Hello all baenji lovers. I had two basenjis for the last six months, brother and sister. At about 4 months I started using chicken jerky treats for training, they broke into small pieces easily and contained miminal ingreds and no chemicals..or so I thought. Our female passed away last Sunday from what we all guessed was an autoimmunne issue after being ill with a stomach virus and then a bee sting. My boy started with super loose fecal and threw up once last night. He has no temp and seems ok other than loose stools by the vet (not the same symptoms our girl had). As I waited to contact the vet this morning, I started looking and maybe this info is already on the forum somewhere but the majority of these treats come from china and there are several dog deaths and many illnesses including one product recall in 07. I will be throwing all my jerky treats out and wanted to share the info so that all your basenji would be safe too. Google chicken jerky treats to reaad more for yourself and your dog(s).
Which ones were you using?
I started with the one from petsmart(blue and white simply bag) that were made in usa but later saw some @ another higher end pet store and target, they were both made in china, waggin train is the one @ target. Not sure about credibility of all the info out there on these but I thought better safe than sorry.
What about the treats do you think makes the dogs sick?
I'm really not sure but from what I read this morning no one seems to know why the dogs are getting sick or dying and others are not, sorry not to have a better answer for you but wanted to put it out to help, even if it's a precaution. Please search and share if you find any articles that have narrowed down the hazard that's causing the digestive problems.
@AC~Akeyla:
What about the treats do you think makes the dogs sick?
It has been well documented that Melamine was found in wheat gluten samples. This was from the recalls that were done in 2007 and many people lost their pets due to renal failure
We returne ours to petsmart back in 07 when the first recal happened. We bought a dehydrator and have made all our own since then with no side effects at all. I do not trust anything made in china or that uses preservatives and chemicals
I liked Dogswell brand treats until I found out they were also sourced from China. We immediately stopped feeding those.
Melamine poisoning has affected not only pets world-wide, but people, as well (I'm still haunted by news of the infant milk scandal, not that it affected me directly, but still…). I buy a lot of Asian groceries. I'm already skeptical about Chinese-made food processed for human consumption, but while I can pick and choose what I'm willing to eat/prepare for myself, I won't buy anything for my dogs that was made in China.
This includes chew toys, as well. I have an uncle who owned and operated a dog toy manufacturing plant in China. I wouldn't be surprised if they used the same dyes in their plastic as in their rawhide chews, as the latter were so colorful and, well, gross-looking. 
Always better safe than sorry. Standards in other countries may not be as stringent as those in North America. I read somewhere that you should not consume anything (or put it on your skin) if the name is something you cannot pronounce :o
Lisa, I really like the idea of a food dehydrator. What kinds of things are you putting in it? What types of foods do you use that your dog likes - veggies? fruits? meats?
Thanks to all of you for shedding some light on this better than I could. Our lab had passed away before all this melamine thing came out and I didn't look into as much as I should have then (being without a dog for a few years) but thank you so much for all the great info. I tried a few weeks ago to dehydrate chicken but I think it wasn't sliced thin enough, will have to give it a go again. Lisa, I would love to hear more about what all you prepare for your dog. Hope everyone has a great weekend with their basenjis! Jen
Chicken jerky is also easy to make in the oven. Just slice thin, put on a cookie cooling rack over a cookie sheet (so it doesn't make a mess in the oven) and cook at, oh, 250 275 for 2-4 ish hours until dried. I usually add some garlic powder and cinnamon for flavor.
I also have a food dehydrator and make my own chicken jerky. You just have to watch what spices you are using and the sodium content of any ingredients you add for flavor. I too am very leary of anything from China and generally, if using commercial dog treats, only use rollover or dehydrated liver treats. But, again, it's just as easy to make your own liver treats.
I haven't bought packaged dog treats since the 2007 fiasco. Some companies try to be sneaky and put DISTRIBUTED BY on the package which says to me MADE IN CHINA, they're just not saying so.
This brand comes from China and it says it on the bag.
Dogswell Vitality
