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Long time lurker with B mix

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  • kangaK

    Last year, I adopted a 9 month old basenji/whippet (?) from a rescue. I had no idea what I was in for. I know dogs - have had jack russells, rat terriers, German Shepherd, fostered a Jindo and dog sat pit bulls long term. But this little dog was something else - and she is not purebred basenji!

    She was more dominant than anything I had ever run into, dog-wise. In the first couple of weeks:

    She humped and peed on - by lifting her leg - a female pit bull that luckily had a sense of humor. She terrorized a older border collie by leading a bunch of dogs that she had just met into attacking said border collie - in the BC's own yard. Food and resource guarding deluxe. Fought with my older dog who is the most dog savvy, easy going dog on the planet.

    She is much better now about this kind of thing as (I think) she has conceded that she is not top of the household and we (my other dog and I) have been working on her. Basically we have no real issues now but the first months were a little rough.

    Here are some of what I think of her more Basenji-like habits

    • Jumped 6 ft + from doorway to the middle of my landlady's kitchen table. I have no idea why - there was nothing on the table.
    • Escape - She was definitely a flight risk when she first came. Longest Escape - 2 hrs of pure terror. I found her on the bike path jumping out of the bushes to chase down bicycles.
    • Hates tricks such as "paw" I really think she thinks this is beneath her. She will do it, in a very begrudging way, on command. But she will try ignoring you and pointedly look in another direction first.
    • Housebroken with 1 mistake. Btw - she did not pee or anything for at least the first 24 hours that I had her. Not outside on long walks or indoors. This was freaky to me - but I understand from reading some of your posts that this is not uncommon.
    • Noises. Yes - she can bark. But there is also a whole variety of growly noises, this chicken cluck noise, a weird huffing noise that she makes while playing, and some other interesting sounds that I did not know dogs could make.

    Some random things that seem Basenji like - Boxes with her paws, has a lovely B500, not very interested in strangers, very sloppy, leaning sit, likes to sleep on me or my other dog. The sleeping on is reason 4773 that I think that my older dog is going to be up for sainthood. Older dog is 14lb, Basenji-x is 20+ lbs. When the basenji sits on or lies on the older dog, you can't really even see the older dog.

    Random things that I am not sure are basenji-like:

    • will often play on her back and use her legs to wrestle with toys or the other dog
    • likes to crouch down slowly and then "pounce" on things/other dog (reason 319 for older dog probable sainthood)
    • sleeps on her back often

    My knowledge of basenjis before last year = pretty much the Westminster dog show commentary - doesn't bark, curly tail and something about africa. So in other words - nothing that would be helpful in dealing with the wild child.

    This forum has been really helpful in understanding basenjis - so thank you all. There is nothing like hearing from people with real life experience!
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  • O

    Welcome! If she's a Basenji/Whippet mix, she's bound to be fast as lightning. She sounds very cute and fun-loving– post pictures so we can see her better!

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  • eeeefarmE

    @kanga:

    Random things that I am not sure are basenji-like:

    • will often play on her back and use her legs to wrestle with toys or the other dog
    • likes to crouch down slowly and then "pounce" on things/other dog (reason 319 for older dog probable sainthood)
    • sleeps on her back often

    I would say those traits are typical. My current boy likes to lie on his back and play with us or his toys, using his legs in the manner you describe. One of my previous girls would often sleep on her back. The crouching and pouncing thing has been mentioned on this forum.

    Your girl sounds like a handful! Never a dull moment with one like that. :)

    "In order to get along with a Basenji, you have to be at least half as smart as the dog!"

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  • Q

    Pictures! We want pictures ;)

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  • K

    Sounds like a blast!
    Do post pictures, a basenji-whippet mix - that must be something…

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  • kangaK

    Hi -

    Thanks! - I posted pictures in the "show off your dog" section. Not sure how I would post them here (?)

