Skip to content

Can you help with Woody part 2?

Basenji Talk
  • @fernrn1 - http://corecaab.org/ and also you should ask your Vet for a referral

  • @eeeefarm Once we are home she is fine, a happy girl, yes that is when she gets fed, right after we get home from the walk. After she ate she then begged all evening for my attention and to go for another walk. I love the idea of going past the house during her walk!!

  • @tanza Thank you. I have talked to the vet, they said they knew some good trainers, she wasnt sure if the trainers had ever worked with my breed of dog, Shiba inu basenji mix. I live in a small town, and my resources are limited.

  • @fernrn1 said in Can you help with Woody part 2?:

    @eeeefarm Once we are home she is fine, a happy girl, yes that is when she gets fed, right after we get home from the walk. After she ate she then begged all evening for my attention and to go for another walk. I love the idea of going past the house during her walk!!

    It's a tactic we use with horses, for the opposite reason. If you are schooling, they want to be finished with it and leave the ring. Therefore it is useful to never ride directly to the gate when you are done, but to go past it, then either dismount or turn back to exit. It can save inexperienced riders from a "gate dasher" situation that could be dangerous.

    If your actions become too predictable, a canny critter will find a way to take advantage. Your job is to think one step ahead of them, and find ways to keep them guessing about your intent.

  • I agree the comments below - try to reach out/ find a dog trainer that you could contract to help you. Also I was thinking along the lines of horse example - can you walk around your block - so maybe you would normally walk the equivalent of 3-4 blocks just try the walk around your block so it changes it up so you can get Woody used to walking past your house multiple times that way Woody won't know when the walk is done. It will probably be toughest the first few times but you can reassure Woody the walk is not finished and take her past the home and to get her used to walking back towards the house.

  • This doesn't seem like a big behavioral issue to me. On a 0-10 scale I'd give it a 3. I like eeeefarm's approach. I'd probably act all excited at something in the direction of where I wanted to go and then give her a treat when she started moving.

    FWIW I'm not a fan of dog trainers. Half are below average and the average isn't great. I'd suggest trying to remedy this yourself before going that route. This response may be because I've seen this behavior many times.

  • @donc said in Can you help with Woody part 2?:

    FWIW I'm not a fan of dog trainers. Half are below average and the average isn't great. I'd suggest trying to remedy this yourself before going that route.

    Given the globe shape of this planet and time zones, the best answers have been given before I get up in the morning !

    I especially like eeeefarm's suggestion of passing the house several times before actually going in, to throw her off guard.

    But DonC has the right of it. Unless you can find a behavourist who actually knows Basenjis and has worked with them a great deal, you are better off NOT using one.

    A poor, or even a mediocre trainer can easily do more harm than good so if you DO go that route, pick one who has trained multiple Basenjis over a period of years. We have covered this thread before here - training a Basenji is not like any other breed, and in any case, a good trainer will only ever train you to work with and train your dog.

    Actually, I think this is something you can overcome yourself, with time, patience and using some of the ideas expressed here.

    But I have one caveate - do not 'drag' the dog, she will just dig in, lie down and you won't be able to budge her. And you could cause hilarity in passers-by.

    A short, very sharp, yank on the lead to get her on her feet and moving. Then relax the lead. If she lies down again, another sharp yank to get her up, and relax it. Until she learns you will go on doing this until she does 'come quietly' - follows you home !

  • @zande said in Can you help with Woody part 2?:

    But I have one caveate - do not 'drag' the dog, she will just dig in, lie down and you won't be able to budge her. And you could cause hilarity in passers-by.

    A short, very sharp, yank on the lead to get her on her feet and moving. Then relax the lead. If she lies down again, another sharp yank to get her up, and relax it. Until she learns you will go on doing this until she does 'come quietly' - follows you home !

    Yes, this is better than my advice, and more along the lines of what I would actually do. I was hesitant to suggest it because you risk the person not understanding or applying the technique correctly, most often because of hesitancy, lack of decisive action.

    I agree about dog trainers, even those that are Basenji savvy. As you say, they need to teach you to train your dog. When I was young I trained dogs for people. The dogs would do whatever I had taught them, for me. When the owner took over the results were less certain! Sometimes the training stuck, but with a wily dog it didn't take long before they figured out the owner wasn't really in command, and then things would fall apart. Best if the owner applies the training, with direction if necessary from a "coach".

  • Thank you all. With your advice I have made a few changes.
    First I am incorporating walking past the house during the walk, yesterday three times. And by the end of the walk she had no idea we were going home!! So it helped for yesterdays walk for sure, and I plan to keep doing that.
    Second, she seems to only like/trust me. My brother lives with me and she will not let him get near her. He gives her lots of treats to try to win her trust, she will get close enough to take the treat, but that is it. --It hasn't worked in 3 months. So I told him no more treats all the time. She only gets treats with training or for reward for good behavior. I got her a big bone from one of the suggested sights, and she has that she can chew on.
    This change has made a difference in her as well, for the good.
    I am learning just as much as she is -- we are learning together.

  • It is the owner who needs to make the adjustments necessary to obtain a desired behavior. Sometimes it is hard to figure out the "work around" and, it is incredibly easy for an owner to unintentionally reward an unwanted behavior. You can't be "sloppy" with a basenji - they train us well!

