Basenji rarely responds to vocal commands.

[PhayzR]

@Kipawa:

So practice calling, treating and loving for something well done (returning) ad then releasing him/her to be allowed to go back to the fun activity.

I had been doing this. Now, when I CAN get her to come, she runs back in my direction, but just keeps running right past me, lol…

[lvoss]

Then she doesn't get the treat unless she stops and is within reach. Now that she knows checking in is something that pays, raise the criteria for payment just make sure that once she has stopped on gotten the treat she is released back to play more often than not so coming when called is not a predictor for the fun to stop.

[Buddys Pal]

_I was wondering if anyone here has experience with any training techniques or games they have had luck with in the past with training a Basenji to listen more often. I'm currently trying to tackle her chewing habits, 'come' command, 'leave it' command (on leash), as well as many other basic behavioral disciplines, so its getting frustrating when I try to let her have fun and run in an open field (she is SO fast!) and she just begins ignoring me.

Also, IDK if its relevant, but many times when I have her outside off-leash, she has ZERO interest in treats of any type, even chicken!_

I wanted to pretend that I was smarter than the B, so when I call and he does not come, I start yelling " oh boy, look at this, let's go THIS WAY!!!!" It does work while on a walk so it does not really sound like I called a recall…..

Then, the sound of a whistle means High Value Reward-so make sure that when you associate the sound of the whistle for a recall make it a good treat(cooked hamburger or chix or whatever....) So if Uzie is outside, out of the fence, and not in my sight, even an acre away.... or his interest is minor ( not if he is playing with the neighbor's dog.....) He comes running full speed forward to me, (it may even take 5minutes) and so it works, it was quickly learned too! I reinforce it while on a walk on a trail that I do not have to worry about him running off into traffic, if he goes ahead of me and Hershey and Candi (his pack mates), I blow the whistle, and he tears down the trail and gets a kibble. This is just my two cents.....try it..!

PS: all the above are great inputs as well!

[eeeefarm]

I want to add to Ivoss' excellent advice that it is good to insist on contact…..preferably holding on to her collar.....before giving the treat and releasing the dog. You don't need a dog that learns to pull away once the treat is received. I would make this momentary initially, working up to a collar hold, perhaps attaching a leash, then treating and releasing. I would also work on teaching her that there is another treat available if she waits a moment after the release. This tactic works well with horses as well as dogs, and I practice it religiously to have well mannered animals that don't yank your arm off anticipating freedom.

[Terry]

I have to admit, when I read the title of this thread, my first thought was , "Yeah, and your point is???"<giggle>

Seriously, you've gotten some excellent advice, keep us updated on what works for you!

Terry</giggle>

[PhayzR]

@eeeefarm:

I would make this momentary initially, working up to a collar hold, perhaps attaching a leash, then treating and releasing. I would also work on teaching her that there is another treat available if she waits a moment after the release.

Wonderful advice! That seems like it would work incredibly! Thank you so much!

[kjdonkers]

Hello,
We have 2 B's, sisters. Binti, the 2-year old, will usually come when called. Lela, 1, hears, understands, and then makes her own choice.
They will definitely NOT come when chasing birds and rabbits off leash (in a secure place) - I wait it out (10-30 minutes) and ultimately they will come out of the bushes and towards me.
We have developed a command to call them over when they are on the verge of becoming distracted. We carry bits of a treat called Rodi (which they love), and when we want to call them before they dig into something, we call RRRRRRRODI! Timing is essential - a millisecond too late and their brains are out of touch. When the timing is good, they usually respond. When one comes running, the other doesn't want to stay behind. It works better than the regular commands (Come, Here, etcetera)

[Rocky1]

Are you for real
You expect a basenji to come when they are in the woods chasing rabbits and birds !!!
This is what basenjis do.
I would never let my B's off leash in the woods and if in the yard
I would never expect them to NOT chase game.
I want my basenjis to be prey driven.

Kathryn

[kjdonkers]

Dear Kathryn,
Yes, I am for real.
No, I do not expect my B's to come AT ALL TIMES when they are off leash in a secure place.
And, miracle, they often DO COME when called.
And no, they don't run away.
And yes, after a while, they will always come out the bushes in the spot where they entered, and the first thing they do is look for me, and come to me, even if not called.
And yes, they are off leash in my fenced garden.

[nomrbddgs]

Some will come back and some won't. Some lines are more focused on prey than on you. It sounds like you have one whom is more focused on prey than on you. Jeff will probably be able to give you some pointers as I know he hunts with his and has had huge success. While I would trust one of my lines, the other is far to prey driven to be trustful. Hopefully Jeff will be looking and can help you. I can't remember his post name, though, sorry!

[kjdonkers]

Hello Arlene,
Yes, although they are sisters, they have very different personalities - which makes it all the more fun and rewarding! All in all we're pretty satisfied with their behaviour but of course we're open to pointers.
Is his name Jeff Schettler from http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/BNTPP/ ?
Thanks

[nomrbddgs]

Yes, that's him! And yes, even though they are sisters, sometimes personalities can be very different. I haven't read back through the thread, but have you tried clicker training with them? Just curious.

