BIG problems with Jack…

[nala121498]

((Hugs to you)), Having is a baby is a big adjustment for all in the household. I know you will get through this. You've been given lots of great advice from people who know dogs. Hang in there and keep us posted.

[Mantis]

Ok, it will be okay. You have shown us that you posess the crazy basenji mom traits that are needed to have a great basenji.:D

Caesar (my 5yr old basenji) never growled until I added the puppy basenji to the family. 5 years, no sounds of discontent ever. Keep in mind, that although basenjis dont bark, the do communicate through sound.

I found that (with basenji mom attention) Caesar's growling is innocent and is just his way of screaming about his space with Cairo when Cairo is bugging him and he doesnt want to move.

We hold his muzzle softly in our hands until he stops. We call it the growly old man sounds.

I think putting him outside may be the wrong thing. We all know our basenjis are happiest with us. I would suggest kennel time or the muzzle so that he is still in your sight and the bad behavior is being addressed until it stops.

I might suggest you push off your visitors a bit since Jack is expressing some serious stress. He sounds like he needs to adjust to the changes. I am sure you are not adjusted to the sleep cycles.

Have no fear or misunderstanding. He is just trying to figure out his place in the pack and if it has changed.

Also, keep reminding you and your husband that Jack's world is in your house. You are all he sees all day. Be patient and dont let yourselves be short and have Jack pay the price.

Dogs get jealous, mad, grumpy, growly and experience many traits that we have ourselves. I have seen Caesar lick little Cairo's eyes like a mommy and growl so loud at him in the kennel that it sounded like blood was spilling. There are all kinds of sounds they use to communicate. You now are learning some new forms of communication.

Determine what is okay, what is not. Address it. Always show your love. Your love for Jack is what has made him such a unique basenji. You will be fine and he will be your perfect silly boy again.

You can do this! You can do anything you put your mind too. You just had a baby! You can do anything.:)

[jys1011]

Looks like you've got lots of great advice here. As usual I'm thinking like Andrea that it also sounds like a bit of hectic household (and why not there's a new BABY & everyone wants to meet him ) so really A LOT has changed for Jack. He's definitely not used to this highly social environment & with strange things come strange B noises

Here's what I would do:

1-I'd get this great book by Pia Silvani on Puppies & Kids. There's lots of great advice there.

2-Find a quiet room..away from the guests & ESPECIALLY any children guests that can be dangerous :eek: Spend some time with Jack just one on one in his new safe place. Bring him yummy treats (like a rawhide or a hamburger or a pigs ear YUM )

3-If he absolutely must be loose around the house then I would make sure that I am there at ALL TIMES…no if's and's or but's about it. If I'm not there then neither is Jack. It's MY responsibility to have to manage the situation & if I can't be there then the dog must be put in a safe place where he's not stressed out & afraid.

4-If I'm with him then it would work like this:
-When Jack approaches someone growling...the person should fold their arms look away & turn your body away from him (never stare at the dog when they're growling) & ignore him. There are lots of calming dog signals in this behavior.

-When he stops growling..."GOOD BOY...bacon, beef, chicken treats"

-If Jack gets anxious at people's movements then practice his sit & downs...ask Jack to SIT & if he listens then it's.."GOOD BOY..treats treats treats" and then the person can get up & move.

-If Jack gets anxious while people are eating...then you divert his attention call him over to another place have him SIT & then it's..."GOOD BOY..treats treats treats"

-If you have the baby & Jack gets anxious ask him to get into a DOWN & STAY..if he does it then it's..."GOOD BOY..treats treats treats"

It's all about re-asserting yourself as his protector. It sounds to me like the situation is making him nervous & afraid. The more you work with him that there's nothing to worry about the easier it will be for him to relax & calm down.

I realize you have a new baby & it will be hard to manage both Jack & the baby maybe DH can help or maybe your mom can help but if you can't work with Jack then your safest bet is to find Jack a safe place in your home.

Good luck!

[Mantis]

good post!

[tanza]

I still think that your best chance to work through this is to get a behaviorist into your home asap….. just my opinion... but really between everything you have going on with a new baby... someone "personally" there will be able to give you "direct" direction and help you work through the problems... as they are not just going to go away....

[Quercus]

@Mantis:

good post!

I agree! Good advice from both Mantis and JYS!

[felakuti]

I am not going to pussyfoot around with you. your dog has already bitten two people, what's wrong with you…Your baby is in danger, never mind anyone else who comes into your home. Do something about it TODAY before your baby gets harmed.

[Quercus]

@felakuti:

I am not going to pussyfoot around with you. your dog has already bitten two people, what's wrong with you…Your baby is in danger, never mind anyone else who comes into your home. Do something about it TODAY before your baby gets harmed.

