I had a minor heart attack today.

[Lucythebasenji]

I am 19 years old and my "precious little Lucy" decided to test out the strength of my heart today.

Today, we had plumbers over to get the water back on in my house. I noticed that the workers were working in the front yard with the door open and asked my parents to make sure that the gate is closed so that Lucy dosent get out. Guess what happens as soon as I get upstairs..

I live in Brooklyn, New York, with very busy street 24 hours of the day, 7 days a week. I hear my mom yelling Lucys taking off down the street. I sprang to my feet and jump down my 22 step stair case. I get outside to see my dad, who has not exercised a single day in the past 30 years, already half way down the block after her.

My immediate reaction is to go for my bike. So I get on and start peddling faster then my eyes can blink. I catch up with Lucy but she does not slow down. Lucy does not get along well with other dogs and attacks most dogs she meets so when I see three different people walking their dogs I get even more nervous. I pick up my speed and continue this high speed pursuit after my dog passing several cars down the road.

I still cant catch up with her and she takes me for a tour around my large neighborhood block. When I turn the corner after her, she is gone. I dont see her at all. At this time I hear one of my neighbors yell out that she saw Lucy heading home. I peddled home to find her getting yelled at by my mom.

I collapse on the floor and breath very heavily. I begin to experience pain in my heart that I have never felt before. Before I can stop myself I am in tears for the first time in nearly a decade. I cant breath and start gasping for air. It takes me about ten minutes to gather myself and try to calm down.

Lucy is seven years old and still has these evil little games of hers. I am happy to see her home in one piece but she better not expect and hugs and kisses for a while.

Moral of the story: Wisdom does not come with age when it comes to basenjis.

[Rita Jean]

I am so happy that both of you are all right. Just like the little ones make us stay on our toes while they watch us.

Rita Jean

[tanza]

Yes, they are "quick" as bunnies…. glad that all turned out OK.... One tip here... Don't yell at them when they come back or come to you, even if you have been chasing them for hours.... if by coming back (finally)... cause them to be yelled out... next time they will remember that and maybe not chance coming back only to catch hell....

[snorky998]

Sounds like Lucy had a gay romp about the city, but decided "there's no place like home". Maybe you can tag her with another nickname and just call her Dorothy.:)

Scares the crap out of you when they plot and execute the great escape, doesn't it? It's my worst nightmare.

I'm glad you and Lucy are both fine.

[Lucythebasenji]

Thats a good tip tanza. I myself never get mad at her no matter how much of a mess she gets into but its hard to get my parents to execute the same patience with her. I just checked her out and turns out she ran so fast that she scraped the bottom of her front paws on the concrete a little bit.

I find it funny that when I try to walk her she stands still as a statute for 15 minutes until she begins pulling me back home, but as soon as she is off the leash, she takes off running.

[Quercus]

Oh no!! Glad all is well. I think everybody has a 'what the workers did to let my Basenji out' story!! Mine involves removing a panel of our fence, without telling me!!

[nobarkus]

@tanza:

Yes, they are "quick" as bunnies…. glad that all turned out OK.... One tip here... Don't yell at them when they come back or come to you, even if you have been chasing them for hours.... if by coming back (finally)... cause them to be yelled out... next time they will remember that and maybe not chance coming back only to catch hell....

Exactly!

Better get the DVD called Really Reliable Recall by Leslie Nelson. It's intended for sight hounds as she has Afghan and Whippet Hounds.
All my previous Bs were really good and if they got out would go no further than the neighbors house and come back scratching at the door to get in. My new guy, Buddy is a runner and has tested my heart a few times already. (-:

[sharronhurlbut]

Glad this ended well.

[Lucythebasenji]

Thank you everyone for the input and comments. It is helping me get through this. It only happened a couple of hours ago and im still trying to get my heart rate back to normal.

[Basenjimamma]

I am so glad both of you are safe. Chasing a rampant dog down the street is not good for anybody, dog or human.
I actually heard of two pretty interesting things the other day of what to do if your dog gets loose and starts running away; 1) lay down and pretend to be hurt, cryout loud and just act like in serious pain, some dogs might get caught of guard and come running to see what is wrong with you..some. 2) start running the other way acting as if you are wanting the dog to chase you, some dogs see the fun in that and they will start chasing you..again, some dogs. If the occurence ever happens again, these things may work. I hope I don't ever have to try them out, but the odds are not in my favor, since B's are very keen on getting OUT.

