@elbrant Will do, for sure. And yes, he's still carrying a couple of extra stubborn pounds right now, so that's definitely also a factor. We've been working with the vet on weight management too--he's been working hard and is about 2/3 of the way to where he needs to be. I'll update here with whatever we learn.

@eeeefarm 1) yes, and I do get a pain response (growl/snap/twitch/twist away). no yelping, though. 2) soft. I used to have a subcutaneous cyst on my sternum and from what I can feel through his fur, it feels like that. 3) hard to tell with the fur. but yeah, agreed. I lost the GSD I had growing up far too young to aggressive sarcoma and don't like to mess around with weird bumps anymore.

@eeeefarm 1) yes, and I do get a pain response (growl/snap/twitch/twist away). no yelping, though. 2) soft. I used to have a subcutaneous cyst on my sternum and from what I can feel through his fur, it feels like that. 3) hard to tell with the fur. but yeah, agreed. I lost the GSD I had growing up far too young to aggressive sarcoma and don't like to mess around with weird bumps anymore.

@elbrant Will do, for sure. And yes, he's still carrying a couple of extra stubborn pounds right now, so that's definitely also a factor. We've been working with the vet on weight management too--he's been working hard and is about 2/3 of the way to where he needs to be. I'll update here with whatever we learn.

I'll preface this post by saying that Sasha already has an appointment with the vet for next week. Wanted to see if anyone on here has ideas of what this could be before we go in.

For at least a couple of months, my 3-year-old boy, Sasha, has been testy about people touching his shoulder. At first I thought it was just that he doesn't like being woken up when he is asleep. After that, I thought that he might have tweaked something or perhaps slipped a disc while wrestling with our other dog, who is twice his size. A couple of things ruled that out: one, he walks, runs, and plays like normal. No limps, no whining. Maybe 85% of his usual energy, but no dramatic lethargy. Two, he is still cuddling and sleeping velcroed to my husband or me or our other dog in all kinds of weird Basenji contortions. Even while cuddling, though, he will growl and snap at anyone but me who pets his shoulder, and he only lets me do it because I've proven to him that I have a light touch.

A few days ago, I noticed that the area on his shoulder that he gets testy about is a bit raised. My best guess for what this is some kind of a subcutaneous cyst or fatty lipoma, but I don't want to rule anything out. Does anyone here have any ideas what this might be? Just want to make sure we're taking good theories to the vet. I hate seeing him in pain and am beginning to wonder if whatever this is is pinching a nerve/creating pressure or something due to where it sits.

Thanks for the responses so far, and pardon the delay in my response to the responses. I appreciate the tips. Also, further context: the weekly baths started very, very recently. As in December. Sasha had some problems with hot spots for a couple of weeks and we started those at my vet's counsel to get those under control. I see where you guys are coming from, though. Before the hot spot episodes, he hadn't had a bath since June or July. He hasn't had a bath in two weeks and I doubled his fish oil in the days since posting the original message.

I appreciate the grooming tips so far. I'll give those a shot. What are some good brands for grooming wipes?

Age, 15 months. I don't think he has hypothyroidism...neither his behavior nor his metabolism suggest it. He's a big boy -- 24 to 25 pounds is healthy for his frame -- and I have a hard time keeping him at 24, even when he eats almost two cups of food a day (plus oil and a treat). My SO and I also have a 60-lb boxer-lab mix, and he and Sasha keep each other VERY busy.

Most of the Eastern seaboard of the US either currently is under/is just coming out of a polar vortex. It's cold. And, as I'm sure everyone in here knows, with the cold comes dry air and skin. On my (human) end, I'm burning through lotion and have been supergluing the ends of my fingers to keep my skin from cracking. Have had a harder time with Sasha, whose fur is continually bristly no matter how much salmon oil I put in his food.

He gets a bath once a week with very mild shampoo and conditioner. I supplement his food with about a tbsp (15 ml) of fish oil per meal. He's otherwise regular, no known allergies (though I'm not ruling it out), and is well-hydrated. Is there anything else I can be doing? His fur is bristly enough that it gives me contact hives. (Not that that keeps me from cuddling with him.)

