Male Basenji aggressive behavior towards owners

[Pixiechic72]

Okay, I have two basenji's, a male and a female (brother and sister). As of late we have become a little more lenient on letting our dogs spend less time in their kennel than what they are used to. My daughter is home with them during the day so no need to kennel them while she is there. Also have been letting them stay out all night when we used to kennel them at night. I'm thinking we made the wrong choice in letting them stay out at night. My problem now is when my male Basenji does not want to kennel he becomes extremely angry and aggressive, growling and trying to bite me. I'm not sure how to handle this but I obviously have a training issue on my hands. I know Basenji's can be stubborn but to the point he would attack his human?? I would appreciate any advise offered.

[lvoss]

Is the kennel associated with positive things? Do you feed in the crate and give special chewies in the crate?

It is always best if the dog chooses to enter the crate rather than being forced. I always toss a treat in the dogs' crates before asking them to go in and they will usually race me to get into the crate for their goodie.

If you can build value in the crate for you boy by making it a place where he gets high value items, he should choose to go to his crate rather than creating a confrontational situation around crate time.

[Pixiechic72]

We have always given treats for them kenneling when we ask them to. If he (our male is named Ra) decides he is not interested in the treat I am offering then he just ignores our request to kennel. I agree I don't want to make it into a negative thing and I may just need to find some new treats that will spark new interest. Or some sort of toy. That's another issue all to itself though, he only likes toys (i.e. stuffed animals etc.) that he can destroy. He has no interest in rope or rubber toys. So I need help finding something he likes that he can't demolish in a matter of seconds…..I love him but he is such a stinker sometimes!

[lvoss]

Have you tried toys that you can stuff with food? Mine love stuffed Kongs or hollow bones. There are lots of different ways to stuff a Kong and the different fillings you choose can really raise the value of the Kong to the dog. I have been using canned pumpkin, dry dog food, and a some wet food mixed together and stuffed and then frozen in the Kongs. For an easier to get out treat don't freeze them. For higher value mix in bits of chicken or steak as hidden treasures. Once you find a high value treat that works, only give that treat when in the crate.

Also check out the video Crate Games for some ideas on how to raise the value of the crate and on how to use it as more than just a place for the dog when they can not be supervised. http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTA287

[jessi76]

I would try a high value treat that is ONLY used for kenneling. i.e. cheese, liver biscotti, Solid Gold's Beef Jerky Training treats, etc. Find something high value, but only use it for that one action.

my dog will destroy anything stuffed in a matter of seconds, however, once the stuffing is out, he will keep the flimsy carcass to play with. some other toys we've had success with are the cuz ball (the feet get chewed off immediately though), talk to me treat ball, Orbee ball from Planet Dog (in fact, toys from Planet Dog are nice because they have a minty flavor to them, helps freshen breath while playing!). I've found that the toys that last the longest are those w/ "treat spots". The big black KONG is still a favorite in our house, as long as it's got some sort of goody in it to work out.

[Pixiechic72]

We are going to pick up some wet dog food tonight, we have typically only used it for administering pills/medication. If we start using it just for kenneling I think they will quickly come to associate the kennel with something yummy. Thanks for the advice on the toys, I will check out Planet Dog. I'll report back on how it's going :o)

[sharronhurlbut]

Do you really have to kennel at night?
Would he/they be bad when left out?

[tanza]

@sharronhurlbut:

Do you really have to kennel at night?
Would he/they be bad when left out?

I think more to the point is that there are times they need to be in crates… with mine in their way younger years.. I would do 50/50... some night out of crates, some nights in... then we never had a problems... "Knock on wood"

[sharronhurlbut]

Ok, I do understand Pat and the quality folks work with dogs with no issues.
However,
I can't tell you the number of rescue dogs who have been so much in a crate so much, they break teeth trying to get out.
Different sides of this issue, yes.
But if the dog is ok out of the crate, and it only has to be used, sometime, better yes, lless is more …then more crate time.
For me, with the dogs I see, they want to be with the people, when there are home, but it after work or sleeping.
Crating a dog when your at work and then when you sleep is way too much.
I am not saying this is the case...but imo, if your home, have the dog with you.

[jessi76]

@sharronhurlbut:

Crating a dog when your at work and then when you sleep is way too much.
I am not saying this is the case…but imo, if your home, have the dog with you.

I agree… mostly. a dog should be with it's family but, young pups who do not yet know the rules of the house, should be crated IMO, mostly for their own safety. You can't very well supervise a pup when you're sleeping. however, I do think there is a middle ground to it... I crated my dog at night until he was about 7mths old, and 100% reliable in the house (no accidents). I always kept the crate right next to the bed though. with the exception of night hours, our dog was never crated for longer than 4 hrs at a time. our goal was always to achieve no need for the crate.. which we reached when he was around 2 yrs old. I think a crate is a wonderful TOOL, but it's just that, a tool, not a way of life. We still have one of our crates set up, and occasionally our dog will choose to use it, but the door is never shut.