[kjdonkers]

Hi,
Thanks.
We got Lela as a pup and she responded well to regular class - not the top of course but not the worst either!
Binti we got when she was almost 2 - she was raised in a pretty intense B-pack, without any formal classes, she is more relaxed now and playful - glad you mentioned clicker training because I was already thinking about it, but there are precious few B's in Holland, so info is scarce.
This is them: http://tiny.cc/yq3ebw and http://tiny.cc/qr3ebw
KJ

[eeeefarm]

Clicker training is great for teaching new behaviours. If they already know the behaviour that you want, i.e. "come", then retraining it with a clicker may not make any difference. If you do decide to go that route, it helps to begin it as a whole new thing, and use a different cue for the behaviour, as they may already have learned to ignore your usual recall cue. There is lots of info on clicker training on line, so you don't need to find someone else who is using it in order to give it a go.

Another option would be a remote collar. You can get ones that only vibrate or sound a tone (I know "shock collars" are not in favour on this board) and the advantage is that the dog will be aware of the command even if he is at a distance and can't hear you, or if he is distracted. I use an e collar for off leash work, and I find when it is windy my boy sometimes doesn't hear me if he is upwind from me, but I can give him a signal with the collar which he notices, and then looks at me for direction, at which point I can wave him in or re direct him to go a different way…..(yes, my collar is a "shock collar", but at the lowest settings can barely be felt. I do not recommend anyone use this type of collar without prior training in its use, but I have found it very effective for recalls, and if used on a higher setting it will interrupt a chase. Not painless, but preferable to having a dog run onto the road. and the discomfort is only momentary.)

[Kipawa]

Kjdonkers - What you are doing with the RODI is similar to something I was taught last year by a super trainer in Washington state (Andrea Stone). She called it 'emergency recall'. The 'bait' is the most favourite/delectable treat you can carry with you. Andrea suggested this type of recall (emergency) for situations where a basenji is in a life or death type of situation. Of course, all of our basenjis will react differently based on their personalities and what they are doing at the time. Looks like what you did worked for you.

[Shaye's Mom]

With lots of B's, the circumstances rule whether or not they will come when called - if things are sort of placid, mine will come at least back to my area if not actually to me, when I call and clap my hands. BUT, if they are involved in play with a new dog or after a squirrel in the dog park, they will not return until their present activity is over with. Most B's need to be on leash if not in a dog park. PS - treats don't mean a thing to mine if they are otherwise engaged in doing their thing.

[eeeefarm]

@Shaye's:

PS - treats don't mean a thing to mine if they are otherwise engaged in doing their thing.

Or if they are upset or stressed. My vet has tried a couple of times to make friends with my guy using treats. No way! And this is a dog that never, ever turns down food! But he hates being at the vet's so in that environment food does not interest him. He is cooperative but just wants the whole experience to be over, thank you very much!

If you are going to use a special "emergency" recall, you really need to practice it often enough that it doesn't extinguish, but not so often that it is commonplace. And you need to initially get the behaviour solidly on cue, so it is habit and they react, rather than think. A fine balance, IMO. Basenjis are perfectly capable of a reliable recall, but it takes a bit of doing to convince them it is in their best interest.

[kjdonkers]

Hi Fran,
I passed it on to my wife, as she came up with the idea.
Apart from all the knowledge that is out there (thanks to you all), it seems very important to let your intuition do its work as well, as dog and master are both unique individuals and unique as a pack. Lela and Binti are our first dogs ever, and they are teaching us a lot every day…

[PhayzR]

Wow, for some reason I stopped getting emails when ppl replied to this thread!
Im glad this set off to such a productive discussion!

Well, here's an awesome little update:

Princess Zelda has become accustomed to my voice and my commands! When she's in the yard, anywhere in the house, exploring within the gated complex just outside my girlfriend's apartment, or in a small park off-leash, she will usually come back to me the first time I call her! If we have just gotten outside and she hasn't had her fill of sniffing and eyeballing her surroundings, she generally wont come running, but she will stop dead in her tracks, turn 90?, and continue looking around. Im absolutely ecstatic that my 2 year old female Basenji / Red Heeler is so dang smart!

My GF and I went camping recently and we brought out furry friends (she has a 4-5 month old beautiful brindle pit / lab mix). I bought a metal corkscrew stake and a wire tether to keep her close at the campsite, and she constantly wrapped herself up comically to a point where she would just give up and lie down, lol. When we went on walks, however, I brought a 30 foot non-retractable leash to drag behind her (so i could step on it and verbally recall her when she got too far away) and she learned almost INSTANTLY how far she could go before I made her come back. After about 3-5 times, she began responding to my voice alone!

So yeah, there you have it! She's doing absolutely great and learning so quickly! She has quickly become the dog of my dreams, and has completely given up her home-alone chewing habits, so I no longer have to keep her locked up in my room when I'm at work. (it probably helps now that I have a roommate with a 2 year old Blue Heeler).

The only problem I seem to need to deal with now is her habit of pulling cat poo out of the litter box and leaving it on my new rug! :-0

[tanza]

Good luck on the litter box… you will never train that out of her... and really you should put it someplace she can't get into it... as it is undigested food, covered or rolled around in kitty litter... not good for the digestive system.... but you are not alone in that department... all dogs go for kitty poop!