to make their introduction and transition into our new home as smooth as possible.
During our last group class, the trainer brought her St. Bernard (she was working with another dog with some of the same issues as Cody in the class before ours). Cody was intrigued by the furry giant. While he wouldn't meet him, he was very curious and didn't seem scared or growly like he is with others, so I'm hoping that is a good sign.
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That is great news and sounds like you found yourself a great trainer… keep up the good work!
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Yes, Tanza, we did get lucky to find this trainer.
Class tonight went great! Without the others there to distract him, he actually focused on what was going on and did really well. -
I just wanted to do an update since I hadn't been on in a while.
Cody has been doing really well in class, and though we still have a lot further to go, I'm so proud of him and what he has accomplished so far. While he's only learned some of the basic commands, such as "sit", "lay down", "watch me", and "touch", we've also been working on his anxiety (using massage and working on a "relax" command), issues with his crate (using crate games), loose leash walking (collar for loose leash vs harness for free sniffing), and a few other things. We also started doing some nose work, which he absolutely loves! When her normal methods of training didn't work, our trainer looked up and tried other, more relaxed methods, so she has been really great. He has even seemed to calm down a little more, and implementing some of our training in what seems like unrelated problem areas has helped.
On another note, we are moving to Raleigh, NC, in a few weeks. Our first apartment fell through because my potential roommates backed out, so I was a little freaked out with it being so close to time to move. It ended up being a stroke of good luck. I found a house just outside of the city with a nice size back yard with an 8 ft wood privacy fence (no more chain link "ladders" for Cody!). My roommate, as long as everything works out, is a vet tech, and she has two dogs, a dachshund and a chihuahua/dachshund mix, as well as a dog-savvy cat. I will be going to meet her and see the house next weekend, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
