Posts made by Nano

Get a second dog who's NOT a basenji. Some nice, calm, older mutt of the opposite sex. Larger than the basenji, too. Lavish attention on the big dog for her good behaviour, and the little one will try to emulate it. We've had that arrangement with two wicked basenjis, both of whom loved their big mutt girlfriends and learned from them.

I think you're Mom's on the right track. By adopting a 'submissive' pose, you're making the dog anxious. She thinks she's expected to do something, but she's not sure what. She would prefer it if you would act like a grownup, so she won't have to! What is inoccuous or meaningless to us can be very significant in 'dog culture.' Basenjis are all about the pack and have a lot of ancient customs we don't always understand. It's part of their intrigue and charm.

Our first basenji came to us much like yours–a stray with a bad history of neglect and who knows what. It took about 6 months for him to get comfortable and believe the new situation was permanent. The crate was a source of panic for him always. He chased the cats always--though when he caught them, there was never any actual violence. He destroyed things, but that abated eventually. He even lived with our pet rabbits running free in the house--all unsupervised! The number one good technique we discovered was jogging. It was his special responsibility to go running and he took great pride in it. It kept dog and mistress fit and really made a close bond. Most disagreeable behaviours disappeared when the running routine was kept to. He could run 1/2 marathons in his youth (we never tried for more than that.) He was still able to run 5 miles and faster than we could as an old man of ten. If you don't run, or don't want to start, think of another daily high energy activity that you can commit to--it will make you a pack leader faster and more pleasantly than any macho posturing. Consistency is the real key. Start slow to toughen up his paws without hurting them. Sounds like you're headed for success already. Good luck!