We are first time Basenji owners, we acquired our 8 week old "Roo" on Tuesday. I had recently lost my longtime (over 15 years) rescue, companion, (American Eskimo Dog "Snowy") and when at a pet store, met a delightful Basenji pup. I had always been interested in the breed, and after watching me interact with the puppy and doing some research, my partner Jason indulged me with our new addition. We thought about rescue, since both Snowy and Bonzo had been rescue dogs, but since Bonzo is older and somewhat territorial, we thought a puppy would be best for her. We contacted some rescue organizations, but the only one that responded was actually puppy mill, disguised as a rescue. We did not want to buy the pup at the pet store because of the puppy mill issues, so we found a nice breeder and Roo came home.
The first few nights were traumatic for all involved. Roo was so lonely for his littermates, and upset about being in a crate. He only seemed to sleep for two hours or so at time! He let us know as soon as he was awake that he wanted out of the kennel so he could go out. Jason spent almost 3 sleepless nights, and my sleep was disturbed as well. Jason has also used Bonzo to teach the puppy some manners and let the puppy know she is not his mother.
It is Day 5 and Roo is finally starting to settle down some. The more he eats, the longer he sleeps, so we are now getting some rest. Other things are going well too, Bonzo is starting to enjoy playing with Roo (in limited doses) and crate training is going well. We are doing everything we can to get Roo out so we can avoid him getting upset because he might have an accident in his crate. Even our Boston Terrier Bonzo wakes us up and lets us know the puppy needs to go out.
I am a little worried about his size but the vet does not seem to be concerned. We are working on fattening him up so he gets the roly poly puppy belly. While we want him to eat and grow properly, we really do not want to overfeed him. There seems to be some confusion as to how tall and how much a Basenji puppy should weigh at 8 weeks. Roo seems to be very healthy and has plenty of energy. Does anyone have any idea how big he should be right now? Is there a growth chart anywhere on line that shows height and weight for Basenji puppies relative to age?
Thanks
Jason and Miranda