Well, that is a very valid point of view….but those of us who have dogs who have bitten can tell you that it is not uncommon to have a dog that will bite a stranger, but not a family member. It is difficult to tell in this situation with Jack whether he would bite a family member or not right now, since none of us (except his humans) are there. But I am pretty sure the baby is not in any danger right now...I am sure none of them are leaving the baby alone with Jack, and the baby is too little to get himself into trouble with the dog.

In my opinion and experience, it is best to not act rashly in these situations and dump the dog...the situation can be managed until everyone has a clear head, and a behaviorist can be consulted, and then it can be decided if rehoming, or training, or even euthanasia is the best alternative...but a decision shouldn't be made in the midst of a very traumatic adjustment time.

[Basenji_Boy]

@tanza:

While others might have good suggestions, I would say you need a behaviorist ASAP… someone that can see Jack's actions in person and help you to deal with them.....
While you say nothing has changed with his schedule, his entire household has changed, it has... you have the baby now... and he knows that.... and is confused by what is going on... and where his place is... IMO

Just from what I read that is what I think is going on.

Some good advice has been given, please be careful.

[tanza]

@Quercus:

Well, that is a very valid point of view….but those of us who have dogs who have bitten can tell you that it is not uncommon to have a dog that will bite a stranger, but not a family member. It is difficult to tell in this situation with Jack whether he would bite a family member or not right now, since none of us (except his humans) are there. But I am pretty sure the baby is not in any danger right now...I am sure none of them are leaving the baby alone with Jack, and the baby is too little to get himself into trouble with the dog.

In my opinion and experience, it is best to not act rashly in these situations and dump the dog...the situation can be managed until everyone has a clear head, and a behaviorist can be consulted, and then it can be decided if rehoming, or training, or even euthanasia is the best alternative...but a decision shouldn't be made in the midst of a very traumatic adjustment time.

Very well put Andrea….

[JazzysMom]

@felakuti:

I am not going to pussyfoot around with you. your dog has already bitten two people, what's wrong with you…Your baby is in danger, never mind anyone else who comes into your home. Do something about it TODAY before your baby gets harmed.

That is a little rash, IMO.

It's not as if Jack has just started attacking people out of the blue. Nor has he moved to attack the baby. He's confused and probably a bit overwhelmed right now. What is needed is clear-thinking to solve the problem.

Dumping the dog won't solve his problem; it just puts another dog in a shelter that doesn't know what to do with babies and crowds of visitors, which makes a repeat of the event bound to happen with a new family.

This is a problem that can be solved, my guess is fairly soon.

Dumping or euthanizing every dog that goes through a stressful situation and reacts badly is not right nor fair.

The old belief that "once a dog bites there's no training him out of it" could not be more untrue. Many good dogs were destroyed because of that idea, and that is a shame because they could have been worked with just a bit and become awesome family pets.

[BDawg]

I agree. I don't think dumping the dog is the answer. My friend at work just dumped her dog (of only 1 week) and it was really disappointing. You don't just dump something at the first sign of trouble. You work with it and make your best effort to remedy the situation. We're all here for you and want what's best for everyone involved. Keep your head up.

[Capt_Jack_our_Basenji]

Thanks again for all the advise. ive had Jack inside with everyone there with his caged muzzle on, and randomly we will take it off, esp. when DH and i are both in the room with him and he seems to be doing well. he still gets a little antsy, but seems to be getting better. he has only growled at one other person since my last post. a friend of mine, angela who has been over a thousand times and never had a problem with jack, got growled at for petting him while he was eating something off the floor and then i put on his muzzle (just in case) and he growled at her when she walked by him. @@ no clue why. but other than that its the same ol' Jack. I dont think we are going to get rid of him without a BIG fight to try and correct things. we'll see once things settle down here, and i PROMISE im being VERY careful around the baby, and everyone else for that matter. in fact the weather is finally good again and we are planning on going to the dog park!! ive been spending just me and Jack time and so has DH as well as pet pet pet the whole time he is with us and so are all the guests that are here, he LOVES it! so im trying all your ideas THANK you!! ill keep ya posted!

[jys1011]

Hi there! Just wondering how Jack is getting along with the new little addition to the family

[Capt_Jack_our_Basenji]

WELL things have calmed down, parents left on the 16th, but Jack was good the last few days they were here, in fact the only thing that happened since my post was Jack was outside in his dog house and my mom went to reach in and give him another doggie blanket and he growled at her, and he doesnt do that to me or geoff BUT I understand why he'd get upset at her….OH well...now hes doing good, he still gets excited and bolts around the room and just a few minutes ago Aiden WAS sleeping on the bed and Jack bolted up there...he didnt step on Aiden, he jumped over him thank god, but what can u do?? lol...all is well, WELL getting better anyway. hahaa!! OK ill talk to you all LATER!!! and ill keep ya posted!

