• i was wondering how many owners of b's when you mention what type of dog you own and you reply a basenji… whats that?? granted there not every common, even at our vets,(also the same when we had our english bull terrier but this comes from other dog owners to,maybe its just me,when we were looking for our replacement dog for our lab that not doing good, we went thru a ton of dog breeds (we almost own a pet shop many decades ago) my daughter said what about a basenji .we looked at each other and said hell yeah that the one (didnt even think of a b dog at the time must of had a brain freeze or something) that second all searching stopped and then it was to find one:) so glad we were able to get one close by


  • We get people asking what breed Malaika is all the time. They ask if she is a crossbreed or a Jack Russell and once very bizarrely a man asked me if she was a Tibetan Spaniel, a few days later i met him again and he must have forgotten he's seen us before and asked again if she was a Tibetan 😃


  • I get that a lot when out walking, at the dog park, or at the store. Usually they're really curious to hear about the breed and want to learn more about it.

    Occasionally people will make a wild guess and say something along the lines of "Oh, my neighbours have Shiba Inu's too!" It took me a while (and a chance look at a photograph of a Shiba Inu) to realise what they were talking about.

  • First Basenji's

    Oh yes. Truthfully, I can probably count on one hand how many people have actually known what kind of dog Cody is when we go out walking or when I mention him. I've been asked if he is a JRT mix, overgrown fox terrier, overgrown chihuahua, GSD mix, JRT/wild fox, shiba inu, and a few other things. Even the first vet I took him to had never actually seen a B before that day.

    Once, while we were at Petsmart, this guy in a car stopped and started barooing at him! It was hilarious! Cody just kind of looked at him like, "What the heck is wrong with you?" Apparently, he had basenjis in the past, but not for a long time, so he was extremely excited to see one.


  • A man once stopped his car in the middle of the street and yelled "That's the most beautiful basenji I ever saw!" But mostly you get the Jack Russell question. I just ask them if they've ever heard of the dog that doesn't bark, and if so, well here's one of those. They go yeah I saw a special on Animal Planet about basenjis!

  • First Basenji's

    Barooing strangers… now that's funny.

    I get hesitant questions about whether Bowpi's a chihuahua mix... or what? The way most people ask, I think they know she's not a chihuahua, but they have to venture some kind of guess.

    People used to ask all the time if Bowdu's a basenji. Since getting Bowpi, I've heard that question much less!


  • When I first moved into this part of the country I got frequent questions about the Basenjis but now we are well known. Not a question but the best and funniest comment I got about one of mine was ' Doesn't that Corgi have wonderfully long legs' !!!


  • There is a kennel named Awhat basenjis - for the very fact that folks would ask "A what?" whenever they told them their breed.


    MODEL TT


  • sometimes. actually the malinois is more of an oddity than the basenjis. "Mali-what?"

    "mal-in-wahhh"


  • I love it when folks ask me about the wallpaper photo on my laptop:) they usually comment on the expression on my guy's face, how happy he looks. and that is what gets their attention. After that they ask what kind of dog he is. I love the fact that it is the expression that first gets them. Somehow, regardless of the situation, people recognize the look of 'happy'. Our B's are renown for their expressive faces, aren't they?


  • My favorite question came from a group of several teenaged boys: Dude! Is that a fox???

    I almost said yes.


  • When out walking I used to get lots of people in my neighborhood asking what kind of dog Shaye was, with lots of them guessing jack russell but odd colored. Most of them now know the Basenji because they see her a lot. When we got Gemma, who is seven months older, 12 pounds heavier, tan instead of red, furrier, and part collie, people began asking me if they were twins - or related anyway - I guess the differences are more apparent to basenji people than they are to others.


  • I don't have my basenji yet, but when I tell people this is the dog I am going to get, you can see the confusion on their faces. I have yet to have anyone indicate they know the breed. Wait, I take that back. I actually mentioned it to a vet (who is no longer at the vet hospital I go to) and she just screwed up her nose at me and said "why would you ever get a basenji?". Wow. Glad she is no longer at my vet office!


  • My vet said the same thing. "You don't know what you're getting into with a basenji!" Oh yes I did, and I don't regret getting Abbey. Not counting of course the times I've been tempted to put a FREE DOG sign out front….


  • I have had the same comment about Cooper being a Shiba Inu, and my Vets' Receptionist as had her Shiba called a Basenji !!!!!

    Being the only Basenji in my village, Cooper is a bit of a local celebrity !!!. I was walking in the fields the other day and a fellow Dog Walker came over and said " oh this is the Basenji I've heard all about ", a bit worrying to say the least. However I am very careful about people, we have a gypsy camp a few miles away, and I have had reports of dog theft. I had a car draw up beside me the other month when I was walking Cooper, he called out " is that a Basenji ? haven't seen one for years, do you lure course him ? ". Not liking the look of the bloke I said no he was a cross breed and just a pet who wouldn't know how to chase !!!!. I then went back home waited a while and set off in the opposite direction. It's a sign of our times I fear. Most of the time people haven't got a clue what he is…................and I like to keep them guessing lol !!!!!!


  • @Scoops:

    It's a sign of our times I fear.

    hate to say it but it seems that way no matter where u are just seemed over the decades its all been going down hill… ok enough of that lets talk about b's 🙂


  • @Kipawa:

    I actually mentioned it to a vet (who is no longer at the vet hospital I go to) and she just screwed up her nose at me and said "why would you ever get a basenji?". Wow. Glad she is no longer at my vet office!

    I think the proper retort is "Why would anyone get anything else?" 😉


  • Certainly is !!!! like u say we'll talk b's :D:D:D

    I'm extremely lucky with my Vet, he actually knows about the breed !!!! must admit he did look a little horrified when I came in with Cooper and not one of my Dobes !!! but he thinks he's great. One of the Vet Nurses turned her nose up and said you can't possibly get one of those, oh yeh really …..... well get aload of my red/white boy then !!!, when I challenged her as to what she knew about B's, she soon shut up !!!!!!! lol


  • I get that question a lot too. I have two and they always ask if they are related, even though Cody is 4 inches taller and has a completely different shaped head that Aurora. But recently I was at the groomers getting their nails trimmed and a young boy looking to be about 10 or 11 asked me what kind of dogs they were, I replied Basenji he immediately said Oh, the barkless dog from africa. I was impressed. He sat down on the floor and asked he could pet Cody and I said yes, boy was very comfortable around dogs.


  • @GenJMar:

    I have two and they always ask if they are related

    What is it about other dog owners that always assume that two basenjis together are related? The most common thing said to us at dog park is "It was so nice of you to keep those sibling Shiba Inus together!"

    I think I'll stop correcting them next time, I'm getting tired of saying the same thing. Maybe I'll just put a card around their necks saying "we are not shiba inus"

    :rolleyes:

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