Posts made by abonnard

@Micah
Thanks for sharing your experience, it's a relief to see that it's working quite well for you.
This is one of my biggest fear having a Basenji. Not being able to leave the house for a couple of hours because she would destroy everything, and also having to put her on a leash or a long line absolutely all the time, fearing she's going to run away.
I guess I'll have to work hard on those two areas to be comfortable and to make her feel I'm comfortable with it so she should be as well.

@elbrant
Alright, I'll try to remain Stoic then !
.. and to protect my pillows

Do you use a crate ?

@Saving
I'm in the peepee nightmare as well ! She quite well understood for poopoo, but can't contain herself when she has to pee. She's only 3 month old, and her sphincter are probably not ready yet, so I try to maintain a good figure in front of her and stay positive.
Really impressed by your work on the recall, it gets me hope for the future and an aim to look at.
Yes, I guess the biggest thing with Zola will be to work on her separation anxiety. As I'm the only one living with her, she is very dependent on me.
I'm trying to stay away from her sight a few minutes every day and increase that time step by step, but she is already showing signs of destruction.. As soon as her Kong is empty, she gets really stressed.
Did you make some particular drills to work on that on your end ?

Thanks for answer

@t89rex
You have no idea how much I needed to read that !
Having the feeling to have made too much of a change and that I'll never be able to get back a little bit of my old life is exactly how I feel sometimes.
It's just taking all of your time, and when it's been weeks, it's really overwhelming.

But it's really cool to read that you eventually sorted it out, and found a right balance after a few months. Thank you for sharing, it's much appreciated.

Can't wait to make progress with Zola, I want to get the best of her capacities, so I can offer her the best life she could have. But I have no doubt that she has so much to offer, she's so smart already.

Thanks again !

@elbrant Thank you very much for your answer ! It's kind of reassuring because I'm actually doing a lot of the things you're saying already, so I should be in the right path !
Zola loves Kongs, but maybe a bit too much, as she is not as found of her kibbles in her normal cup as she used to be. So I'm trying to find the right balance.
I still to try the freezer trick !

We're currently working on skills like Sit, stay, come. I'm so impressed by her for her age and the time she spent with me so far.

Thank you for your cheering

Hello Everyone,

I'm a fresh Basenji owner, Her name is Zola !
She is 3 month old, and it has been 2 weeks since I got her.

This is my first dog ever. I've been looking into every dog breed during almost 2 years before deciding myself to take the leap and organize my life to be able to welcome a dog. ( Moved from the city I was living in and negotiate a full remote position with my company )
I fell in love with the breed of B. The whole story that comes with it, and physically they look like the perfect dog to me.
They have the size I was looking for, and I'm an active and sporty person. I also like the fact that I don't have the same dog as everyone, to be honest.
I realized during my research that it was not an easy task to have one, but I was motivated to get as prepared as I could to welcome her. Followed countless online courses, videos, books and advices of what would be my future breeder.

I completely fell in love with my little Zola these first two weeks ( Especially when she yawns after waking up, it's as if the world stops every time )
She is so smart, and it's wonderful to watch her discover the world. It was also lovely to see her completely relying on me so fast. I can see that she makes progress already, and understands her environment better and better every day.
However, after two weeks, I'm not going to lie, it's starting to be really exhausting. I'm living alone, so I'm the only one who takes her out every 3 hours, every day, to make her learn how to potty. We're getting there slowly, and I'm glad to see that happening.
Also, I don't really know any other owner in my area yet, so I can't talk about all the doubts of the first weeks..
It's sometimes really frustrating when she doesn't seem able to calm down even after an hour of walking, and with the tiredness I find myself losing patience sometimes and not being as nice with her as I always promised myself to be.

I know it's just the beginning, and I'm not expecting to get better or worse, but I just wanted some of your testimony, so I can read what made you fell for the B's. Just to cheer me up and read about your beginning and how your life with your B is now.

I read few topics on this forum and to be honest, it could be a little overwhelming sometimes and not really reassuring…In the other hand, I often see some of you guys getting a second one ! ahah
I could use some positivity, and stories of your special bonds with your beloved ones because I can clearly see there is something special about them that I maybe forgot about it a bit with the lack of sleep

And if we could avoid the sarcasm like "you got what you paid for" just for this time, I would really appreciate it

Anyway, thank you guys for reading this long post, and thanks to those who will take the time to answer.
Looking forward to reading your stories and future topics on this forum.

Anthony