Hello.

I am very new to the Basenji forums, but am a dog lover and am a novice dog owner. I raised up with dogs and know basic behavior issues and structure.

Recently I moved in with my girlfriend (who means the world to me) and her wonderful dog Jack, a Boston Terrier. He is incredibly smart and loyal to her, since she raised him since he was a pup.A while after, we both decided to make an addition to the family, and we decided to visit our local shelter. Well there happened to be a great, beautiful Basenji mix (don't know the other portion) male named Tanner we decided to adopt. I did some research before the adoption and thought that the two would get along just fine. He was a stray (with no previous history) and has been neutered and up to date on shots.

We had an initial meet between us and the basenji mix and boston terrier for the first day and they were just fine. They were more curious and sniffing things out and seemed to cope alright. We kept them on leashes and made sure they were protected initially to allow a good buffer of space to get familiar with the surroundings.

Tonight, to be safe we had the dogs in two separate rooms while we had some relatives over. My girlfriends niece had opened the door to both the dogs rooms, and before you know it, they viciously attacked eachother. Blood was shed, to the 10th degree and I immediately intervened.

While intervening, I had tried to separate the two by pulling them apart (problem #1) it was so immediate I didn't have time for another person to jump in and explain to them to pull them back by their legs and wheelbarrow them. Ultimately, I took the fall and had a quarter of my thumb sliced through by the new Basenji.

Here as some quick facts.

Boston Terrier (Jack)
1. Loyal to my girlfriend, and is very kind to me
2. Very playful, and loves attention.
3. Literally owns the relationship between him and my girlfriend.

Basenji (Tanner)
1. Very passive and quiet
2. Loves to chew, play and explore
3. Incredibly smart

These are things I discovered from day 1 with the Basenji, but the two dogs had their relationship started off on the wrong foot, very inadvertently.

By the end of the first day we took Tanner home, I am left with a gash in my thumb (which is excruciatingly painful), Jack who has a slight gash on his muzzle, and Tanner who has a gash on his leg.

I am in love with the two dogs, and want them to get along.

Is there anything I can do, to promote and allow time for them to get along? Or is it a futile attempt based on natural breed and way things got kicked off?

Please help.