• First Basenji's

    i'm not new to forums but i am new to this one. it has taken me a year or so to actually pull the trigger on getting a Basenji and now I'm half way there. My name is Adam, my new BFF will be Kenji (Ken-GEE) and I'm living with my lovely girl-friend Rachel. We are very excited for Kenji, the very handsome long paw tri-color Basenji, to come home. We have had plants before, so I think we are ready for a dog, HAHA :D. Just water and sunlight right, HAHA. But in all seriousness I'm just introducing myself to the "community" and look forward to spending long nights on here franticly looking for answers :D.

    I do have one question; i know i have a lot of loose articles of clothing, books, some wires, remotes, towels and shoes. But what is the one thing that your B(s) have got into that you did not expect? Is there ever a "Basenji Proof" home?


  • foam mattress bed… 😑 hmm

    everything else is fine, couch, curtains etc.. just the damn bed if it doesnt have a sheet on it. Random huh?

    btw welcome to the group 🙂 goodluck with your B to be, where are you getting him from?


  • Welcome to the forum, I can't recall anything that some Basenji wouldn't chew! You may be lucky and get a non-chewer but I think these may be few and far between. Our home has always been Basenji-proof UNTIL one comes along who proves that it isn't after all!!!!


  • My home is totally Basenji-proof–as long as the Basenji is in her crate or being watched. She's not destructive per se--more curious. She has laid waste to one slipper. I was warned that she had a terrycloth fetish. I FAILED to remove the slipper from harm's way. 🙂 Oh well. It's just a slipper. I needed a new pair anyway.


  • @Arwen:

    I FAILED to remove the slipper from harm's way. 🙂 Oh well. It's just a slipper. I needed a new pair anyway.

    This is a mantra of many basenji slaves. It's nice to have new stuff, even if it's only for a short time. 🙂

    Welcome Adam, Rachel and Kenji (love that name!) You will find a lot of useful information here. It's a great support system, er, I mean board. We will want pics, and to know your pups breeder/pedigree. It's a bit like a big family reunion in that we like to know who is related to whom. And often somebody can tell you that the counter-surfing trait came from your new pup's great-grandmother who did the same thing. Also, somebody (often several sombodies) will encourage you to get your pup tested for Fanconi syndrome. You can read about it on this board. It is a horrible disease that the breed's community has worked very hard to find a genetic marker for and we would like for nobody to ever have to deal with it again.


  • "I do have one question; i know i have a lot of loose articles of clothing, books, some wires, remotes, towels and shoes. But what is the one thing that your B(s) have got into that you did not expect? Is there ever a "Basenji Proof" home?"

    My brand new IPAD!!!!!! Luckily I caught him just in time ad he only chewed the cover… Left a little dent on the back though!!!!!:eek:

  • First Basenji's

    I'm with Lysh… my memory foam mattress. Cody LOVES it!
    For some reason, he likes to rip zippers off of jackets too.
    Once, he completely shredded the fitted sheet while it was on my bed.
    Oh, and recently he shredded the vinyl cover for our grill, while it was on the grill.

    Either way, it was all my fault. 🙂
    I also learned a valuable lesson in cleanliness. If I don't want something destroyed, it needs to be put in its proper place.


  • @crystalncody:

    I'm with Lysh… my memory foam mattress. Cody LOVES it!
    For some reason, he likes to rip zippers off of jackets too.
    Once, he completely shredded the fitted sheet while it was on my bed.
    Oh, and recently he shredded the vinyl cover for our grill, while it was on the grill.

    Either way, it was all my fault. 🙂
    I also learned a valuable lesson in cleanliness. If I don't want something destroyed, it needs to be put in its proper place.

    hahaha ur post made me gag on my lunch out of laughter (especially at the grill).

    omg so im not the only one that has a foam matress mad basenji! she destroyed my egg shell type foam matress that goes ontop of the matrees (we moved and i had it rolled up in the spare room. The other half left the door ajar …. saturday morning sleep in, utter quiet (she usually goes downstairs n plays).. once i wake up.. guess where i find her and guess whats left of the matress - nothing but tiny bits of ripped up foam ... and the rope that was around it) LOL we've got an actual foam matress too (that we sleep on every night... with her!) that shes never taken notice of until part of the fitted bedsheet became untucked and flipped up... we now have one edge of the matress with bite holes haha. oh.. and we have a slated wooden bed, so the bottom of our matress also has holes :rolleyes: now she's only allowed in the bedroom when its sleep time.

    And i agree, its all my fault. I failed LOL

    im glad i still have a couch and all that though as thats the worst shes done.

    Upstairs we have to supervise but she can do whatever downstairs in the yard (nothing to destroy - i even have a garden with beautiful lilly's growing and she hasnt touched them). She is kept in the yard (we have a queenslander which has an open downstairs area where she goes if she wants shelter) while we are at work 🙂

  • First Basenji's

    @crystalncody:

    I also learned a valuable lesson in cleanliness. If I don't want something destroyed, it needs to be put in its proper place.

    My girl friend will love that. HAHA. I tend to just leave thing where I last use them. For me thats good, I remember where I put stuff. HAHAHA

    Thanks for everyones responses. I'm looking forward to this wonderful experience.

    As far as our pup goes and the breeder. I'm getting him from Sue Kite of Klassic Basenji in Ohio. http://www.klassicbasenjis.com/ is here site. We plan to get our boy in about 3 weeks. We just moved and boxes are everywhere. She is very knowledgeable and I have been E-mailing her constantly. She is great and she is keeping us up to date on Kenji's progress.

