My boss asked recently if I'd reached the point where I could leave my dog alone in the apartment outside the crate yet, and I told her that I didn't know if I ever would - he's a chewer and if I'm not there to watch what he's chewing, I don't know if I can trust him. She said "oh, so he can't be trained?" "He is trained, he's just a chewer." "Hmmmm…" was her reply, with a face that said "either you're a bad trainer, or he's a dumb dog."
Happier note: took Paco to a dog-friendly restaurant last night, and the bartender yelled "Is that a basenji?!?!" from across the place, ran over to say hi, and went on and on about how her neighbor in the States bred them and how smart they were. 😃
