When you are dealing with something that an animal is afraid of, the best approach is to find his "comfort" distance from the thing that scares him. A busy street makes this a bit more difficult, as you have to find a way to give him that "distance". If you have a car, maybe transporting him to a less busy area might make a good start. Perhaps a side street, where he is comfortably away from busy traffic. You could then walk toward the busy street, pausing as soon as you see some sign of anxiety, and retracing your steps just little until he is in his "comfort zone" again. Gradually…...with the use of bribery and rewards......ask him to approach closer to the scary stuff. Liberally reward him for being there, then retreat. The idea is to not force, let him decide when he is ready. If he feels he can retreat at any time, he will have more confidence. This approach may take awhile, but is less likely to create a permanent aversion. (it works well with spooky horses).
Any tips on watery eyes for our ~5-month-old B?
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Giza1.....what is a fake basenji or was that a typo. Just askin
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@jcflood - Glad that you will take him to a board certified Ophthalmologist, still wonder if you have discussed this with the breeder?
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@tanza Yup, we reached out to the breeder a few weeks ago and she mentioned that it could be allergies from food or the environment, but otherwise she didn't indicate that he had any prior issue with his eyes.
The tearing seems most prevalent (i) when he is running around at the park and (ii) when we leave him alone in his crate (which we haven't done very often, given the quarantine restrictions the past few months). That makes me wonder if it's linked to periods of heightened activity/stress, but maybe I'm grasping at straws.
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I have fostered over 50 basenjis over the years and only had one b that had an eye problem. He had a problem with his eyelids called entropion.
Entropion (en-TROH-pee-on) is a condition in which your eyelid turns inward so that your eyelashes and skin rub against the eye surface. This causes irritation and discomfort. When you have entropion, your eyelid may be turned in all the time or only when you blink hard or squeeze your eyelids shut.
I'm glad you are taking him to be examined by an opthamologist. Please let us know what that doctor says.
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In almost 40 years of breeding and being associated with Basenjis, I have never come across this eye problem so would heartily dispute any idea that it is common to the Breed.
On the other hand, I have known, and frequently travelled to shows with, a Basenji who had an distinct allergy in Springtime and would come up in lumps and bumps near certain plants.
Opththalmologist and possibly some kind of allergy specialist would be the best port of call. It will be very interesting to learn the results you get. Its good that he isn't bothered by it but it does tend to mar his obvious beauty !
Good luck -
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@jcflood
This could be a reaction to formaldehyde that’s in carpet.
We bought a newer home years ago that had not been lived in very much. Our non Basenjis eyes matted shut and we discovered that formaldehyde is used in the mfg of carpet and can cause eye irritation to pets
Just a thought -
@joan-duszka said in Any tips on watery eyes for our ~5-month-old B?:
Giza1.....what is a fake basenji or was that a typo. Just askin
A "fake basenji" would be a dog with so many similarites that you would swear they are at least part Basenji, only to find out they aren't. This little impersonator is a perfect example. To look at her, she seems to only be missing the white tail tip. Her DNA results tell the true story. (She is still a lovely dog!)
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Hi all - we've scheduled an appointment with a board-certified ophthalmologist on July 8 (Eye Care for Animals - Chicago), so I'll circle back after with an update. Thank you all very much for your responses! What a wonderful community.
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@jcflood - Good luck with the appointment. Care to share his breeding and/or breeder? Many of us are related by our Basenjis.
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@pawla - Entropion is for sure a possible. Basenjis are know known for this but I have known a couple of Basenjis with this issue.
