Don't feel too bad, I've been on here for years, and still have no idea how to post a photo!!
My new brindle bundle of joy…
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good luck and please let me know your outcome if you use any of these suggestions. I sort of have a running tally in my head. thanks
All good suggestions– thanks so much! I have tried both the DAP diffuser and Thundershirt, and they didn't help her. Ditto soft music and other calming oils, like lavender. Whatever is at the root of her panic is, unfortunately, beyond those. I have "Control Unleashed" and will get "Through a Dog's Ear." And we have been doing clicker training since Day 1, and it's working pretty well since she is food-motivated. She was well on the way to being house trained, and I was feeling good about that, until this crate panic made her break it. Now, we're back at the beginning, and she goes everywhere and anywhere.
I'll check out "Dr Overall Relaxation Protocol", too. I'm really looking forward to getting "Crate Games," and if I find anything else that works, I'll let you know. She is, indeed, a complicated little creature... though a lovable one.
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Have you done any leash training yet? If so, how does she respond? Some dogs that will not tolerate confinement in a crate are amenable to being tied. They may not love it, (and with a Basenji who doesn't love it, you will need to use something she can't chew through!), but usually it doesn't make them so hysterical. Some people like tethering their pup to their waist as they work around the house. At least you know where they are!
She hates her collar and leash, too. She will buck like a bronco to try and slip out and away, and I have to tighten her collar more than I would like to keep her in them. I did try the umbilical cord leashing around the house (which I used successfully with Spencer), but she gave me such fits that I abandoned it for now. I feel like she hates everything I try to do with her… probably because she doesn't want restraints or boundaries of any kind. Of course, I can't let her have that.
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Martingale collar will help if she's bucking the collar, and the only time it'll tighten is when she resists… So perhaps since it'll fit looser then she won't object as much..but will give you the control of it tightening when she pulls away
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Pamela, my saying with My boy was and still is: "I was prepared for a Basenji but I wasn't prepared for an Oakley"
One day you will laugh at this, I promise. As well as control unleashed and crate games look into a behaviorist that is familiar with BOTH separation anxiety AND confinement anxiety… The two have the same panic reaction but just solving one usually won't work until both components are addressed.Yes, unfortunately, I suspect that she has both separation and confinement anxiety. I have no idea how we're going to get her through this, but maybe a good behaviorist will help. I hope you're right, but I don't think I will ever be able to laugh about this. I like your saying, though– I can so relate!
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Martingale collar will help if she's bucking the collar, and the only time it'll tighten is when she resists… So perhaps since it'll fit looser then she won't object as much..but will give you the control of it tightening when she pulls away
I forget– is the Martingale like the Halti-- a harness-type?
Ah, no, I Googled it and yes, I've seen those, but do not have one. Thanks for the tip! The online shopping sites are loving me today!
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I LOVE my white pine outfitters martingales. I've had them for years and years. so nice, soft and colors do not run. Those are my "go to" walking collar/leash.
Bummer that the thundershirt did not work. I just got one (about a month ago) for Zest! and our Q rate in agility has, literally, spiked.
I doubt the Dog's Ear book will help, but it's sort of interesting reading and has a cute basenji on the cover. you could always check your local library, that's where i think i first found it. again, maybe a piece of the puzzle.
I know Zest! did go throught a period where she hated her crate, but not to the extreme you've described. And of course once she slept in our bed, she never looked back. (that was not planned, but due to a late spring snow storm that killed power for 24+ hours. I did not think her freezing in her crate was going to help her like the crate.) And I do have other dogs, so she was never really "alone". We did do crate games. We did more of Overall's RP. (And boy were those conformation people impressed with me sending her to her mat! easily amused, those people)
Oh, and congratulations - your learning curve is about to seriously increase! (I know that may or may not make you feel better now, but someday . . . )
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So the 9/16" SoftSlip for the collar? And maybe the thundershirt will work if she develops any other fears (God help me!), but this crate thing is just too extreme. I will try all these things and maybe something will stick.
I feel like the mom at the park whose kid won't go down the slide. Everybody else's kids are having a big time, and I'm feeling like "Wow, what's wrong with us?"
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yes, and you'll need matching lead (or two if she chews, b/c you'll need a backup) because, if you have a princess, and it sounds like you do, you need matching things.
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did you get the pink thundershirt? i paid extra and got the pink thundershirt. soooo worth the extra $ for the princess.
