Basenji - the second dumbest dog breed

[Duke]

I have to think that if a Basenji is found and quickly identified as the breed it is, the animal would more likely have a better life, so the ones acquiring the found dog would be able to do a quicker search for the breed temperment and advisable training techniques. In my own experience having Duke for 4 months before I found out what he was, experiencing all the misbehaving, bad dog behavior - that if I wasn't a good dog person, he could have easily been discarded or worse - beaten into submission and starved for punnishment by someone else's lack of humane intelligence. We know it happens to innocent living creatures. :mad:

So, that is the reason I wish that the Basenji breed is more well known and identifiable. Let the informed make decisions about the challenges and rewards to own one of their own.

[basenjishunt]

Jill,
I respectfully disagree….More popularity means more uninformed people getting "b's" because "they're cool looking", or "cute". This will lead to more being given up when people realize they are not Golden Retrievers in temperment. Plus lots of new puppy mills would start up to meet "demand".
It would be a nightmare:eek:

[tanza]

@Duke:

I have to think that if a Basenji is found and quickly identified as the breed it is, the animal would more likely have a better life, so the ones acquiring the found dog would be able to do a quicker search for the breed temperment and advisable training techniques. In my own experience having Duke for 4 months before I found out what he was, experiencing all the misbehaving, bad dog behavior - that if I wasn't a good dog person, he could have easily been discarded or worse - beaten into submission and starved for punnishment by someone else's lack of humane intelligence. We know it happens to innocent living creatures. :mad:

So, that is the reason I wish that the Basenji breed is more well known and identifiable. Let the informed make decisions about the challenges and rewards to own one of their own.

Jill,
Isn't Duke a Jack(/Parson) Russell Terrier/B mix? And from my experience, Terriers can and are just as "demanding" and difficult as what a Basenji can be. Because Terriers are bred to do a job, as are sighthounds (and scent hounds) they are all very independent…. I know lots of Jack/Parson Terriers that are pretty over the top... and are way more work than a Basenji.... Again, both breeds (IMO) are a challenge.

Same with your other cutie... Beagle/B mix is just as much of a challenge as a Beagle and/or Basenji

[Duke]

@basenjishunt:

Jill,
I respectfully disagree….More popularity means more uninformed people getting "b's" because "they're cool looking", or "cute". This will lead to more being given up when people realize they are not Golden Retrievers in temperment. Plus lots of new puppy mills would start up to meet "demand".
It would be a nightmare:eek:

Well, not necessarily - because popularity brings to light information. People would then know Basenji's are not the docile, people pleasing Golden Retriever and instead know they are a stubborn handful, best for folks that love a challenge. But I do agree that if in fact an increase in puppy mills would result, then keeping it quiet is best.

I came upon Duke very quickly. If I knew he was a Basenji, had the opportunity to dive into researching this breed before I got him, I probably would have passed on him. I was more of the Retriever, Golden, Yellow, Black lab kind of person. The longer I had him, the more I loved him - even as mean as he was when a puppy. Thankfully - this forum brought me so much information and help in training him - I am now a Basenji gal.

[Duke]

@tanza:

Jill,
Isn't Duke a Jack(/Parson) Russell Terrier/B mix? And from my experience, Terriers can and are just as "demanding" and difficult as what a Basenji can be. Because Terriers are bred to do a job, as are sighthounds (and scent hounds) they are all very independent…. I know lots of Jack/Parson Terriers that are pretty over the top... and are way more work than a Basenji.... Again, both breeds (IMO) are a challenge.

Same with your other cutie... Beagle/B mix is just as much of a challenge as a Beagle and/or Basenji

Well - not positive about the Jack part of him - though I know he is a mix. He has been seen by reputable breeders who see his obvious Basenji blood. I am guessing he might have the Jack in his mix because he is an avid jumper with squatter legs than Basenji. And OMG - yes overwhelmed by his "over the top" awful behavior when we brough him home at appx 12 weeks old. He seemed so untrainable the 1st four months. Then once I was clued in on his breed type - training him was like magic. Before, like a lab, I thought he'd just learn from repetitive words. As I learned quickly from here it's that "treats-treats and more treats" positive reinforcement that is the absolute trick.

But again - I wished that he was a more identifiable breed. Would have helped me and probably others if I/we knew sooner.

[tanza]

IMO, dog people in general understand that any pup and especially a hound or terrier is work…. my feeling is that people in general that get a dog do not understand this and think they are all "Lassie" types and just come that way... I know from the pups I that I have placed that regardless of how many times you try and explain... it never "sinks in" till that pup is home with them and then it is like... "WOW, I didn't realize all that"?..... "now I see what you mean".. "I would have never guessed all that from reading about them"....
So I am not so sure that people would or do really listen, nor would they really read to understand... again why responsible breeders are so important...
For me, I am glad they are not popular..... and hope they never become the "dog of the month"

[Duke]

I wouldn't want Basenji's to be "popular" either. Known about enough so that veterinarians are educated and able to identify the breed. Duke was seen by 3 different vets in his first 2 months with me - all of them were clueless of his breed type. He was under anesthesia being neutered when I got confirmation from Basenji Companions of his breed type. I immediately called the vets office to find out what kind of anesthesia he was under. Thankfully, he was on Isoflorene. We had the vet record changed from Border Collie mix - to Basenji - to Basenji-mix in his first year.

[Quercus]

@Duke:

Well, not necessarily - because popularity brings to light information. People would then know Basenji's are not the docile, people pleasing Golden Retriever and instead know they are a stubborn handful, best for folks that love a challenge. But I do agree that if in fact an increase in puppy mills would result, then keeping it quiet is best.

