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Considering getting a Basenji

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  • eoyE

    After heaving read every piece of information and watched every youtube video I could get hold of, I've grown very keen on getting a Basenji, but there are still a few concerns.

    As I study at unversity during the day (9->15), will a Basenji be able to be without me for this period of time, or do I need to hire someone to take her on a walk while I'm gone? If I choose to hire a "dog-girl", and if she isn't as strict as I am, will my Basenji learn from her that misbehaving is okey or will my B still respect my own rules? Is it totaly unreasonable to get a Basenji if you live in a flat?

    I really want to be able to leave my Basenji outside the cage while I'm gone, as I myself suffer from claustrofobia and would never want my dog to suffer from being caged. I am looking at allowing my dog access to my sofa and my bed. I do however have some quite expensive computer equipment that I need to access daily, and I'm worried about biting on cords - is there any sure way to prevent this? Just to clearify, I'm not worried about my equipment, I'm worried about the dog.

    How do Basenjis handle cold, and especially snow? I live in Finland and it's relatively cold and snowy (and.. wet) a big part of the year. A close friend of mine has a couple of French bulldogs and it's very important for me that my B will be able to socialize with them - at what age should I take her with me on a visit?

    I'm basically the kind of person that wants to have everything prepared and thought out before making this big a decision (consider I'm "only" 22 years old). Except for my studies - I do have the time to care for a dog, and I have friends and family that have already promised to house my Basenji in case I ever need to go away for a few days, or even just an evening. I do understand that a dog is a 15yr+ investment and I know my future job will allow me to work from home. I'm fully prepared to go on a two hour walk with her every day, or more if that's suggested.

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  • lvossL

    As a puppy, they will probably need someone to come and give a lunch potty break. As an adult they should do fine with a 9am-3pm schedule.

    Your puppy may learn some bad habits if rules are not consistently enforced but for the most part dogs learn that some people are pushovers and others aren't.

    Crate training is an important part of raising a puppy. It can be an invaluable tool for transportation or recovery from an injury. Some basenjis can be crate phobic but that is not the norm and many basenjis truly love their crate as "their space". For the first year or so, while your puppy is growing up, teething, learning rules, testing boundaries, confining them when you are out is the best way to insure they grow into well behaved dogs. You can use an ex-pen instead of crate but will want to limit their access to things that could hurt them or just plain keeping them from practicing bad behavior.

    Basenjis can do fine in the cold, mine all wear coats in cold weather.

    Early socialization with other dogs is important to help your puppy stay social with other dogs. Mine visit with my friends' vaccinated dogs after their first set of shots (8 weeks old) and start puppy kindergarten after their second set.

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  • eoyE

    The general picture I get is that if you want to make sure your Basenji doesn't dislike something (children, guests, other dogs) you make sure she has to interact with them a lot during her puppy times? Reading your last reply I was thinking about trying to keep her caged at night inside my bedroom until she gets used to it. Is there any reason not to keep the cage in my bedroom where she can easily alert me of her needs - I am a little worried about her getting some separation anxiety that will make my neighbours' life a living hell.

    I also called and check different local puppy kindergarten and none of them had experience with Basenjis yet. Reading these forums it seems like the main thing for me to tell them would be not to put my Basenji with too small dogs?

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  • lvossL

    Yes, early socialization and positive experiences is the best way to go. I think the most important thing about puppy kindergarten is that it is positive based and focuses on socialization with both people and dogs.

    Some basenji don't necessarily do well with the small dogs and other love them. Sophie was always the best with the new pups of any size in her puppy class, she just had phenomenal dog language and would make herself as small as possible and go at their speed. What you want to be careful about is people who have already formed a preconceived notion of basenji behavior. My mom's first puppy class instructor always expected her boy to be aggressive even though he never showed any aggression and was always very appropriate in his interactions.

    I crate puppies next to the bed while housebreaking and it works fine. I have always used a large stuffed toy in the crate and this year used SnugglePuppies, they were wonderful. The pup snuggled right up to warmth and fell asleep, provided we did a good job of tiring him out for the night.

    I got my first basenji while I was in Grad school and lived in an apartment. It is doable as long as you are willing to make sure they get enough exercise and mental stimulation.

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  • J

    Looking at getting a Basenji.

