no
every family with children under 12 should not be disqualified from having a dog, i just dont think basenjis are the best breed for a family with small children who believe their dog should tolerate whatever the little angels decide to dish out.
let those families go to a breeder who specializes in a line of brain dead labs you know the kind of dog that makes a good designer area rug for the home, big, furry, and loveable who will happily accept whatever little junior dishes out.
thank god most basenjis wont put up with that kind of behavior, must be why i like them so much
i personally cant see any basenji tolerating a child who mauls them, whether it is a 3 month old puppy from the best breeder on the planet or a dog from a rescue organization
of course there are exceptions to every rule, but seriously, how many breeders can predict that a 3 month old basenji pup will tolerate whatever abuse might be handed out by the children in the family its being sent to ?
many dogs that are in rescue have a history, a real live history, not just 3 months with a breeder who may have mom dad and grandparents, who knows the background of the puppy but CANNOT know with absolute certainty how that puppy will react to the stressors in its environment in the years to come
alot of dogs in rescue do have a known history, for example " this dog is being given up because little johnny tormented the dog causing the dog to growl and snap at little johnny and rather then punish little johnny we are giving up the dog, so brat lists that dog as needing to go to home without small children.
does that mean that a rescue dog being listed as going to a home with children over the age of 12 has something wrong with it that a puppy from a breeder wouldnt have?
no!
it means the dog has a HISTORY that a 3 month old puppy CANT have
if you put ten 3 month old puppies from reputable breeders into a situation where little johnny abuses the pups for a couple of years how many of those pups would end up being placed by brat in homes without small children ? (assuming of course that the families didnt contact the breeder to return the vicious dog)
so there are of course exceptions to every rule and im sure someone here has a basenji who loves being mauled by little kids.
to sum it up i dont think it is entirely a question of breeder pup vs rescue dog fitting into a family with little kids, i think its more the idea of will this family teach its children to show their BASENJI pup the respect it expects and deserves? and in the case of many rescue dogs the answer to that important question was no, and now that basenji needs to go to a home without small children.
because brat asks for adopters with children over 12 to adopt these dogs many of them will get a second chance to live in a family that does show them that respect, better late then never i suppose
so i hope i havent offended anyone with my opinions, getting a pup from a good breeder is a great thing and if it is the route you choose to take thats wonderful, but to lump all rescues into the category of being unreliable dogs for families simply because they are rescues and not a pup from a breeder just doesnt seem right.
i asked that sebastian be listed as going to homes with kids over 12 because i feel he would be happier in an environment where he didnt have to tolerate little rug rats bothering him not because there is anything wrong with him.