Basenjis and cats
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Out of our six basenjis, only one seems driven to kill the former resident cat. He lives with my parents now. And he is not a runner, at all. And he is BIG…weighs as much as the dog...and has claws. None of this deterred her. The last time I tried to work with them together, he sat very still while she drove at him from all sides trying to urge him to run so she could chase him. Of course, the chase is what she wanted...but I have no doubt that the kill instinct would take over if she caught him after the run.
The rest like to sniff the cat, and if it is a runner give short chase...but none get as totally focused and driven as she is. But that is the kind of dog she is.
I think it is really individual thing with basenjis (and dogs in general). Some can chase a cat, and not get aroused to the point of danger, some can't. You can train the ones that are only mildly aroused to "leave it"...but the other ones...it is so hard to get them to actually hear you, because the arouse at the hint of a cat, IMO it is best for them to live in houses without cats; or as jazzysmom said, let them live separate lives.
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My first Basenji, a tri color used to chase cats out of the yard or if she escaped out of the yard she'd chase them around the neighborhood. I never had cats until my exwife moved in around 1987 with her 2 cats. So the dog at that time was 12. It was a bit difficult as the dog went balistic at the sight of them in her front yard. One cat was 13 and the other was 9. It took some weeks to slowly introduce them. The cats stood their ground and swiped at the dog. So the dog stayed back so as not to get scratched. They got used to each other but the dog was resentful I think and did some urinating in some areas of the house or maybe she was losing bladder control. Not sure.
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Dash is good with my old cat. He never bothers him at all.Granted the old man hardly moves anymore. But our other cat is fair game. I think with Dash is more he tries to dominate her. He is always humping her and biting the back of her neck. She has claws but never tries to use them. If she get overwhelmed she scratches the basement door to get away.
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Jenny is just over a year old, and we got her at about 7 months (rescue). We have an older cat that is totally uppity and VERY vocal - even growls like a small dog - and we have two other cats that are sisters who turned a year in October '06. The cats, especially the pair, are accustomed to our lab-mix and have held their own with Jenny. Older cat kept her at bay with growls, and I would often calmly intercede and "protect" the cat to let her see I was there for her. Of the sister cats (long hair), one was already fast friends with our frequent rat terrier visitor and tolerated Jenny's advances. The other one smacked her so many times in the first 5 seconds of meeting, that for the next few months Jenny shook her head as if dodging blows every time they crossed paths. That was the first part of July '06. Now the older one gets respect (mostly) and the smacker still gets unexpectedly wild without provocation. The other cat seeks Jenny out for a game of chase, or will lay in the middle of the floor on her back and side (in a pinup girl fashion) and wait for Jenny to attack.
I have monitored these interactions very closely and know for a fact that Jenny is not hurting the cat, and the cat - who has claws - is not hurting Jenny BUT it does look like Jenny is biting the cat's neck and the cat acts like she's clawing Jenny. Mostly the cat just lays there and when Jenny walks away, follows her until they start up again.
Oh, the smacker is fluffy and white-ish and Jenny likes to get some fur from her tail occasionally. Sometimes she does this to white fluffy dogs too. :-) -
BillyK I imagine a hysterical scene in my head!! The pack sounds hilarious :)
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This morning I watched Ally lay in the MIDDLE of the living room floor waiting for some action. I was again amazed/amused as Ally would spin on her back in a propeller-like fashion while Jenny went in for soft bites on the legs and back of her neck. Around and around they went. And when Jenny gets too rough or Ally has had enough, Ally just vocalizes, uses a little claw and her back feet to throw Jenny away. (Otherwise there is almost never any claws or yelps like there were when Jenny first came to live with us.)
Also, if Jenny doesn't come back for more, Ally definitely seeks Jenny out to keep the game going. -
ha ha!!! :D this is great senji play! This is exactly how it happens at my house!! Except with a boy & a girl you get a little girls that ALWAYS feels like it gets too rough for her…and then the yelling & snarkiness come out.
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My girl terrified me about a week ago. When we got Lucy from the shelter, they told us right away that she didn't like cats. When we were filling out her paper work, it was right by where they keep the cats and I had to sit on the floor and hold Lucy in my lap because she was a barking mess…
I live in an apartment complex where each apartment has it's own door to the outside. The lady under me has a cat that she lets out at night. For the first month, everything was fine. We never saw the cat at night, but Lucy could smell where the cat had been and went a little nuts... Then a week ago, the cat was waiting at the bottom of the stairs when we came back from our nightly walk. Lucy lunged at the cat, and the stupid thing ran UP the stairs, when that's where I live instead of running AWAY. I picked Lucy up, thinking that would be best, and walked up the stairs. The thought was that the cat would run past my legs down the stairs, and the dog would stay in my arms. Well, Lucy KNEW the cat was up there, and proceeded to bite and scratch ME to be able to get at the cat. I ended up dropping Lucy and having her shove me down the stairs in her attempt to get the cat. The cat ended up leaping off the balcony for her life. I got my dog, went inside, and my dog was STILL going berserk trying to get back at the cat. Lucy ended up in her crate and I ended up in the bathroom cleaning off the blood and counting the bruises.
It scares me after all that. I HATE taking Lucy out at night alone now, because I know I can't control her if we run into the cat again. And there's really no way to avoid it- I HAVE to take the dog out to use the bathroom, and the lady isn't just going to stop letting her cat out.
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Larka, that sounds terrible. I have never had a dog that insane about cats. What about walking with a muzzle on? Or at least putting it on when you get close to your house?
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How about using a Gentle Leader or a Snoot Loop when you go out at night. It's not really a muzzle but it kind of works like one so that you have more control of Lucy when she goes into these fits.
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I haven't thought of a muzzle, or a muzzle-type thing… I'm hoping to move out of this apartment in a couple months, so we'll be away from the cat. If I had kept her on the ground, I could have hung on to her leash or collar for dear life, but I had her in my arms. She might be small, but she's all muscle, and hard to control when she's freaking out.
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I know aaaaall about that they're slippery little furballs & quick too!!