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    tanzaT
    @jordandwilly - Thanks for clearing that up.... 9-5 is just fine, IMO.... I work and have always had to leave mine when I was at work, never an issue. That said, we were able to set up the house that access to the backyard (with 10 to 12' privacy fences) with a doggy door and a dog room in the house for them, Locks on the gates so there is NO access for anyone. Dogs sleep 90% of the day so being at work doesn't bother them... never have mine even when I had a litter in the house (And have been in the breed as owner/breeder for 35+ years). You can hire a dog walker to take them out mid day..which is a good solution. and give them a mid day meal depending on their age. I do not and never have used free feeding, period. Especially if you have more that one... you never know what/who is eating what. And you can set up camera's on line to watch them from "afar".... LOL. Keep in mind people that many of us need to work and have day jobs. The most important thing is the time you need to spend with them when you are home. Example would be, if you have young children and you work... when you get home you are going to spend your time with your human children... NO dog would be happy if left out... they need their time also because they are a family member and need as much time as a human child. Again in my opinion
  • K

    How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?

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    DebraDownSouthD
    @eeeefarm said in How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?: What I find interesting is the change in attitude to dogs on leashes. At that time, many people walked their dogs off leash, and many left them loose on their properties all day long. First, and probably foremost, you're a excellent owner. We disagree on a lot of training things (like e-collars) but you are uber responsible. On the "in the old days"... I see parents talk about not how they roved the neighborhood or all over small towns and how safe. But I also worked with women over the age of 70 who had been sexually assaulted as children and never reported it. I am not sure kids were massively safer in the good old days except for the fact that back then, your neighbors DID look after your kids... they'd scold them or call you without being fearful of being called meddling... because it was about caring. We've lost that. As for dogs, yep... we're similar aged and I remember my grandmother's farm and the fairly steady stream of new farm dogs because they got killed by wild life/snakes etc or roving dogs. It was business as usual. Dog disappeared or dead-- get another one. I know many still feel that way. Rather have to dogs run free and happy and dead young than "cooped up." Our value for dogs as companions has dramatically changed, and our view of our responsibility for them. We always had cats and dogs who were allowed out, and like you, most stayed on the property. But I remember 3 dogs who didn't (one small, probably stolen) and cats didn't live long. We just took that as the norm. Obviously I have look back at that and am horrified. (Though there was an Irish setter who would NOT stay on his property and if the owners weren't there, he followed me about a mile to my house when I walked home from school. His owners laughed, would come get him when they got home if he didn't go back. I thought that was kewl back then but not so much then.) But my experience, and I lived in a very small town then, and a smallish one now, is very different. Then and now, dead dogs and cats on the road are incredibly common. The litmus test is research statistics. Cats who are even allowed out a few hours a day loose have dramatically decreased life spans. I haven't bothered to look about dogs, though a look at shelters should be enough to prove that dogs loose are often dogs lost. The number with electric fence collars demonstrates how ineffective even that is if prey drive kicks in. (for the record, your dog your choice. Loose cats however have an almost unimaginable impact on wildlife, so it IS my business if your cat runs loose.) Yep, times have definitely changed.
  • H

    Thinking about getting a Basenji

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  • D

    Considering a Basenji.

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    S
    Rescue has some wonderful b to rehome, also, check with your local basenji breed club. They can share basenji info, share playdays and lurecouring they might be doing..
  • AlexA

    Poll: Where Did You Get Your Basenji?

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    youngandtiredY
    Well, it started when I was out with my 22yr. old son at the mall. He said, "Hey, Mom lets look at the dogs in the petstore ", I replied, "I don't have time besides your Dad has too many ideas what a dog has to be like for us to get one", I'll never find a dog like he wants". That was 3 yrs. ago this Jan., and I had never heard of a Basenji. I called DH about 3 times the night I found Sahara to persuade him we needed this dog, but she was very expensive so it took some work talking him into me buying her. She is owned by my son, me and my husband, she lives with my husband and I. She is the best dog I have ever owned, and I have had many through my lifetime. I would never get another dog from a pet store (didn't know about puppy mills)but I would have not known of this breed if I hadn't stopped and looked that night. My husband loves this dog so very much, he buys her whatever she wants or needs. I love her also, she is my joy and I can't stand to be from her for very long, we just got back from a trip and it was so hard missing her. My son said that she didn't eat very good while we were gone and was very destructive in the house. Guess she missed us as well!
  • K

    Thinking about getting a basenji…

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    @JazzysMom: Well, it's a good thing we went straight to a breeder! I'd considered BRAT, but decided to get a puppy instead. Good thing, because with six kids at home and lots of other kids in and out, we'd have never gotten a dog! Sad isn't it….