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Aggression ONLY when in trouble…URGENT

Behavioral Issues
  • Well that explains your views… Milan. A man who is going to get someone killed. How about I save a lot of typing and suggest you read this thread:

    http://www.basenjiforums.com/showthread.php?t=9598

    And again, you object to using a plastic bat between you and a dog why? You have latched onto the "baseball bat".. let it go, then picked it back up with fervor. Normally I'd quote many passages and go all Debraly on you but I am just going to shake my head and move on. You can stop obsessing over your impressive twisting of using a plastic child's bat to keep the dog off into beating a dog with a baseball bat, or you can stop… read, and let it go. Up to you.

  • I'm brand new to the list. We received Rosie as a rescue dog 18 months ago. Near as I can fugure, she a basenji/lab mix. We go running (I walk, she runs) off leash at a cross-country course every morning, rain/snow/sun. She has boundless energy and I am hopelessly in love with her. Problem: recently she has been running off into the woods and disappearing for 1/2 hour or 45 minutes. Since she has done this on and off for 18 months, I'm not too concerned for her safety. My problem is that I call and call for her, offer her treats when she appears and kove her up all the time. How can I train her to come when I call? Charles

  • Try Leslie Nelson's Really Reliable Recall method. available in dvd or booklet from amazon or dogwise.com

  • Thanks agile. I'll give it a try.

    charles, Rosie Gullywhumper's dad

  • Just an update :) Ive got it under control for good now I believe. Ive got one of those 3 1/2-4ft tall baby gates with a walk through door. I keep it shut so he cannot access the kitchen when I am in the living room on my pc or watching tv. The living room is TOTALLY Basenji Proof…nothing for him to get into. If Im in my bedroom I put a normal gate up in the doorway that goes from my hall to my kitchen. Keeps him confined to my room and the hallway. It's been working great. No incidents...the last one was weeks ago when he got mad cuz he tried to eat my mail I had on the table. When he acts like that Ill just ignore him and walk away and stay calm. My calm body language calms him down fast and within minutes he's his normal spazzy self again.

    Kinda like a bully teasing a kid...if the kid being teased and picked on doesnt react...the bully gets bored with it because he's getting no reaction. Same kinda concept :)

  • thanks for the update on anubis. sounds like you two are creating a new history which is wonderful!

    charles - i should have said welcome to the forum!

  • I'm so pleased that you are solving your problems with Anubis. Just goes to show that it only needs the right response.

  • Agile,
    Thanks for the welcome. I feel so lucky that Rosie has a community of basenji-lovers to refer to. How do I insert an image of my girl?

    charles

  • Just another suggestion regarding the trash. Shaye used to get into ours all the time - I'd just go over the pick it all up, ignoring her completely. Eventually there was nothing there so she'd back off. Problem not really solved. Then, we bought a trash can with a lid that opened when you step on a lever on the bottom. She figured out how to step on the lever. So, we turned the trash bucket around, she couldn't get to the lever, and couldn't lift the lid, and the problem went away. Just a suggestion - and be sure to get a heavy one. I also agree with everyone who has said Cesar Milan's methods are about the exact opposite of how to train a Basenji. They just don't care enough what you think when they want to do something, and coming on strong with them triggers aggression. Distraction and showing them something they might want more works best for me. When that does not work, the squirt bottle has saved many many confrontations.

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    I found a really excellent method which fixed this quickly. I just give house guests (esp males) a few pieces of chicken and have them freely give it to the pups when they meet them. They LOVE house guests now.
  • Aggressive issues

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    I don't want to sound personnel but if you are in control why does he keep showing aggression to other intact dogs. By taking him away from the other dog is not teaching him not to be aggressive . He may see you as boss but he wants to be second in charge and see,s all other intact dogs as a threat to his position. Don't be to proud to use a muzzle , and as I said take out to mix with intact dogs . As he can't hurt them and will soon relize,s this you need to stand up and let him know your displeasure using voice and physical presence and a small water pistol as he will hate being squirted. You should find the water pistol works a treat. I would do this every few days until his stops the aggressive behaviour , then I would try without the muzzle but always keep the water pistol with you and let him see it as he will remember what happens when he acts up. This is a method I have used to help mates control their pig dogs . I am by far an expert and are always prepared to Liston to others thoughts as this is how I learn.
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  • Food aggression

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    QuercusQ
    @JazzysMom: Let me ask you this, Pat {and all}….. I've always fed my dogs separately, esp. since Keoki came into the picture because he will scarf his food and run to see if he can get what the others have. I don't crate them, but they are fed in separate rooms which puts them about ten feet away from one another. Keoki has learned NOT to hover over the other dogs, but he does kind of watch and wait for either of them to finish and then he runs over to lick their bowls. I don't have a problem with that, as they all run from bowl to bowl at the end of the meals, licking whatever {icky} they can find there. It's funny because they all get the same food. Lately, in the mornings only, Jazz won't eat UNTIL Keoki finishes and and then she will growl and ruuuuun for her bowl. So, the last few days I have put her bowl near his {as an experiment}-- w/in maybe 2 feet -- and she will immediately eat while he does. He eats faster, and it's almost as if she slows down when she knows he's finished. She picks up one piece of food at a time to carefully chew it, with the occasional quiet growl to remind him that it is hers. What is up with that? Honestly…sounds like a fight in the making to me. Eating faster is the first level of resource (in this case food) guarding. She may be eating slower for any number of reasons...the first one I thought of was a calming signal to him? I doubt she is trying to tease him...but she may be trying to make a point...mine, calm down, mine, calm down... These kind of things tend to escalate, so IMO, I wouldn't even experiment with it. Why not feed them separately, like with doors in between? It has got to be less stressful for the dogs if they don't have to worry if the other dog is going to bully them for their food...or on the other hand, if they can bully the other dog.
  • Leash aggression??

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    basenjibratzB
    @Quercus: That sounds ideal! I do love the head collars…the ONLY drawback is so many dogs have fits when they wear them. But the control is awesome, particularly for reactive dogs. Glad it is working for you! Oh yes, Talker had a fit when he was younger and I tried the collar. I gave up because I felt so bad for him. I don't know what changed this time–whether I was calmer or he mellowed out or what, but he accepted the halti this time around and I'm loving it. There were so many times that he would be so anxious to be out walking that getting him to stop pulling was tiresome and the walks were not enjoyable. We were constantly stopping and starting and stopping and starting to re-adjust ourselves. Now, we just walk. Loving the halti!:)
  • Help with aggression

    Behavioral Issues
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    L
    Some basenjis seem to have particular kinds of dogs they don't like. My Abbey is best friends with a rottweiller, a black lab, and a dalmation, but she hates golden retrievers! What do they go by, coat color?? She goes after anything that moves at the vet's though. My first basenji many years ago, Pumpkin, climbed trees to get after squirrels, and fences were no problem either.