Agree with Zande here. Rewarding him for not biting your feet would work. You'd need some high value treats and a method for rewarding the non-behavior (which is admittedly more difficult than rewarding a behavior).

In this type of situation I start by finding some old old slip-ons. Not having shoe laces removes an obvious temptation and if they get a couple of gnaws no big deal.

Then try this (I've never done this myself, it's the best idea I can come up with and you might have a better idea. But something along this line should shape the behavior you want). Once you have the right footwear, some high value treats, and a toy he likes -- we know he likes at least one plush toy -- put the toy on a slip leash. Walk around dragging the toy. If he goes for the toy walk a bit and then reward him. If he leaves the toy and goes for your feet put him in his crate.

HTH

Love the pic BTW. He's so cute!

What Zande and tanza said. Perfectly normal -- and at that age they can go up and then back down LOL -- and the pup is too young to separated from mom and siblings. Be prepared for the possibility that some of your blood will be spilled. They learn to pull their bites between 7 and 12 weeks.

A picture would help. Puppy colors can be misleading. As they get older the colors can deepen or lighten (or both!). How old is the pup?

IIRC all dogs are three colors -- red, black, and white. All the differences are just darker or dilute shades of those colors. So as mentioned grey or blue would just be a dilute black.

Just curious as to whether you'd be upset with a "rare" color or happy with it. In any event it shouldn't affect personality or behavior.

So sorry to hear this. This type of thing is always upsetting.

Sounds more like tremors than seizures. Usually with a seizure there would be more disorientation than you're describing and the dog would lose consciousness. (Maybe Moko did but that isn't clear). In any event, both seizures and tremors have a potentially many causes, some far more benign than others. It's around the holidays, did chocolate disappear? The first differential would be to decide which of the two it is.

Sure looks like a Basenji! And yeah, looks are totally deceiving. LOL Without a size reference I would think your pup was more like 30 pounds. Also very cute and definitely mischievous looking. (You can see the gears turning).

I think it's a personal decision whether you do a different DNA test. Some people care. Some don't. I'd likely do it just because I'd be curious. I've never had a DNA test done for a dog but it should be fairly accurate. Basenjis don't share much DNA with other breeds so you wouldn't expect much confusion. (Rat terriers, Rhodesian Ridgebacks, and Azawakhs). That might in fact have been the "African" part of the results.

Very cute. Has there EVER been a Basenji who isn't naughty at least some of the time?

I don't see any Basenji but that's just a guess. If it matters, DNA tests are cheap, easy to administer, and pretty good. Way better than anyone's guess.

Is this the hip? There is hip replacement surgery, which might or might not be appropriate given the dog's general health. In humans a shot in the joint is usually definitive. If the pain goes away then it's the hip. If it doesn't then it's not. If you think hip surgery is an option find a vet who does a boatload of them.

It's possible there is some back/spinal cord/nerve involvement. It's always a good idea to rule that out. (That doesn't mean there isn't osteoporosis).

There are several alternative therapies but if it's bone on bone then it's just a big OUCH.

A new puppy is frequently a trigger for aggressive behavior. The reason might depend on whom the aggression is directed towards. The puppy? Threats to the puppy? Acute general unhappiness?

To some extent the reason doesn't matter. You don't want an overly aggressive dog. He can of course be trained, assuming there isn't a biological issue. It's all about reinforcement. If he gives you behaviors you want he gets rewarded. If he doesn't he doesn't.

While this is how it works, the trick is how to implement this. A good trainer should be able to show you how to implement this. I'm not a trainer but this will involve rewarding/treating when he's not aggressive and withholding when he is. Here's a funny video of how a bad dog trainer would go about getting a behavior you don't want -- lots of yelling and pulling leading to exactly the behavior you don't want.

@zande said in Hi from Sally.:

I keep dog food in a tin dustbin in the utility room. I scoop out the ration for the day each morning and from that ration come the treats. I put a few in the bum-bag which goes on walks with us, adding a few extra cos some of the dogs we meet recognise me as a soft touch.

But it also means my own dogs don't get 'extra' - they just get their daily ration. They know 'Biscuits' and 'Bickies' and come racing back when I whistle.

That is a brilliant solution! Really great. It can be hard if you're training to ensure your critter(s) aren't getting an extra meal.