I've been doing rescue and breeding (not Basenjis, and not for 20 yrs now)... and I have to say that among responsible trainers, rescues, breeders and professional veterinary behaviorists, you won't find any who will say under 8 weeks is okay for any breed... and for many, 10 to 12 weeks is recommended. It is in fact illegal to take puppies under 8 weeks from some states and it should be in all of them. Call a few dozen rescues and ask them how many animals they deal with that have issues started from being placed too young. It is good you are working on things, just hopefully the physical responses won't continue. No breed needs to be swatted or even mildly hurt for training. Basenjis even less so than many. It hurts your relationship with the puppy, and you are punishing a baby for being a baby... there is no "rebellious thing"... just normal behavior you have to patiently train away from.
crate/potty training and biting
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Hi there!
I have a 7.5 month old tri-coloured Basenji named Akela who we are absolutely in love with, but we have been having some issues with her!
The first issue is that she is constantly going to the bathroom in the house. We got her at 8 weeks and began crate training her right away which was a nightmare because she would scream bloody murder the whole time, but she was understanding that you don't soil your crate, you go outside to do your business. However after a couple of months she began soiling her crate, so naturally we don't want to have our pup sitting in that all day, so we decided that when she is to be left home alone we would leave her in the kitchen (we have doors to the kitchen that close it off from the rest of the house. But ever since doing that, she sees it as her personal bathroom. I've come home at times when the floor is completely covered in pee with drops of poop everywhere! If we are at home with her, she will usually go to the door and scratch at it to let us know that she needs to go out, but if it's a time when we are in the shower or bathroom, she will just go straight to the kitchen and do what she has to do. We are thinking about going back to the basics and trying to do the kennel training again, but we have also heard about these little patches of fake grass you place in a certain area of your home and they learn that is there they are to go to the bathroom!The other issue we have is that she is a bitter. Mainly with me. My husband is 100% her human so when he's not home she tends to get restless and goes a little crazy running around, throwing herself at the cushions on the couch. If she playing with something that she shouldn't be and you take it from her, bites at you. And I also find that when she is on the couch or sitting on the bed and she is in one of there "moods" she will bite at you if you are walking around the bed or the couch. I don't think it's meant to be mean or aggressive, it's just her way of trying to get you to play. We have tried ignoring her, replacing whatever she is biting with one of her toys, yelping really loud when she bites, but nothing seems to deter her!
All tips and opinions are welcomed!!! Thanks in advance!
Jill
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Jill, there is a thread on the biting issue, so I'm going to post the link to that. Join in.
The potty issue... yes, starting all over as if a new puppy is the best way to go. That means:
In crate, tied to you with a leash, or outside. If loose it is with your eyes on her every single second so that you can say "NO" and scoop up and go out if she even thinks about pottying. Praise and treat. Better to do that for a month and get this fixed than continue. If you are not home, then you may have to resort to an indoor potty pad. There is one I like from PetSafe, but there are a ton of others.
http://www.petsafe.net/petlooThread on biting:
https://basenjiforums.com/topic/14463/newbie-i-think-i-have-a-basenji-mix -
@jilliansquires said in crate/potty training and biting:
Hi there!
I've come home at times when the floor is completely covered in pee with drops of poop everywhere!
Sounds like you may have a separation anxiety problem. Is there a way you can arrange to video her behaviour when you leave? Often these dogs are very upset and typically will do something immediately after being left alone, rather than not being able to "hold it".
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@jilliansquires Housetraining, you need to go back to potty training 101.... start all over again.... take her out "all" the time, after eating, sleeping playing, etc.....
The biting as you describe it is NOT normal behavior. Have you done any Obedience training with her? Work her mind?And most important have you talked to her breeder?
