Mattymo - yes this is the Kent that you are thinking of. Now named Kentucky Joe. How do you know of him? I am not sure if he is actually half boxer or not. I am thinking he might be Basenji/Lab mix. It is hard to tell though. Thanks you for the kind comments!
My brother in law was looking for a rescue dog and we saw this one on petfinder. He inquired, but then realized the dog might get to big. They wanted something no bigger than 25 pounds. I'm assuming Kentucky might get up to 40 lbs.
I tried convincing him to get a basenji since we have one but he ended up getting a puggle. = )
Leash aggression is NOT unusual. His responding to the choke makes me wonder how much is actually aggression and how much is learned behavior. But please do not ever hand your dog off to someone. Had he flipped at her choking up on him, you would have seriously risked things being worse AND him fearing strangers.
It's possible it was learned. He always felt the need to have to smell other dogs no matter what and i guess over time the need to approach passing dogs escalated. Possibly restraining him with the leash just intensified his frustration leading into aggression.
He knows the "leave it" command and the "watch me" command. We are consistent in using them. However, i find he only follows them when it benefits him or if there is a highly motivating treat involved. If the dog passes by across the street we are ok but if its close nothing works. I will try and slowly get dogs to come closer and closer as he progresses.
I will read the article you posted. Thank you for the response.
Does Frankie try to protect you when he is off leash? If so, he may feel that is his role, which he cannot effectively do when on leash, hence going 'psycho'. Just a thought.
As for when you walk with Frankie, are you asking him, with the leash, to heel? If he pulls and walks ahead of you, he will think that he is the alpha of 'your pack'. Not good for a dog, especially a basenji.
Keep us posted - we learn from each other. :)
The line my basenji came from are completely all about themselves. The only time he ever became protective over any of us is when he encountered another Basenji.
I forgot to mention he also gets frustrated when looking out the window. If he sees another dog he runs back and forth from chair to chair, down the hall then jumps back on the chairs and looks out the windows. Sometimes makes little basenji noises then calms down when the dog is no longer in sight.
Hi,
i have a 1.5 yr old male Basenji (Frankie). He is a wonderful dog except for the fact that he has leash aggression. He is fine around other dogs off the leash and is consistently socialized around other dogs on a regular basis. However, when he is on a leash he goes nuts when he sees another dog.
We have started bringing highly motivating treats with us on our walks to serve as a distraction when another dog passes by. If the dog is across the street he seems to stay focused on the treat in the sit position. When another dog is walking on the same side of the street no matter what we try he goes ballistic. Even if i have him in the sit position 30 ft before the dog passes by.
On our walk home from the dog park last night, we met a lady with another dog. Of course Frankie went into pyscho mode. The lady asked if she could take the leash and choked up on his collar (martingale). Frankie fought it for a bit then immediately went into the sit position and stayed calm in the presence of the other dog.
I know negative reinforcement with Basenji's or any other dog is not a good thing. However, my concern is that Frankie will only take advantage of being given treats and never learn. Has anyone dealt with Leash aggression before with their Basenji's? If so, what worked for you.
I should also mention he has had beginner's training at pet smart. I know not the best but its something!
Thank You,
Matt
@Kenji24, I was in the same boat as you. I originally wanted a Doberman Pinscher. But my allergies wouldn't be able to tolerate such a big dog. My wife and I, looked through all the hypoallergenic dogs and the Basenji kept creeping up on us. Eventually we did our research and fell in love with the breed.
Of course no dog is completely dander free and at first i had trouble tolerating Frankies presence but eventually I became a bit more immune. I still act up from time to time but overall everything worked out! I'm still hoping one day to get a Doberman but i will never NOT have a basenji = )
Have you thought about putting him in the bed WITH you when you sleep?
He used to sleep with us when we first got him but we had to stop because it would worsen my allergies. Ever since he stopped sleeping with us i'm now able to tolerate being around him.
We just got a Basenji (he was 9 months old). We too are learning quickly to put our things away. I totally feel your pain. I have found that he stresses when we are gone. We cleaned the kitchen really well and now leave him there with his bed, a chew toy and we have not had a problem since. My kids 5 and 7 help walk, play and train him but always with my supervision ( any dog can bite at any time). By 9 when it is bedtime he is tired and we are getting a very trained dog in the process. He can sit now, come when called, shakes hands and is not so ready to chew when not being watched. This is all in 30 days! I didn't know how smart this breed is and how quickly they can be trained but it takes consistancy. I have also lost 3 lbs walking this dog three times a day ( i find this a benefit!) Hang in there and keep us all posted. I hope you can work this out.
I tried the same thing as you. We have a 13 month basenji boy (tri). He to as well tears everything apart. Mostly couches! Thank god he doesn't touch wires but of course everything has to be out of reach. We keep him in the kitchen and he was good for the first couple of days now he crys, whimpers chews the carpet and goes nuts if we leave him in there while we sleep or go out.
We extended his parameter from the kitchen into the hallway and it worked for sleeping but now when we go out he cries a lot and chews his mat. It seems he has separation anxiety, however, he never had that before when we left him to roam the house. We had to stop with his roaming due to his consistent couch chewing. Its extremely frustrating! If i didn't live in an apartment id crate him at night and during the day while we sleep but he is way to loud and he hurts his nose turns all red from trying to get out of the crate or gates.