@dagodingo I can walk him, I just can't walk him AND my boyfriend's dog at the same time because of my injury. Both dogs are all muscle and my boyfriend's dog is twice Sasha's size. The dog park has been awesome until very recently, but I agree. You do relinquish control. I follow Sasha around when we're there to try and be ready/near if anything does happen, but that hasn't been enough the last couple of days.

I like the tip for the roast. And good point on smell variation. I'll take him for a long walk on the greenway tomorrow, it'll be good for both of us.

Basenji people, help. I have quite a dilemma on my hands until Saturday evening (12/7/19). This is like a word problem from algebra class, so strap in.

I have a 14-month-old male B, Sasha. His favorite thing in the world is going to the dog park. Factor 1.

Factor 2. Like all Bs, he is EXTREMELY pack-oriented. My SO (who I live with) is out of town for work this week, and his dog (who normally lives with us) is with his parents this weekend, because of factor 3, the fact I can currently only walk one dog at a time due to a knee injury. Relatedly, the knee injury means I can't run. SO + his dog arrive back on Sunday.

Factor 4, I'm a broke 1L in the middle of my final exam cycle (100% of my grade in each class), which lasts until next Wednesday. Hiring someone to walk him for me is not currently feasible. I can and do walk him on my own, at least three 1-mile walks per day. (My injury only prevents running.)

Factor 5. The last three times I have taken Sasha to the dog park (in the two days since my SO and his dog have been away), he attacked another dog (different dogs) within 5 minutes of arrival. I have thankfully been able to pull him off the other dog quickly in each of these instances, since he wears a harness with a handle.

Factor 6. Sasha doesn't really play or run alone. See factor 2.

With all of that in mind, I'm about at my wit's end for how to help him get energy out. The walks aren't enough, but I'm not willing to risk him attacking another dog.

I'm strongly suspicious that part of the sudden aggression is that he's lonely and bored at home. I've been trying to be home as much as I can, but my exams are four hours long and during daylight hours, he hoooooowwwls. Allllllll day, until we go to the park. Rinse, repeat.

Icing on the cake? He's been in a cone for the last week because of a minor infection on his scrotum that was caused by licking. Sasha is Not a Happy Camper.

Any ideas for what I can do?? I'm trying to do as right by him as I can while not utterly neglecting my exams.

Lots of helpful feedback and info here -- thanks to everyone so far, both for ideas and for sharing your experiences. I'm fortunate to be in a life stage where I can be home with my boy a lot at this early time in his life. He's three and a half months.

Otherwise, my roommate donated a clicker to the cause that never worked with her dog, and we started that today. Looking forward to him having all of his shots and being able to do energy-letting things with other dogs besides his brother.

@joan-duszka said in Teaching my guy to signal:

5 basenjis later......a christmas bell about the size of tennis ball. One door all the time, hang on door knob low enough for paw and nose to reach easily. EVERY time you go out, ring the bell, hold puppy paw and tap bell, or nudge puppy nose to make bell ring. Eventually puppy will realize..ring this thing and I get to go out this door....down the road you my get ring just because....but let them out anyhow. Bell is portable good for visits and motels. Good luck

Excellent idea. I'm going to try this--I'll report back with success or failure, hahah.

Hey. New Basenji owner here, just under a month. It's been a hot second since I lived with dogs and I now live with two, and we're all learning things. Puppies are hard.

My singular priority with my boy right now is not peeing or pooping in the house. Where we're at right now is that we have about 75% of the battle: he goes when he's outside, goes on schedule (pee about every hour and a half when he's awake, plus three or four poops a day, usually around meals), and he doesn't go in his crate, even when he's scared because he was in my car alone for 0.56 seconds while I filled a prescription. In the early days, he nervous crapped a couple of times because his brother's big scary growl caught him off guard, but he's learning social cues and is generally less scared of things now. And we haven't had any accidents inside anywhere except a little pee in the living room in the past week. The living room is usually barricaded for this exact reason--used to be because he liked to shred my roommate's couch, now it's because I don't trust him not to pee there. And a little bit because his brother, who slides on wood floors at high velocities, tends to play rougher in the carpeted living room.

So. Advice on teaching my boy to signal me when he needs to go outside is highly appreciated. Has anyone been able to do that successfully? I've read mixed results so far, but am optimistic because homeboy's singular priority right now is making me happy, and the rest of his training has been going well.

People of the Internet, teach me things.