Take it REALLY REALLY slowly. Be sure to make good things happen when they are together and getting along. It took me 7 months to get my 4 yr old basenji rescue (who has a very high prey drive) to coexist with an old cat. If there is a bad experience, it can set everything back months, so be very careful to set up good experiences and avoid bad experiences.
Keeping dog in when opening gate
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I know of a couple of folks who use e-collars but they are always out with their dogs. I also know of more whose dogs "take the hit" and just run through the painful zone…then won't return to the yard because it will hurt. I'm with Agilebasenji, an extra 2 or 5 minutes each time you leave to ensure the dogs safety is worth it in the long run. Even her basenjis, who are arguably some of the best trained in the country, might break a 'down stay' for that pesky cat if it wandered by when a gate was open.
Good luck!
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Ha! "might" nothing, especially Diggie with his 20+ titles. Even now as a 12 year old, he'd be after that chase-able faster than you could blink.
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Well, I went for an automatic gate for a number of reasons, but I can see myself continuing to get out the car to tie Jessie up for the next couple of years until we move to another house! And having the yard separate from the driveway is going to be one of the musts on the list of what we'll be looking for!
It feels like it takes me a good 10 minutes, and sometimes I think close to 15 minutes by the time I put the two kids in the car, tie Jessie up, open the gate, reverse out, close the gate and then go let Jessie off the lead. Which is a bit of a hassle when I'm in and out a bit during the day. But oh well! I'd hate for anything to happen to Jessie. -
yes, better safe than sorry. even my neighbor's labs get out once in a while when they drive through their gate. of course, labs being labs (and grossly overweight) don't go anywhere.
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I have another question - if you and the kids are going off in the car - does that mean that the dog is in the yard - alone and no one is home? Leaving a basenji (or most any dog for that matter) alone outside (no matter the weather) is also a recipe for disaster. If someone is home - I would suggest put the dog in the house and they can let him out after you are gone.
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Did I make a statement that the dog should be off leash? No training should be off leash to begin with. If you can't control your dog on-leash, by your side you don't have a hope of off leash. I always start with a 6 foot lead and then go to a long line. 25' ones can be purchased at the dollar store. I'm simply taking this as going in and out of the gate, not leaving it open for any amount of time.
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Jessie's mum and dad are in a yard that is only 3 feet high believe it or not. And they don't get out. They do live at the end of a road, though there is a walking track that starts at the end of their road so they get walking traffic going past. And a school at the rear.
I had a three foot high mesh fence before we got the six foot fence put in. It wasn't only for Jessie that I had it put in, but I just didn't feel comfortable leaving her in a yard with a mesh 3 foot high fence. So far she is only 7 and a half months. If she starts to jump the fence I'll have to contain her in a smaller area, but my main job is a mum, so I'm home most of the time, and tend to only go out for 2-3 hours at the most, and not every day. There's no one at home to keep her in the house while I go, except on weekends when my husband is home, and we do keep her in the house while the other one goes.
This whole training business is so dispiriting. Although we have been haivng fun with roll over and shake hands. She picked that up very fast, unlike walking on a loose leash and come!
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Well my expericene (25+years) is that a 3 foot fence will work till it doesn't. You are fortunate that it has worked so far. If you ever get a basenji that climbs however - all hope is lost for any chain fence - I have not had one but maybe someday.
My dogs are less concerned about people coming by the fence as critters - other dogs, racoon, deer etc - if it was something they really wanted to hunt or chase - with a 3 foot fence they would be gone. They wouldn't jump the fence for bunnies cause the bunneis are so dumb they come right into the yard to get eaten.
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I just wanted to add that my Basenji jumped a 3 foot high solid plywood wall from standing still at 7 weeks old!
So yeah, a 3 foot climbable fence seems almost silly to me.
As soon as the snow melts we are getting a solid 6 foot high vinyl fence and putting that in.
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3 Foot high fence really can be jumped by a Basenji. When Chance was 2 mts old he was climbing a 3 footer! We have a "modified" 4 foot metal gate at the top of the stair case which we know can not be jumped over. If it were on a flat surface and not at the top of the stairwell I bet it could be jumped over too!