[MaxBooBooBear]

It sounds like Jack just needs some time to adjust–especially with all the extra family in the house. If he's doing this well so far, I think (hope) things will only get better. I'm glad you and your hubby love him so much and are being understanding and working with him. Just because they growl (my Zoey does that at the vets, with Tyler (her basenji dad), and even with me sometimes)--she does it out of fear and to tell us she doesn't like what we're doing (like when I have to pick her up to put her outside in the rain to go potty)--but she's all growl and no bite....with me--it's really more grumbling than growling--at the vets--it's growling. It happens much less now that she's gotten used to her vet and dermatologist.

[Capt_Jack_our_Basenji]

WELL The Family has been gone for sometime now, BUT Jack is growling at ANY other person besides me and Geoff that comes over, even people who have been around many times before…and sometimes he will go on and attempt to nip (like a good friend of ours who was over today but has been over thousands of times before with no problems, and im shocked because she was petting him for a good couple a minutes and then he just jumped up and tried to bite her!! )We cant afford a behaviorist unfortunatly….but im getting really concerned....im afraid Aiden or Me might be next, and there is NOTHING that triggers his "attack" or Aggression. Its completely random. We are at the end of our ropes here...and i feel like we have tried EVERYTHING...we spend TONS of just Jack and me or my husband time and all of us together with the baby as well and jack is his old self, but if hes nipping and growling EVERYtime a stranger is here, its not safe to have him...because he could bite on of us next...i really have no more ideas on what to do, Is Jack helpless at this point? i dont want to sell him, but it hurts me to be afraid of him...:(

[tanza]

@Capt_Jack_our_Basenji:

WELL The Family has been gone for sometime now, BUT Jack is growling at ANY other person besides me and Geoff that comes over, even people who have been around many times before…and sometimes he will go on and attempt to nip (like a good friend of ours who was over today but has been over thousands of times before with no problems, and im shocked because she was petting him for a good couple a minutes and then he just jumped up and tried to bite her!! )We cant afford a behaviorist unfortunatly….but im getting really concerned....im afraid Aiden or Me might be next, and there is NOTHING that triggers his "attack" or Aggression. Its completely random. We are at the end of our ropes here...and i feel like we have tried EVERYTHING...we spend TONS of just Jack and me or my husband time and all of us together with the baby as well and jack is his old self, but if hes nipping and growling EVERYtime a stranger is here, its not safe to have him...because he could bite on of us next...i really have no more ideas on what to do, Is Jack helpless at this point? i dont want to sell him, but it hurts me to be afraid of him...:(

While I understand your concerns… never is it "for no reason"... Jack has a reason that his is not feeling secure in the home situation. It is unfortunate that you can't get a behavoirist.. because I am sure that this could help the adjustment time... I would doubt that without professional help even suggestions on this forum will not help... as someone needs to watch and see exactly what is going on.... It is my opinion that you have already lost all confidence in Jack and that feeling is being transferred to him... knowingly or not.... and Jack has picked up on those feelings... In your current position, you should consider contacting BRAT for assistance in trying to rehome Jack... again IMO, it seems you will never really trust him and he will continue to pick up on those feelings.

[Barklessdog]

I would at least see how much it costs to work with a dog behavioralist or get a professional opinion, where they can see things first hand.

I have to agree that Basenji rescue might be your best option without hiring a trainer. Once your son becomes a wobbly toddler and without being able to crate Jack could spell trouble down the road.

I would not sell him to anyone, as you know, it takes a dedicated owner to work with Basenji's. BRAT rescue screens new homes for the dogs.

Is their a BRAT rescue near you to at least contact?

First I would try a Behavioralist, is Jack not worth the money to you?

A counseling could be free with some trainers or at least at a very minimal cost?

At least then you would have explored all your options, you owe that to Jack I believe. He deserves the best as deep down he is a great dog, but maybe not the best type of dog for your situation at this time.

[renaultf1]

@Barklessdog:

First I would try a Behavioralist, is Jack not worth the money to you?

A counseling could be free with some trainers or at least at a very minimal cost?

At least then you would have explored all your options, you owe that to Jack I believe. He deserves the best as deep down he is a great dog, but maybe not the best type of dog for your situation at this time.

Sorry, but I don't entirely agree here…Given the added money of a new baby and all those new expenses, it probably isn't a question about whether or not Jack is worth the money. Everyone has their own money realities and I don't think adding to their pressure anymore than they already feel it is going to do anyone any good. It doesn't seem that they are coming to the conclusion lightly about possibly re-homing Jack.

I agree that BRAT would be the best option if they can't keep him and agree that possibly there is someone they could see that could do some sort of low-cost initial consult...perhaps their vet could suggest someone.

At the same time, Tanza sounds right. It sounds like everyone has possibly lost confidence in Jack, and if he is picking up on those feelings, then maybe a new home would be best.