Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?


  • @flbasenji said in Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?:

    I have fostered many basenjis, ~200, from many different backgrounds and have b-sat intact males and females.
    ....
    Note that all of this may go out the window if one gets sick.

    I'll second (or third or fourth) Zande's expression of gratitude. So kind of you to do this.

    On the sick part, I've seen this as well but only for serious illnesses. IOW not if a dog has an intestinal issue or something similar. More like cancer or, for sure, something like a seizure. Definitely law of the jungle.


  • I have never had any luck with 2 intact males living together. Got one neutered, and problems were solved.


  • @donc said in Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?:

    Note that all of this may go out the window if one gets sick

    Interestingly, I have always found the exact opposite with my pack of Basenjis over the years.

    As well as being very sensitive to their human family if someone is ill or feeling under the weather, they are also very solicitous of each other. I have a photograph of three entire males curled up together. Two are kind of surrounding the third - a very old man who had to be helped across the Rainbow Bridge a couple of days later.

    Those two knew something was seriously wrong and were 'supportiing' the old man who up to then had been the pack alpha.

    Hoover has acupuncture to ease spasmodic pain when she moves in certain ways. Surgery might be possible but the length of recovery time, the length of anaesthesia etc, at her age ? when we can control her pain with acu, Diazepam and other pain killers and muscle relaxants. I prefer to go that path. She can go days with nothing wrong and then, like all of us, has a bad day. Those days Mku curls up close, licks her face, cleans her ears and is obvious aware something is wrong with his old friend. She appreciates it, I know.

    So I am not convinced Basenji packs follow the law of the jungle. I think the pack instinct is stronger.


  • @zande said in Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?:

    @donc said in Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?:

    Note that all of this may go out the window if one gets sick

    Interestingly, I have always found the exact opposite with my pack of Basenjis over the years.

    I have seen it both ways, and it may well turn on the prior relationship of the dogs. With my two girls, Tamu was considerate of Lady when she started to fail, waiting patiently until Lady settled for the night before curling up with her, but with Sunny, who was never welcomed by Tamu, the situation was quite different, and he took some advantage when Tamu could no longer bully him. I am sure he did not miss her when she died.


  • Yes. We also have a male TFT Toy fox terrier We adopted him when our Basenji was six. They are true brothers.


  • @eeeefarm said in Can a male Basenji live with another male dog?:

    Tamu was considerate of Lady when she started to fail,

    The Duchess, a bitch bred by us, went to live with a another Basenji bitch. When Tok started to fail, the Duchess felt it her duty to feed her and went miles out over the fields, hunting.

    She brought back flea-ridden rabbits on an almost daily basis which she gently nosed towards the aging Tok. While she appreciated the deed, their owner didn't like the choice of diet which the Duchess provided for her friend.

    She was utterly devastated when finally Tok crossed the Bridge at 15 +

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