Agree with @elbrant and I'd like to add, when you return be very matter of fact, do not make a big fuss, particularly if she is excited and effusive in her greeting to you. Sure, acknowledge her if you must but don't make any sort of big deal out of it. Go about your business, e.g. if you've been shopping, put your things away before spending any time with her. Your goal is to make your absence just part of a normal routine, nothing to be excited about. I've had two separation anxiety dogs, and you know you have won the battle when the dog just glances at you in an "oh, you're back" way and doesn't bother getting off the couch! Yes, people like it when their dog greets them and makes a big fuss, but if you feed that behaviour you give too much emphasis to your absence and that can grow into anxiety in your dog.
5 PM Tasmanian Devil
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You said this is your first experience with the breed --- get used to it, more to come (Bwa ha ha ha).
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Try to stimalte his brain not his inner beast - our Basenji loves smugle Mats and licking Mats. Makes her so carm and relaxed.
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@iben-nova-rask what are they?
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I should have written ‘snuffle mat’ and ‘lick mat’. A snuffle mat is like a long haired carpet that you hide food inside, so that your dog has to snif his way to the food - this really stimulates your dogs brains and sences. The Lick mat makes your dog lick it’s food and licking again stimulates brain and sences. There are sooo many og these kinds of activating feeding products. Kongs - are allso amaising. Try youtubing these products. If my dog was Basenji500 I would give her a lick mat with frosen yougurt
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Wil check it out
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@iben-nova-rask said in 5 PM Tasmanian Devil:
‘snuffle mat’ and ‘lick mat’.
A word of caution: whatever you entice your dog with should be considered part of their daily calories. It's easy to overlook how much food is offered and consumed as 'treats', and then it becomes a pound. And another pound. And another pound...
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@elbrant - offcourse. We do not feed our Basenji with a bowl - only antivirus based feeding.
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@elbrant said in 5 PM Tasmanian Devil:
whatever you entice your dog with should be considered part of their daily calories
I've said it before but I'll say it again - I measure out the daily ration each morning. 'Treats', inducements, enticements, call it what you will, come out of that ration. They get pieces of kibble from their daily ration as a reward or a treat. I don't think they taste anything. It doesn't touch the sides on the way down but they remain happy.
Only additions are left-over veggies (sparingly), apple cores, paper tissues and whatever else they can steal from my pockets, the odd dish cloth. Well they are Basenjis <sigh>
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@iben-nova-rask said in 5 PM Tasmanian Devil:
only antivirus based feeding.
I don't understand what you mean by "antivirus based feeding"... can you explain it?
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@elbrant - my phone Is native danish and it playes tricks on me when I write in other languages. I should have said ‘activity’.
