Tana sits funny. Anybody ever seen this?
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She's done this since we adopted her. Occasionally she'll sit with her butt and tail tucked under and her weight resting primarily on the meaty parts around her tail, upper thighs and lower back. As a result, her hind legs are elevated. I find it adorable. Here's a picture:
Tana is a puppymill rescue and my "theory" is that maybe she learned to sit this way to be more comfortable in the wire-bottomed cage she was living in. Has anybody else seen this in a mill rescue dog? Or ANY dog for that matter??
She does it less and less frequently now- in fact, the picture is from 3-4 months ago and is the last time I remember seeing her sit that way for any length of time. Perhaps now since she is surrounded by mostly soft things, she realizes she can be comfortable just about anywhere (and boy, she can curl up and cat-nap almost ANYWHERE, in the oddest positions!)
Initially I wondered if it could be a sign of knee problems or some other physical discomfort- apparently a couple dogs in her "pedigree" have had luxating patellas….and God only knows what else there could be. But she runs, jumps, sprints and twists better than Jibini or Chloe, has incredible stamina, and never shows any sign of discomfort. I'm pretty sure this is just a cute behavior quirk, and was curious if it was shared by any other Basenjis :)
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LOL My Roxie sits like that all the time. She was bred and raised in my home, no kennel. My others don't usually sit like that so I don't know why she does it. Just weird I guess. :) Although she doesn't have the straightest topline, so I wonder if that's just was is comfy for her. But she is the fastest Basenji we've ever run with, beaten over 30 B's before, so I know those hips/knees/legs work well!
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Oh how cute she looks. It amuses me the way Basenjis sit in a sort of squat with their behinds not touching the ground. My theory is because they originated in hot places maybe the ground was too hot for bottoms?
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There was a thread awhile back started by Maya from the UK. I guess pugs do this a lot too and they call it the "pug slump". She got a picture of her puppy doing it.
http://www.basenjiforums.com/showthread.php?t=5607&highlight=slump
My boy does this a lot. Haven't seen my girl do it.
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Wow!!! So I learn something new every day!!! (Tana is normal?? Even more amazing!!)
I thought I'd read about nearly every Basenji quirk there was from the B-list and various websites. I'd heard about the "lean"….and I think I did read about a different kind of "funny sit" where the butt doesn't touch the ground.
I'll be darned if I haven't missed out on learning about this quirk. Tana was the first time I'd ever seen a dog sit this way :) Jibini has never done it....but then again, I could fill a swimming pool with all of HIS weird quirky-ness :)
Kelli, Tana is also the fastest little dog I've ever seen, aside from a Greyhound or Whippet. She's the only one out of my crew that is VERY sociable at a dog park (Jibini does OK, but Chloe can just forget about it). There isn't a single dog she hasn't been able to outrun by a HUGE margin....and she appears to do it effortlessly!! She gives Chloe fits by getting her to play chase- and turning, dodging, darting & outrunning her every time!! (Jibini has learned that he might as well not even bother LOL)
I know little about conformation but I suppose it's a given that Tana's conformation is definitely not ideal (5 generations of puppymill). It seems like her back is too long....there's definitely nothing straight about her topline....and when she sits "normally" her back is always hunched over. Maybe this is why it's comfortable for her to tuck her butt under like this- makes her not "hunch" so much?? :)
At least I know it isn't some left-over behavior from the puppymill. For a dog of humble origins, she has the bearing of a princess, and this "sit" is just another way she lets everybody know how special she is!!!....she is truly one of a kind :)
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How funny. I have never seen Otis sit like that, but he rather lay down any day so that might why.
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My cat sits like that! Not by B though.
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Who knows Danielle, but it sure is funny to watch them sit like that. :) Maybe Tana and Roxie have a similar build somewhere. I always blame Roxie, saying that her sitting that way as a puppy made her back so roachy. lol But hey, I can deal with a little of that for the awesome performance dog that she is.
Another quirky thing she does is always stand with her back legs hunched underneath her. The others tend to stretch out when they're staring far off at stuff outside. But then Roxie just tucks those legs in and shows off that ugly back. hehe How about Tana, does she tend to stand with her feet more underneath her? Maybe these girls are secret sisters. :D
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Hahaha Yes! I just adore this pose. Nulla does it too :)