[Lucythebasenji]

i have tried that before to get her to come home from the back yard and it rarely works. I didnt want to risk her not turning around and then not even being able to see where she went so when she ran my intention was just to chase her until she wears out.

[Basenjimamma]

I understand, like I said I have yet to use and don't know how well it works..Luckily both of you are safe.

[MacPack]

My husband has declared that he will never chase a basenji again, because his having a heart attack won't help anything. Fortunately ours don't run more than a house or two then are back running right into the house, to "Good dog, welcome home" greetings. (even though I have to bite my tongue).

I am so very glad this story has a happy ending for Lucy!

[RedVelvetLynx]

Wow, what a complete jolt of adrenaline, isn't it? I'm glad everyone is okay! I've never had to chase either of my basenjis for a great distance, but both have ran loose for less than a minute & I know what sheer panic you must have felt. I used to walk Trinity with a retractable leash. She liked to dart back & forth while on her leash in our back yard (no fence yet) & would always pull just as hard as she could. The very last time she wore (and ever will wear) one, I was on the porch & she was in our yard. She decided to jet in a direction which was going to slam my arm around the porch's pole. I was bracing myself for the impact, when all of a sudden, all pull was poof gone. I watched in shock as my girl ran around all crazy - I don't even know if she really realized she was loose - she had pulled her collar from out of the leash's clasp. Luckily, all she wants to do is play - I started to chase her down the side of our house toward the street. She did a 180 & whizzed right past me toward the back of the house - I gave chase after her & quickly realized I was not going to catch her. So, I ran to the house to get treats, not even thinking she would follow me, but just as soon as I opened the patio door to go inside, she ran right past me & did a B500 around the inside because she beat me through the door. So, I found out, by accident, that running the other way can work. Just this past weekend, I had both Bs in our yard, on leash (no, no fence yet). I noticed Trinity was smackin' her lips on something & knew it was rabbit poop - yuck! I was busy ramming my fingers in her mouth to get it out & looked on the ground to see the loop handle of Denver's leash on the grass. As soon as I saw it, he started to trot towards the road. I was still holding on to the other dog & darted after him because his leash was dragging 6 ft behind him & he wasn't moving that fast. He started to gallop & I lost my shoes running after him. There I was, running in my bare feet, yelling 'TREATS! TREATS!' while all I could do was watch him scamper along. He got to my husband's jeep, turned to look at me & patiently waited for Mom to come bring the treats! So, I guess try to find what your B responds to & lure them that way. At least it wasn't your fault!

[crystalncody]

I'm so glad it turned out well! I totally understand that heart-stopping terror that goes through you when they escape. I've been told not to hold and cuddle after I catch Cody when he escapes, but I just can't help myself, I'm so happy and relieved that he's ok.

[lukris]

My heart was racing just reading your story! Thank goodness she came home unhurt. A little reminder for us all about Basenji security and the unexpected!

[Schouiffy]

I think we def. need a "what (insert character) did to let my Basenji out" thread… glad your baby is ok, I have had that moment many many times, esp with my first B who is dog aggressive.

[tanza]

Exactly right…. do not chase.... run the other way.... 9 times out of 10 they will wind up chasing you... of course you have to get their attention to chase you...... but by not chasing them directly.. you are changing the "game"....

And kudos to all for "biting back the need to scream"... ggg and praising them for coming back....

[nobarkus]

A good training game to play in the yard or house is hide and go seek. It makes them look for you. Give treats and praise when they find you. I first starting doing this with my first Basenji in the 70's. I'd even do it at the beach and hide behind a sand dune and she would go crazy trying to find me.

[thunderbird8588]

So glad you caught her and she is safe. Other people just dont get it (not letting the Basenji out) I guess most are used to normal Dogs. We had a visitor once who came in the gate and watched Benji walk past her up the drive. Thats when i nearly had heart attack too. He Kept escaping when i first got him and ended up under a car, fortunately he survived. Years later when i moved if he got out rather than running he went straight next door to sniff and mark the territory. This gave me time to catch him. He was however very growly when i picked him up and would sometimes go for me when i put him down, such a delight, lol.