    Now, I have a soft spot for stuffed animals. I have more then Rachel, little known secret. On purpose I dont want to give Kenji any stuffed animals for fear that he may mistake one of mine for his. Does anyone have that sort of problem with their B and their toys or "kids toys"?


  • Welcome!

    I think we don't have Basenji's… 😞 hahaha
    Our B's only chew up a few things when they were a puppy....
    Only their own toys are broken once in a while...

    Edit: if there is food on the table, we even can go into another room without being afraid they take it 😃
    They won't... only our Bengal cat.... sigh.. that's the big terrorthing in the house :D:D


  • Is Kenji one of the Dunkin x Katie babies? I WANT one of those babies, very jealous!! 😃

    Maya hasnt been too bad with chewing, i've been very lucky. She has only chewed things that I have stupidly left within reach and it has only been cables for some reason (cable on the hairdryer, straightners and vaccuum have been chewed!) she doesnt really go for anything else. Maya has the run of the downstairs of my house while im out and she is very good, the furniture has survived untouched so far (she is nearly 2!).


  • @Buana:

    I think we don't have Basenji's… 😞 hahaha
    Our B's only chew up a few things when they were a puppy....
    Only their own toys are broken once in a while...

    Edit: if there is food on the table, we even can go into another room without being afraid they take it 😃
    They won't... only our Bengal cat.... sigh.. that's the big terrorthing in the house :D:D

    You have defective dogs, lol. I am envious.

    Y'all have me laughing so hard the basenjis got up from under the covers to check on me. They have never chewed on the memory foam bed (I actually have a dormia, so not a pad it's a mattress with cover), but Cara did take a chunk out of my egg crate chair pad. Bras, shoes, glasses, teeth retainer… really is there anything they won't eat unsupervised? As Sayblee matured -- and she was the destructive dog from hell who even scaled the BOOK CASE to get a shoe once! -- she confined her chewing to paper goods. Arwen we pretty much had learned watch meant REALLY WATCH EVERY SECOND so her destruction has been minimal but she isn't safe for food or paper.

    Cara... omg omg. She actually pulled record albums out of the stand and ate the corners off at least 20 pristine jacket corners in the time it took me to make a cup of coffee and get the mail in one day. She also likes cords and so while most are secured, she will never ever be able to be uncrated as the risk of electrocution is beyond risk. She has chewed on my desk corner even. She has mouthed the knob to my bed. The good thing is that once I tell her NO CHEW, she doesn't go back to that usually but she finds something else. And she has many many toys to chew, she is just the most oral dog I have ever owned.

  • First Basenji's

    @Maya:

    Is Kenji one of the Dunkin x Katie babies? I WANT one of those babies, very jealous!! 😃

    Yes, Kenji is one of them. One of the 2 males :D. I'm lucky to get him :D. I will have to put up all the pictures from our visit. They were all soooooooo adorable. Pics of Kenji and siblings.

    Question, has anyone noticed that their b's chewing habits diminish with the increase in physical exercise they get or mental mental exercise? I've read that Basenjis become destructive when they are bored.


  • @Kenji24:

    Yes, Kenji is one of them. One of the 2 males :D. I'm lucky to get him :D. I will have to put up all the pictures from our visit. They were all soooooooo adorable. Pics of Kenji and siblings.

    Question, has anyone noticed that their b's chewing habits diminish with the increase in physical exercise they get or mental mental exercise? I've read that Basenjis become destructive when they are bored.

    LOL…. all puppies and dogs will become destructive when bored.... but yes, as we say, a tired Basenji is a good Basenji..... and if left to where they can get it... it is "fair" game for a Basenji.

    And your boy will be related to my C-Me (Klassic-Tanza Color Me Tri), who is sired by Dunkin/Katie son, Tommy

  • First Basenji's

    @tanza:

    And your boy will be related to my C-Me (Klassic-Tanza Color Me Tri), who is sired by Dunkin/Katie son, Tommy

    :eek::eek: WOW nice…. I saw both Tommy and Dunkin. They looked great and just the way I want Kenji to grow up to look like. 😃


  • yep, my suki chews on everything: table legs, books on the bookshelf, toilet paper (unravels the whole roll and goes running), towels, carpet, the wooden base board corners, and my laptop while i'm using it! but she's so darn cute!

  • Houston

    I will have to put up all the pictures from our visit. They were all soooooooo adorable. Pics of Kenji and siblings.

    Wow, those are some adorable pictures. Thanks you for sharing your little bundle..can't wait to hear that you actually have him at your home.


  • Beautiful babies!!

    Sue put some pictures up on her FB album a few days ago, just had to go and have a look for him 😃 You are very lucky, he is a stunner!


  • @tanza:

    LOL…. all puppies and dogs will become destructive when bored.... but yes, as we say, a tired Basenji is a good Basenji..... and if left to where they can get it... it is "fair" game for a Basenji.

    And your boy will be related to my C-Me (Klassic-Tanza Color Me Tri), who is sired by Dunkin/Katie son, Tommy

    I guess Maya must be related to Kenji too as she and C-Me are related aren't they? 😕 I find this all very confusing! I think Maya's mum Millie and Dunkin are quite closely related… Possibly 😕


  • Very cute photos.

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