    I adopted my b-boy about 3 year ago. He wants to decide which direction we walk. Sometimes, that's okay with me, other times it is not. He puts on the brakes and refuses to budge. At first I dragged him a bit. Not good. Treats don't work. Then, I tried giving a quick jerk/release. Not good. (If you try this, please be careful not to cause damage to your dog's neck!) What works for me is I just wait for him to realize I'm not going to give in (this takes A LOT of patience). Sometimes, while I'm waiting for him, I talk to him about why I want to go in a specific direction and tell him what's in it for him... people walking by think I am absolutely bonkers trying to verbally reason with a dog, but it works for us. Sometimes, he completely refuses to budge, so I pick him up and carry him for a bit. Usually, when put him on his feet, he will walk on. I noticed that if I walk to get behind him, he takes a step forward and once he makes that first step, he's more likely to move forward, When he does, I praise him like crazy. Sometimes, especially in dim light, he will stop, stare, hackle and refuse to move forward - at those times, we simply turn around and walk in the other direction because I trust that he sees or smells something that he finds dangerous.

    One thing I consistently do that might help Woody is I always feed my b when we get home after we walk. That way, he has something to look forward to (i.e., going home is good!) I'm sorry Woody is taking so long to warm up to your brother. Maybe your brother needs to work with Woody on some very simple command like sit, or look at me, giving her high value treats or her dinner when she obeys. That way, she may begin to see him as more of a leader and provider of treats than someone who scares her. It needs to be brief, daily consistent to sink in. Patience. You might have to let your brother be the sole source of all good things (like treats and food) and only if she makes a step toward him. A trainer once advised my neighbor to smear peanut butter on her husband's arm in an attempt to get their new rescue to like her husband better. It didn't work.

    I'm so glad to hear you see a difference for the good and that you are learning as much as she is. Yay! Please keep us posted on what works. Maybe you can help me with my stubborn b.

Suggested Topics

  • 0 Votes
    5 Posts
    4k Views
    dconquestD
    I live in N.J. U.S.A. & I adopted my male (5 yr. old ) male basenji for $75.00 from a shelter. You can always try there.. much more affordable
  • I have ''issues'' with my basenji, can you help ?

    Basenji Talk
    33
    0 Votes
    33 Posts
    21k Views
    YodelMaY
    Ladybasenji, where are you in Quebec? Montreal? We have a place in Gatineau (Aylmer sector) and one of my dogs might even be related to yours. You're experiences with your girl remind me so much of my first basenji, about 20 years ago–it gets easier, I swear! Let me know if you'd like help with Lady--they're nothing like labs and will never be "obedient" but there are tricks for training them : D
  • HELP ~ What to do?

    Basenji Talk
    25
    0 Votes
    25 Posts
    8k Views
    KebasmomK
    I'm so sorry for your loss.
  • Can't help but love me!

    Basenji Talk
    11
    0 Votes
    11 Posts
    4k Views
    Sanuye_ZontaS
    Bisa LOVES to cuddle underneath a blanket! She will paw the threads out of one to get under it with you! LOL
  • The Humanization of Dogs Part 2

    Basenji Talk
    44
    0 Votes
    44 Posts
    12k Views
    KanangaK
    @AJs: Body language is important. Learning how to use eye contact and tone of voice is important too. For instance: If you speak to your dog in a high pitched tone, it indicates excitement and that your are pleased with them…If you lower your tone, especially when they've done something you are unhappy about, they recognize this easier than the words themselves. At least that's been my experience. Dogs (and cats) use so many communication methods...it's a matter of working with your own dog (or cat.) There are other subtle methods I use and AJ seems to respond to my cues rather well. Again, I have different requirements than other pet people. Zest's person could probably help too, having looked at her agility trials. Ah yes, they really do respond well to a higher tone and lower tone when speaking to them. Whenever Kananga has done something naughty, I don't even need to motion anything, I just say his name in a low tone and he instantly responds to it knowing he has done something wrong. The ol' whippet ears go into action. I always use a higher tone when he's playing so he understands the difference. Seems to work.
  • Helping paws

    Basenji Talk
    2
    0 Votes
    2 Posts
    2k Views
    JazzysMomJ
    I wish. Gypsy is getting old and having more problems – sometimes loses her balance, etc. -- and in response Jazzy is getting meaner to her. When the dogs are outside, Jazzy will wait on the porch for Gypsy. When Gypsy approaches the porch to come in, Jazz will run out growling and starting biting at her face. I've been able to curb it a little by letting Gypsy in, and then shutting the door and making Jazzy wait and sit before letting her in. Little things like that... Although other times she will curl up with Gypsy and sleepthere's never any kindness shown; Jazzy bosses her around more than ever, often even chasing Gypsy off of her bed so that Jazzy can lie down on it {I always make Jazzy get back off and let Gypsy back on}, even though Jazzy has a chair and her own bed. It makes me sad. Keoki on the other hand, seems quite oblivious and treats Gypsy the same as always. While those two never snuggle up, they are play-time buddies. Gypsy livens up a good bit when Keoki invites her to play.