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BEAUTIFUL little girl! What about Hazel?
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Sad to say I got the gray Thundershirt, and I have brown leather and red Flexi leads. This is what happens when a boy mom gets a princess– I'm totally unprepared to deal with a diva. Should I buy a tiara?
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Sad to say I got the gray Thundershirt, and I have brown leather and red Flexi leads. This is what happens when a boy mom gets a princess– I'm totally unprepared to deal with a diva. Should I buy a tiara?
wouldn't hurt.
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I did get the Martingale collar and leash– thanks so much for the suggestion, you guys!
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Martingales are now the ONLY thing I use, 1: because i feel secure walking Oakley with minimal risk of escaping and 2: because as a puppy with confinement issues (less with things like collars and clothing) this collar only confines against a negative reaction…I think it's a good choice for Ava...and Pamela , you may be the only one at the "playground" wondering what's wrong with your kid...it's not because you are alone but that the other moms were too afraid to take their kids outside!!!!
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Just adding my 2 cents.
I do everything natural with my B's.
Get online and go to 1800homeopathy.com
Order a homeopathic remedy called Ignatia amara
I give this to all pups to settle nerves before putting in a crate.
Or, older dogs that don't like crates.
A couple of doses should do the trick.
Keep a bottle on hand for all situation. Going to the vet,etc.
Only $9.95 for 500 pellets.
Don't touch the pellets, measure them out in the lid and put on a spoon
add a few drops of water. Give in the mouth every 15 minutes. For 2/3 dosesThen put in the crate.
Works like a charm and has for me for well over 36 years.
If it doesn't, let me know,you can get another remedy to add with it.
Just write back and I 'll help.Kathryn
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Thanks so much, Kathryn. I will check out the Ignatia amara. I haven't heard of it, but I've tried everything else and surely something will work on this pup. Actually, if it doesn't work for Ava, maybe it will work for me. My nerves are pretty frazzled, too.
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Martingales are now the ONLY thing I use, 1: because i feel secure walking Oakley with minimal risk of escaping and 2: because as a puppy with confinement issues (less with things like collars and clothing) this collar only confines against a negative reaction…I think it's a good choice for Ava...and Pamela , you may be the only one at the "playground" wondering what's wrong with your kid...it's not because you are alone but that the other moms were too afraid to take their kids outside!!!!
Did you have any trouble getting Oakley to accept a collar, Chealsie? With his crate issues, did he balk at walking on a leash? I know that both can feel confining to an anxious dog… but maybe Oakley's issue was more SA? Ava has both, but the confinement seems worse than the SA. When you combine the two...
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Actually, if it doesn't work for Ava, maybe it will work for me. My nerves are pretty frazzled, too.
I am really sorry to read this. So sad to have these ongoing issues, especially in your circumstances. I had a thought. If you are distressed, of course she will feel it and likely misinterpret it. Could add to your problems. With anxious animals, the more matter of fact you can be the better. Easier said than done, I know! Try to be as cheery as possible, especially when she is being difficult. And don't make the mistake of spending too much time trying to reassure and comfort her…...usually backfires, then they think there really is something to be worried about! I know you are an experienced Basenji owner and that I am perhaps pointing out the obvious, but I also know I often can't see the forest for the trees. Hang in there. This too shall pass!
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Unfortunately, I realize that I could be becoming part of the problem. I'm trying to remain calm and positive, and I hope I do an okay job of pretending… but I know dogs are sensitive. And I am distraught.
I am an experienced B owner, and I love the breed, but I have never seen a dog like Ava. She isn't improving at all; in fact, she's regressing in some distressing ways. I thought maybe she had abandoned her housetraining because of a UTI, but I had a urinalysis done and that's not the case. She went ballistic and soiled the crate at the vet's office, so it isn't just at home with me. My vet wants to refer us to an animal behaviorist at UT-- maybe even a neurologist-- and a highly recommended trainer spent an hour with us and told me that Ava needed more help than she could provide. So this probably isn't going to work itself out in a few weeks, like I had hoped.
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O.K. one other thought. How is she with other dogs? Would she still freak with another, calm, older dog confined with her? Any idea? Can you borrow one? Perhaps there is a foster out there that would serve to calm her while she (hopefully) outgrows this phase, or matures enough that she can be trusted uncrated…..
