Ask the breeder how big the sire and dam are. That's a good idea. My first basenji, who was a champion, weighed nearly 26 pounds when she matured. My 2nd one would have been about that, but thanks to steroids, we did good to keep her at 30. My current rescue is a giant. We won't go there. I first dreamed of a SMALL dog, maybe 15 pounds tops after years of being a BIG DOG person (rottweilers and chows). I don't see that ever happening.
Meet Maximus!
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Hi everyone!! We adopted this little booger from the Animal Foundation on Friday.
Maximus, or Max for short, is a Basenji mix. Our guess is part German Shepherd, but who knows! He's a big boy, weighing in at about 53 pounds and about a head taller than purebred Basenjis. Max was an owner surrender due to a relocation/new landlord not allowing pets. He's INCREDIBLY smart, and definitely did not get the Basenji's inability to bark. He gets very excited when he sees other dogs so gets quite vocal. He also has a bit of separation anxiety, which is to be expected. Had to leave our neighbors a letter and some candy begging for forgiveness while we work on that.
When we picked Max up, he only barely knew "sit." Now he knows sit, down, stay, "go to your room" and leave/drop it. Of course, only when there's nothing around distracting him. Work in progress
He is just the biggest sweetheart though!
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Max certainly looks eager to learn! How old is he? If you are correct about the German Shepherd part, it will be interesting to see what traits are dominant, the GSD willingness to please, or the Basenji tendency to please themselves! It would certainly appear he has inherited the Shepherd urge to bark! In any case, he is a handsome lad.
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He is! I can really see both sides of it depending on his mood. Sometimes you can see the internal struggle in his face…it's the funniest thing. He'll hear a command and have this look on his face as though he's thinking, "...I want to do it...but I also kind of don't want to..." and after a bit of thinking he'll either plop his butt down or waltz off.
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What a CUTIE! Thanks for adopting!
