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Need HELP!

Basenji Training
  • Hmmm….i have 2 handful at home. All the above advice are great. I just wanted add that my female used to pee and poo in her crate. I asked the breeder about this and the answer i got was very simple. Do u wash the the fabric u put in her crate and i replied no. The breeder said the anything on the shelf is touched by hundreds of people and that my female keeps doing it to make it her own. Im not sure if thats true or not but she hasnt done anything like that sense i started washing everything i buy for her.

  • Remember in obedience classes - it'll take a basenji several full sessions to get what a golden would learn in 3 weeks.

    Another good tip in the house that I always tell my puppy people is the concept of 'teather' you have a leash hooked to you so the puppy is always near at hand - you get to see better when things might happen and monitor her behavior better.

    never,never,never basenji off leash - can't say it enough and too many on the list can give you and example of why. Their prey drive is strong and they see it or smell it they are gone!

    Good idea to check in for training suggestions from your breeder - they may have some good ideas as well.

  • Another thing you can do is to get an empty soda can. Fill it with pennies and tape over the hole. When in the house whenever she does something you don't like shake it. Its loud, and annoying, and the dog will immediately startle. Once you have her attention start obedience training. So for instance

    Dior: jumps up on the counter
    YOU: Immediately shake can
    Dior: stops, looks up
    YOU: SIT….Good Girl :Treat:

    After a while Dior may try to see what happens when she does not listen to you when you shake the can. Then throw it about 5ft away from her but in her general direction. This will cause the sound to be really close and startling. Repeat process.

    NEVER THROW THE CAN AT THE DOG. That's not nice. Hope this helps

  • I remember my 1st B flunked training. I didn't know what to expect back then - 25 yrs ago - there's a lot more info now, & more resources available, such as this forum. Time spent & exercise are 2 best methods.

    G

  • @dmcarty:

    Remember in obedience classes - it'll take a basenji several full sessions to get what a golden would learn in 3 weeks.
    Another good tip in the house that I always tell my puppy people is the concept of 'teather' you have a leash hooked to you so the puppy is always near at hand - you get to see better when things might happen and monitor her behavior better.

    never,never,never basenji off leash - can't say it enough and too many on the list can give you and example of why. Their prey drive is strong and they see it or smell it they are gone!

    Good idea to check in for training suggestions from your breeder - they may have some good ideas as well.

    Regarding the highlighted bit…I must respectfully disagree! The basenji will get it long before the Golden...but it will take them three weeks to decide if they want to cooperate with you and perform at class ;)

    Seriously though....most of my dogs have gone thru a structured puppy "obedience" class, and a Canine Good Citizen prep class...and they all EXCELLED in class....they learned far faster than the other dogs, and looked like stars in the class....now, will they do those behaviors reliably at home? Not so much ;) It is ALWAYS up to the Basenji whether they want to play our little games.

  • I agree with Andrea. My basenjis learn new things very quickly but they also get bored more quickly. In classes that ask for you to repeat over and over again to make sure the dog "gets it", basenjis start to goof off. All of mine get to a point where their behavior and attitude clearly say, "What is wrong with you, didn't you get this the first 5 times I did it?"

    I also have found that the more "money in the bank" I have with a behavior the more likely they are to do it. So training sessions are kept short, varied, and have a high pay off for my dogs so that if I need that command and I don't have a treat handy they are still likely to respond because there is something in it for them more often then not.

  • @lvoss:

    My basenjis learn new things very quickly but they also get bored more quickly. In classes that ask for you to repeat over and over again to make sure the dog "gets it", basenjis start to goof off. All of mine get to a point where their behavior and attitude clearly say, "What is wrong with you, didn't you get this the first 5 times I did it?"

    This is so true!
    Tillo starts to talk when it takes too long for me to get the fact that he already understands the command.. so there's no need to practice anymore :D

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    All good suggestions so far for you to try. Here's my suggestions based on my experiences. 1. When mine first came to my home I would arrange a bit of vacation time so that the first day I was with them totally, then the next day I would disappear out the door for 15 minutes and then for longer times, then the third day I disappeared for an hour or more, etc., until I could go to work for half a day then eventually for my full regular work day. This took me about a week to train the dog to be home alone. 2. The second basenji that came into my life had been broken of his crate training by an ignorant owner so I never could get him back into it. Instead I blocked off a corner of the kitchen for him with a bed and toys for him to stay in for the first several days. Gradually I allowed him more wandering room until he was trustworthy enough to have access to the whole house. This took about a month. 3. Be sure to give your dog a variety of toys and especially the kind that you can put kibble or other food in (such as "Kong" toys). Basenjis need mental stimulation or they get bored (=destructive). My current basenji gets frozen raw marrow bones when I go to work and sometimes she'll still be nawing on it when I get home. I also save old bones and fill the hole with kibble and yogurt or pumpkin and then freeze and give this to her sometimes. 4. Someone mentioned rawhide but I've never had luck with that - it's not digestable and has caused problems with my dogs (one time a piece got stuck in the digestive tract and he screamed "bloody murder" with every movement). Never give your dog a treat unsupervised until you know she can handle it or doesn't have an allergic reaction to it. Once you know its safe then okay - but even then I never give the stick type treats to mine unless I'm home to supervise. Hope this helps.
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