Well, if they do cry tears, it is just one more thing that makes the basenji unique and one more reason why we all love them. I think I would break down and sob myself if I saw a basenji crying.
I have heard of the tears but dont think I have ever seen them. I remember when my dad was going to be bringing home our first B in the 70s he told me that this dog cries real tears, yodels and laughs a little like a Hyena. Not sure what the laugh was supposed to be. The tears? I remember reading a story, I thought on brat, where the woman had got her B around the time she lost her mother and the dog cuddled and cried tears with her. I dont think I have ever seen the tears, though like shannanigan have seen the gunk in the eyes.
The first basenji I ever had way back about 1970 did cry real tears when she'd get into trouble and get scolded. She was a R&W named Pumpkin because she was the color of one, and we got her from the Humane Society for $3 dollars! This was before the internet and nobody knew what she was. My vet figured out she was a basenji.
Blaze cried real tears when he was a puppy and got stuck in the mechanics of the lazy boy couch. He screamed until we flipped the couch over and tried to push him out, then the real tears came when Dad left to get the tools and continued until we dismanteled the couch and released him.
He hasn't cried since.
The day I got Cody, on the way home, he "cried". I'm not sure if it's exactly what you mean by tears, as he didn't seem to be "scared" or anything like that. I thought it was weird and was actually afraid he had an eye infection, but the vet said he was healthy in that department. You can see them in one of the pictures I took on the way home, if this is what you mean.
The day I got Cody, on the way home, he "cried". I'm not sure if it's exactly what you mean by tears, as he didn't seem to be "scared" or anything like that. I thought it was weird and was actually afraid he had an eye infection, but the vet said he was healthy in that department. You can see them in one of the pictures I took on the way home, if this is what you mean.
Aww you just want to wipe his tears away
My Tyler has never cried but my Kate has. Usually when we pick her up after having to board them. Breaks my heart 
We had a Basenji when I was a child. This was in 1964 that we brought him home. He lived 13 years. Jodi cried real tears twice. Once after his pancreatic surgery and he came home after being at the vets for a week. Once after my mom came home after being in the hospital for 5 days. He had tears running down his face. He would baroo when happy to see us or we were getting ready to take him on a walk, grumble under his breath when corrected, snarl at people he did not like (almost everyone not family), howl when left alone, talk to us to get our attention, and learned to bark, once, when he saw something that really excited him. For a supposedly quiet dog, he sure made some noise! I loved that dog so much and to this day, I miss him terribly.
i think there was something about this in the Goodbye My Lady book, but it's been years since i read it
I have never seen it, but this is an interesting thread.
IMO (I am a total animal lover, not yet a basenji owner) I would not be surprised at all if a basenji cried real tears. I truly believe animals have a higher sense of things - that they can 'smell' emotions, illness, etc. and can display their feelings more easily than we think. We humans just have to look for this.
We had a Basenji when I was a child. This was in 1964 that we brought him home. He lived 13 years. Jodi cried real tears twice. Once after his pancreatic surgery and he came home after being at the vets for a week. Once after my mom came home after being in the hospital for 5 days. He had tears running down his face. He would baroo when happy to see us or we were getting ready to take him on a walk, grumble under his breath when corrected, snarl at people he did not like (almost everyone not family), howl when left alone, talk to us to get our attention, and learned to bark, once, when he saw something that really excited him. For a supposedly quiet dog, he sure made some noise! I loved that dog so much and to this day, I miss him terribly.
What a lovely story, thanks for sharing.
