Hey Petra,
There isn't really any 'wrong' colored brindle. A lot of people have shown very dark brindles and done well. If you are interested, I would give it a try.
@Rita:
Anyones advice on showing your dog would love to hear from you. Jaycee is going to class starting in Sept to learn how to be shown and my son is going to learn how to show her.
Jaycee was to her first and our first dog show in Kansas City Saturday were we had 3 different people look at her. They all knew her grandparents on back and said she would show.
We do not know but are going to try it. I was not sure how Jaycee would be around so many dogs and different kinds and sizes. We were very please and happy with her just happy go lucky looking around like your big and your to small.
There were 4 showing (2) tri's, (1) black and white (1) red/white. Its was fun to watch them.Rita Jean
It sounds like you are on the right track. You are going to take her to handling classes, and have made some contact with the show people in your area. Definitely give it a try…you might decide you love it, or you hate it, but you won't know until you try 
I guess my only advice would be to make sure you keep it fun for her. Basenjis are particularly susceptable to having their show experience ruined by overly harsh corrections, or nervous humans..so just have fun with it, and convince her this is the best thing ever
Thanks for the positive words Andrea I will look into it..
RitaJean, how did you find classes in your area on the subject?
I went to the Kansas City dog Show on Saturday. Two of the ladies use to breed and now they are just handlers. The lady that I am going to classes with use to raise and handle and she is in a club about hour from our house . You can go to class or hire her for private lessons. Last one was young girl live close to our house they have showed for years kind of got out it as she is the youngest of five and now all older getting back into showing. They offered help and advice.
We are doing it for fun and if she does great good for her and if not still fun and around lots of people and dogs. I got to see the one little red and white that 8 months old take her very first point Saturday that was really neat.
Rita Jean
Sounds like y'all had so much fun..please keep us updated as to how it goes.
Was lots of fun there was this big Great Dane came walking by Jaycee and she is all happy and ready to play. I was like one foot on your head girl and your gone. The Great Dane wanted to play with her guy said he loved to play.
Rita Jean
Cool, good luck. I would love to show Otis too, but don't know how well it would go because he is the "wrong" colored brindle..hate to set myself and Otis up for disappointment. I wish you great luck and I know peeps will guide you in the right direction with this..keep us updated, please.
I know lots of Dark Brindles… they are pretty common really, just like "light" colored Brindles... so should not really be a consideration in the ring... there are still a lot of judges that we call "red or dead" judges. Meaning they only will use Red/White dogs, but we have so many really nice dogs showing now of all the colors, it is not as bad as it used to be. When I started showing, if you had a Black/White or Tri... you were truly a minority...ggg.. not that way much anymore....
That said, when you show... best you are ready for "disappointment"... because you lose more times then you win...gggg... You need to be able to go into the ring with "I have the best dog here" attitude but be ready to accept not winning...and even getting beat by a dog that you might feel is not as good as yours... In other words... you need to have a "thick" skin for the show ring... along with being honest about your own dog and knowing their faults.
When asking for opinions, understand that most people will not be brutally honest.. they will point out the good things and gloss over the bad... so sometimes when asking for opinions you may not really be hearing the down and dirty truth about your own dog.
Thank you Pat. I know deep down in my heart that we have the best Basenji and yes she more than likely has faults but I have lots of them. Disappointment no way she is our baby and family first.
Thank you having words of wisdom is always a good thing to have.
Rita Jean
They all have faults, it is the degree of those faults that a judge will look at to decide who wins/who doesn't….
So again, understanding your own dog's "conformation" faults is key....
Thank you again. We have work ahead of us. Keep you posted as we learn.
Rita Jean
I agree with Pat, a 'thick skin' is definitely a must. You may hear comments from ringside about your dog and/or your handling, just try to find the things you can learn and ignore the mean spirited.
Read and learn the standard, watch the people with the winning dogs, and just be as gracious as you can.
I also agree that you just need to have fun and make sure the dog is having fun!
Terry
Thanks Pat for your input, I really appreciate that as well. I can manage a thick skin, knowing now that it isn't that uncommon for dark brindles, my main objective was just that, the color, of course there are other faults Otis might have, thats OK. He is first and foremost our fourlegged kid and terror..but getting in the ring might be a fun experience.
I haven't been in this game as long as most folks on here but I have to say just go out there and have fun and don't be offended if you don't win. It's kind of funny, I've been to some of the four day shows and it's lose one day and win the next against the same dogs. You just never know when it will all come together, but when it does, it is a great feeling!! I have a dark colored brindle puppy and she is doing well so far so don't let color deter you.
Thanks Karen for your positive words..
Terry I did lots of watching Saturday not just Basenjis but lots other breeds. Judges peoples faces and the dogs. I even caught myself looking at some of the clothes that they were wearing. I know you should dress nice but a couple of them, all jokes aside I thought were going to a formal ball.
Rita Jean
At shows the attire is tie and jacket for men, dresses/skirts/or nice slacks for women… but "comfy" shoes....
Lots of women had nice suits or nice slacks and yes I did notice most of women had flat shoes. I only seen one man he was dressed nice. Couple as I said were dressed for a dance with glitter and lots and lots of jewerly. They really stood out.
Rita Jean
We have a lady who shows Bloodhounds here in CA who is famous for her outfits - she favors big flowing skirts or wide-legged silk pants and all kinds of glitter/glitz. She would stand out anywhere! Fortunately, she has nice dogs and since everyone knows her, I guess it isn't distracting!
We also try to let new exhibitors know the general guidelines, but they don't always hear it… we had one young woman who wore platform sandals the first time she showed her Basenji. After her first attempt at clomping around the ring, she kicked them off and showed barefoot!
Terry
Here's what the standard says about colour…
Color–Chestnut red; pure black; tricolor (pure black and chestnut red); or brindle (black stripes on a background of chestnut red); all with white feet, chest and tail tip. White legs, blaze and collar optional. The amount of white should never predominate over primary color. Color and markings should be rich, clear and well-defined, with a distinct line of demarcation between the black and red of tricolors and the stripes of brindles.
I've seen brindles win that have a chocolate colour background instead of red and in fact saw one win breed at a huge East Coast show recently. I've also seen brindles win that are mainly red and you can barely make out their stripes.
I've seen women wearing everything from jeans to almost formal wear. There is one woman I've seen that shows Salukis whose wardrobe is to die for (usually longer skirts and flowing pants - and consequently she looks stunning) - I'm sure she spends more on her clothes than I earn in a year.
One thing show people told me about clothing for women to show in is to wear nice clothing (think office attire) that you don't mind getting damaged and is easily washable - because of stains and putting bait, etc. in pockets.
And regarding shoes - be sure they are comfortable but that aren't slippery to run in (especially for shows outdoors).
