He has me trained well

[Kananga]

The last couch didn't last more than 4-5 years before he did enough damage justifying a replacement. I ended up buying one subconsciously that was designed just for him (and I'm glad I went with a leather couch this time).

Helps to have a nice view

And of course he makes himself comfortable on the cold days

He's happy to turn another year old this past week. Still acts like a clown.

[Patty M]

He's beautiful, and King of the window Sill!

[agilebasenji]

Oh he's quite all that! I like leather and dogs. Of course my pups insisted on sheepskins on our leather sofa. Microfiber also does great with the dogs.

[Kananga]

@agilebasenji:

Oh he's quite all that! I like leather and dogs. Of course my pups insisted on sheepskins on our leather sofa. Microfiber also does great with the dogs.

Last couch was microfiber, didn't seem to last long with a Basenji. It was the digging before naptime (nesting behavior) that led to the damage. I think the fabric led him to treat it more like a blanket and not a fixed surface.

Of course cleaning up after a sick dog was never fun with a non-leather couch. That is the one thing I look forward to, having an easy cleanup.

[MacPack]

We prefer leather too, fortunately none of my current pack are digging-nesters! Love the photos of Kanaga on your couch, a perfect basenji viewing-platform.

[Patty]

I think he believes that it was worth destroying the other couch. He certainly looks very much in charge of the new leather one!

[Shaye's Mom]

He sure loves that new couch. My huge sectional couch has been ruined in part by Shaye's digging - we would love to get a new couch but live in fear of more destruction, so we are presently praying that behavior will stop - does it ever stop if it's their way of "fluffing" up where they sleep?

[Kananga]

Yes, the digging is really the primary cause of the destruction. He only does this when he's about to take a nap. I will say that, so far, the leather couch hasn't been subject to any digging. I only see Kananga behave this way around "soft" surfaces, such as fabrics/carpet/bedsheets. The last couch was microfiber and was also a sectional. He would always do this in the corner of the sectional.

He still digs into carpet and other soft surfaces, but he has yet to show this behavior on the new couch. I'm not sure if they ever outgrow this, all you can really do is adapt (just like everything else with Basenjis ).

So I have a feeling that not only will the leather hold up to any said abuse, but he will be less likely to even attempt to dig. Time will tell.

[eeeefarm]

@Kananga:

He still digs into carpet and other soft surfaces, but he has yet to show this behavior on the new couch. I'm not sure if they ever outgrow this, all you can really do is adapt (just like everything else with Basenjis )..

Or you could try something novel and teach him that behavior is unacceptable!

[Kananga]

@eeeefarm:

Or you could try something novel and teach him that behavior is unacceptable!

I wish I could. He does this 95% of the time while I'm not home. He likes to sleep when I'm gone, so it's likely he will do this when I'm not around.

I have, however, curbed his habit of doing this on my bed. He only has access to the living room while I'm gone, hence the previous couch suffering all the damage.

At the end of the day, this really isn't too big of an issue really. He could be doing far more damage. I've never had a problem with him countersurfing or opening cabinets. Very well behaved other than the occasional digging. Only chewed on things when he was around 1 yrs of age, outgrew that bad habit fairly quick.

[eeeefarm]

I am lucky with my guy. Although he has attempted digging a few times and been told "no", he doesn't take advantage of my absence to pursue the habit. One exception was when I assume he was cold, and he dug his way under the comforter on the bed, managing to do some damage to the foamy we have on the bed to make it softer. (never assume the bed that felt soft enough in the showroom will be so when you get it home! ) He has free run of the house and seldom abuses the privilege.

Obviously if the damage occurs when you are gone the only solution is to restrict his access to the things he is likely to harm. Or suffer the consequences.