A good "safety" exercise to practice is a command that tells your dog treats are in the offing, and use it at irregular intervals when you are walking. Combine the command with a total release of pressure on the leash, preferably when your dog has firm tension on said leash. Then if something unexpected happens you have a built in reaction of the dog to look to you for a reward. This won't work if your dog is pursuing a major distraction, but should give you an edge if you have an equipment failure in otherwise neutral conditions. (you can carry this one step further by "accidentally" dropping the leash in a controlled area, or with a light line attached for safety, and practice until the dog turns to you when it feels a total release)
LOST- R/W 7 yr old female- Titusville FL
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A fellow basenji lover from Deltona Florida is heartsick about losing her r/w girl, Binta. If anyone one here has any leads, please let me know!
Binta has a 3 week head start, as she was lost at the end of January. Patti suffered a stroke and was in the hospital. Binta was staying in Titusville Fl with Patti's daughter… and while her daughter knew that Binta was an escape artist, she was shocked when she jumped the fence and escaped. Again, this was about 40 miles away from her home, so Binta is unfamiliar with her surroundings.
Patti has recovered from her illness and is now home, and is trying to find her precious girl. She's had Binta since she was a puppy, and has kept in contact with Binta's parents. Patti says:
I got Binta from a friend/coworker. They owned the father (now passed) and still own her mother. She has her fathers genes. All stubburn and does not listen. She will sit, and respond to "Do you want cookie".
Binta is microchipped and Patti has contacted Home Again; they've flagged her as missing. If our basenji community can Be On the Look Out for Binta…. Patti would sincerely appreciate it!
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Here is a link to a basenji that Helping Hands is fostering… do you think this is the same girl? They have her listed as being 9, and the only picture that Patti has is when she was younger...
I'm not an expert on dog markings, but my fingers are crossed that this is a match. I've emailed Patti and Helping Hands, so stay tuned.
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wow! it really does look like it could be the same dog - slightly off center whit on the face, almost no white on the left side of the dog's muzzle, white left leg, r/w right leg…. here's hoping!
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Markings are very similar, hope it is Binta. Or if not, maybe a new home for the dog at Helping Hands with your friend!
Good job, Patty M, making that 'match'!
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FOUND!!! One happy basenji ending… I thought I'd share this, to give others hope about the resiliency of the basenji spirit:
Good news. 5 months to the day I received a call from Home Again. Binta was taken to a vet in Titusville. She was covered in ticks and could not move. She had a choke collar on, that she had gotten her right leg through. The collar is inbedded in her body from her neck to her under arm. The vet is going to operate tomorrow. You can only see a fine line across her body, and the end of the collar. There was no smell of infection, so that is a relief. Her poop is nothing but sand, but her weight is right on. She had been wandering in a grove for a long while, and the lady that finally got her, had been feeding her. I don't know for how long. When I saw her yesterday, she was walking fine again. Thank you for all you did to help find her. I appreciate it.
Patti -
Wonderful news!
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So glad to hear Binta is safely home again - cannot imagine the fear and worry her "parents" went through. Happy endings are not all that common when our little ones escape!
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Wow, that is amazing. Thanks for sharing.
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Oh wow, incredible she is home! She had a choke collar on her when she escaped or someone caught her and had it on her between the escape and vet getting her?
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I would be bawling with joy. I'm so glad this poster was able to update the story with a happy ending!