I came upon Duke very quickly. If I knew he was a Basenji, had the opportunity to dive into researching this breed before I got him, I probably would have passed on him. I was more of the Retriever, Golden, Yellow, Black lab kind of person. The longer I had him, the more I loved him - even as mean as he was when a puppy. Thankfully - this forum brought me so much information and help in training him - I am now a Basenji gal.

I agree Jill. It isn't like the basenji is a secret now. Open any 'what dog breed is right for me' book, and they are pretty easy to find. And most of those books make them sound pretty darn near perfect. Great size, no smell, no bark, little shedding, easy to train (?)…I think we have to be out there telling the public what the real story is. And honestly....they can be GREAT dogs....otherwise would would all of us love them so much?

I think we have to walk a thin line between making accurate infomation available for people who are truly a good match for a Basenji, and educating those that would be frustrated by their antics. Trying to hide them, or paint them as worse than they are is just as wrong as trying to advertise them as the perfect pet.

[setidog]

I've noticed on the few dog shows that I've seen the announcers consistently say "the basenji…not for everyone", but the majority of other dogs in the show are praised for their qualities. Makes me laugh every time.

[basenjishunt]

I've heard that breeders have done a good job with some of the temperment issues "B's" had. Alot of judges were, let us say, "not thrilled judging Basenjis", because when it came time to have them up on the table, it was like trying to check the teeth of a "furry chainsaw"!!:) -Tim

[tanza]

@basenjishunt:

I've heard that breeders have done a good job with some of the temperment issues "B's" had. Alot of judges were, let us say, "not thrilled judging Basenjis", because when it came time to have them up on the table, it was like trying to check the teeth of a "furry chainsaw"!!:) -Tim

30 and 40 years ago… that was a fact... many judges would have to count their fingers when done judging Basenjis.. and to this day, the older ones still don't trust them.... and another reason that many of us get so "uptight" about Back Yard Breeders/Puppymills/etc.... Breeders have worked very hard on temperaments...

[tanza]

@setidog:

I've noticed on the few dog shows that I've seen the announcers consistently say "the basenji…not for everyone", but the majority of other dogs in the show are praised for their qualities. Makes me laugh every time.

You know they say that about many of the Terrier breeds too…. along with hounds

[kippy_whip]

basenji's arn't dumb!!! it only took me a couple of days to teach Kip to sit lie down and beg! though he only does it if he knows there is a reward :p

Anyways Basenji's are not dumb!

[Robin_n_Jack]

I told DH about this article last night and asked him to guess where Basenjis were ranked.

"Well, they definitely weren't on the 'dumbest' list"

"Guess again" I said "They held the #2 spot for being the dumbest dog"

"WHAT?!?! How many Golden Retrievers do they know who can unbuckle their own seat belt harness?"

I rest my case.

[Ninabeana26]

Yea when I told my boyfriend about the list he laughed & said well how many other breeds can turn a door knob & get into a bedroom they want to be in?

[phoenix3]

HAHA All I would have to say to the person that wrote that is…. Leave my B in a room with a window a blanket and ur sandwich and i can guarantee By the time u get back from using the bathroom...... Phoenix is outside of the patio with the blanket underneath him {as to not get dirty} and eating ur sandwich laying in the Sun.... given the person that look of STUPID HUMAN make it harder next time will ya lol Then lets see if that person says there a Dumb breed lol lol

[Congo]

I've had many hound breeds(basset hounds, basenji, beagle) over the years and people say they are dumb because they aren't obediant but that doesn't mean they are dumb! They only listen when they get what they want, not the other way around.

[wizard]

I think you just have to look at which breeed was rated #1 smartest to see where the prejudice lies. The definition of smart used in this story is open to ridicule if you ask me.

[lvoss]

There is another thread about this already. It points out that the tests that they use to generate these lists are really not a measure of intelligence per say but instead are testing things like trainability and bidability. Basenjis are an independent breed and usually do not do well in those types of test design.

Basenjis often don't get to the answer using the same sequence of steps that testers would like either. A basenji is just as likely to chew a hole through a blanket that covers a treat as it is to move the blanket to get to the treat type of thing.

I have a bunch of old The Basenji magazines. In one there was a summary of an experimenter's comments about a maze test that they had done using basenjis. The experiementer's comments went something like "though the basenji was the fastest through the maze on the first trial, it become consistently slower and slower to come out of the maze and return to its kennel. The basenji seems to resent the testers." Again this shows how the basenji doesn't always play by the rules of the experiment. Instead of testing how quickly a dog could learn a maze and rerun it, the basenji learned if it came out of the maze it would get put back in its kennel and intentionally avoided the end.

[torchsong]

It all comes down to wording. Based on this article it looks like "smart/dumb" equates to "trainable/untrainable".

After reading this forum, though, I have a great new bit of ammunition. My She-Ra isn't intelligent at all…but she's definitely CLEVER. She's totally figured out ways to get what she wants, whether you like it or not. And I love her for it.

As far as representing the breed, the park where we walk her regularly almost always has a family checking her out (she's GREAT with strangers and kids), and you can see their eyes light up when you mention the "barkless breed". I do my part, though...I'm quick to throw in that they're VERY destructive, highly energetic, and that the fact they're petting her is a solid example that she's NOT the best representation of the breed. I explain that we love her, but we had to change our own lives and personalities to adapt to her...it wasn't the other way around. I think I've discouraged more than one potential buyer that way...but some people are genuinely still interested, so I try and bring up as much good as bad. Saw a lady with a tri-color awhile back and we swapped "war stories"...LOL.