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  • eeeefarmE

    @kanga:

    Hi -

    Thanks! - I posted pictures in the "show off your dog" section. Not sure how I would post them here (?)

    There are a number of ways to post pictures. Many people follow the instructions on the forum. I prefer to post them elsewhere and hotlink them…...as do several others. Using a site like Photobucket (free) makes it easy to do this. :)

    "In order to get along with a Basenji, you have to be at least half as smart as the dog!"

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  • Shaye's MomS

    She sounds very basenji to me - all her antics are things my Shaye does. Also, the look in her eye where she is laying on her side, and the position, are very familiar. I believe that look is "what?… Get out of my face, I'm trying to sleep here!"

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  • Kitty-NinK

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    Kitty-NinK
    Admittedly she does look more like a Basenji from some angles than others :P Physically she's got the little cat feet and her tail has some curl to it, though it's not as tightly curled as a purebreds, and she has the white tip on her tail. Her eyes are quite almond shaped, though it's hidden a little by the "eyeliner" she has from the beagle side. She has dewclaws and the joined 2nd and 3rd toes. She is able to bark normally, though she very rarely does this–mostly she communicates to us through sneezes, scoffs, grumbles, and whines. I think barking takes some effort for her, because she only does it if she sees something she thinks is super important. Last night when she wanted to go greet a dog who was outside the car she let out a few yodels and some noises that I can only describe as somewhat like a cat yowl at us. Thankfully she does not so far seem to be able to make any of the typical beagle noises--I'd rather have singing than baying. Foxxy absolutely hates the cold and wet weather we suddenly started having--she would rather "hold it" for a ridiculously long time than go out and get damp. This is the first dog I have ever had to buy a sweater for, but she downright shivers. She grooms like a cat, and she's incredibly smart, though of course she sometimes gives us the look of "Yeah, I know what you want, but I'm not doing it". I have only seen the B500 once, but that's probably because she has a bit of an upper respiratory infection right now, and isn't feeling her best. She has antibiotics though, so she should be feeling better by the end of the week. Edit: Oh, I just remembered, she also does the thing where she'll stand up on her hind legs and just... stand there, or walk around a bit. I forgot since she's not done it for a few days with not feeling well. It's the funniest thing to me, I've always had dogs who were way too big and front-heavy to have done that even if they wanted to, but Foxxy has decided that there is no counter in the house she can't stand up to see if there's anything good left out. When we first got her my boyfriend left out half a baked potato with sour cream on the counter. She was in and out of the kitchen totally unsupervised all evening and could have grabbed it at any time, but the stinker was smart enough to not go for it until we left to run a quick errand to get that potato for uninterrupted eating.
  • M

    My mix

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    M
    She barks twice and starts making a wierd guteral noise. She just has such big ears.
  • G

    Hi! Long time basenji owner from Washington

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    Hello fellow long time Basenji friend. They are such a joy to live with aren't they? Do share your longevity secrets:D Is it exercise? Food? Dental care? We had our first two for 15 and 16 years, and decided that more tooth brushing could have helped. We want to keep our newly adopted Leo around a long long time.
  • bellabasenjiB

    Hello again… long time, no "see".

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    Mind you, Bella was a surprise birthday gift from my husband. He wanted a boxer, but I wanted a smaller dog (he said he wasn't getting either). He went to a pet store:( and saw my girl… and fell in love with her!:eek: He arranged everything and proceeded to tell me we were going out and it was a surprise for my birthday. He blindfolded me:cool: and took me there and I didn't know where I was going until I walked into the store. I was asked to guess what my present was... then told to close my eyes while they got her. I didn't know until they put her in my arms who my sweetie girl was going to be.:D How could I resist this beautiful little Basenji baby bundle of joy! I never even imagined it would be a Barkless African dog. I don't approve of puppy mills or encourage them, "backyard breeders" either. But at that very moment these thoughts were further in the back of my mind:rolleyes: ...
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