I must agree that naive, first-time wanne-be owners need to do deep, extensive research. Basenjis are supremely unique and definitely not a good choice for a "beginner."
I adopted an 18-month old 3/4 Basenji (other 1/4 is Min Pin, yet another quirky little breed, with some "bad" similarities to B's). I was somewhat familiar with B's, but not even a little bit of "enough!!" Gosh, Izzy-Bella was a piperoo!! A little 18 pound bundle of energy, destruction, and escapism. BUT, I have always loved bad boys (9 years working in a high school), so a little bad girl was a sort of delight. But, again, it takes many years before these dogs mellow out and mature and maximize their amazing intelligence. Izzy is SO SO smart: her early unbridled destructiveness has pretty much ended, and now, at ten years old, she amazes us every day with her intelligence, innate understanding, observational skills, language acumen, and comedic skills. And at ten years old, she acts like a three year old! I hope this means she will live forever.
Once you have bonded with a Basenji, you are probably done and gone. But
first-timers REALLY need to do their research and homework.
Someone referred to entrusting their dog
to a family member. I would entrust my B to nobody except a bona fide Vet hospital/kennel, with big-time fences and enclosures, B's are exceptional diggers-under-fences and escape artists. And a Number One cause of
death for them is traffic. Their prey instinct sends them careening into
traffic. Dumber than deer.
But, bottom line: do your due diligence Basenji research, and understand early on that these dogs are singularly unique: indescribably destructive; escape artists; independent thinkers and behaviorists; smarter than you can even begin to imagine (I swear my Izzy understands everything I say and reads my mind!); and prepare to have lots of tissues on hand as auxiliary food, because apparently, Basenjis require wood pulp
projects to prosper!! I don't get it.
San Diego September Basenji Gathering
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I'm so excited that our San Diego basenji community has been growing with every meeting that we have. Every time we encounter a new basenji owner, we've tried to figure out the best way to get them plugged in and informed about the next meeting. I thought it was time for us to have our own site so we can communicate more easily, instead of using meetup.com for example.
On our new yahoo group we can create photo albums (which will help put names to all the beautiful faces), send messages, upload files, schedule events on the calendar, etc. The easiest way to find it is to go to Yahoo Groups and search "San Diego Basenjis." You can also click on the link below.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/SanDiegoBasenjis/?v=1&t=search&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=group&slk=1
You will need to create a yahoo login to become a member. Best wishes!
Monica
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Do we know the next date for the Oct gathering? I have not attended before and would like to. Please post when a date and location is determined.
thanks
sharla -
Sharla, I think we're meeting on Sunday, October 26 - probably at Balboa Park sometime in the afternoon. We'll post here as soon as details get settled. Can't wait to meet your basenji pack - they'll increase our group by almost 30%!
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This is great news, we are glad our forum community has grown such a big San Diego chapter. We are thinking about creating regional subforums to allow basenji owners in a particular region to communicate with each other.
We can start with San Diego.
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Do we know the next date for the Oct gathering? I have not attended before and would like to. Please post when a date and location is determined.
thanks
sharlaHi Sharla,
Welcome to the forum and the San Diego basenji community. We look forward to meeting you and your "kids." I hope you can join us at our Oct meeting (tentatively scheduled for the 26th at Balboa Park - time TBD).
How did you hear about this forum? I'm always astounded to learn there's more basenjis in san diego than we thought. We thought we were a rarity, which we still kind of are. Its so cool to be at a dog park with our pack and be the majority instead of the minority. People seem to marvel at our beautiful breed. There's something really cool about a basenji pack.
How old are you B's?
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Monica,
My kids range in age from 9 months to 7 years. But 2 won't be able to attend because they are grandma's house in "heat" poor babies! My first visit I think I would start with one of the young ones, Maximus. He is my beautiful b/w boy that is already a lap dog! Unlike the others it took them years to settle into just hanging out on our laps..
Any idea on time, that will be the challenge for us since we have a dog show that day. But I haven't looked at the times yet.
I actually heard about the forum through some other basenji friends. It still amazes me when I randomly see a b walking on the street with their people
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monica,
Is your Ibizan (sp) Gimzo??
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Monica,
My kids range in age from 9 months to 7 years. But 2 won't be able to attend because they are grandma's house in "heat" poor babies! My first visit I think I would start with one of the young ones, Maximus. He is my beautiful b/w boy that is already a lap dog! Unlike the others it took them years to settle into just hanging out on our laps..
Any idea on time, that will be the challenge for us since we have a dog show that day. But I haven't looked at the times yet.
I actually heard about the forum through some other basenji friends. It still amazes me when I randomly see a b walking on the street with their people
Wow! So you must have quite a few Bs. Our group consists mostly of R&W Bs. Our only B&W member, Lucy, and her owner Sarah will be excited to meet Maximus.
We havent decided what time we're meeting on the 26th. We're trying to find a time that works best for most people. Is morning, afternoon or evening better for you?
Where's the dog show and what time are the Bs showing? we might want to go spectate. There's also an AKC lure course competition going on that day. I was thinking of taking Manny and Kahlee to see their Basenji and Ibizan friends. They're not so much into lure coursing though.
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The show is in Riverside at Lake Perris. The ring times aren't posted yet! IF we weren't showing I would love to go to the lure cousring.
Are there any brindles in the group. I have a friend who has 6 basenjis and want to attend as well. She wouldn't bring all 6 but she could 4 have rally titles, which I think is soo cool.
This weekend there is a fun match at Kennedy Park in El Cajon. Dogs start showing @12:30. I am going to take Maximus to give him some more socialization. I would love to get a CGC on him. :rolleyes:
If we don't make it this month, there is always next month. But I am looking forward to it.
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Sharla, sorry you and your friend couldn't make it on Sunday. We were sort of a small group this month, but the B's had plenty of fun. Hope to see you in November - details to come!
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thank you, sorry we missed it but we had a late ring time. Hopefully we will be home for the november gathering!:D
