Posts made by Varanus

Actually, not only am I interested, but I have a friend who might be as well. Keep us updated.

They look intriguing! I'm interested, although obviously I can make no promises until I know more (including how he gets along with Yoshi, my resident basenji).

I'm sorry to hear about Max, but I'm glad that you all had the opportunity to share each others' lives. Best wishes for you and your family.

I'm so sorry this is working out like this, but I'm really glad you got him out of his bad situation. I'm from rural Ohio (though in CA now), and I know what those shelters can be like. I also know what it's like to realize that a rescued dog really isn't going to get along with another member of your pack–if you recall, I had to send a really sweet basenji mix to rescue when the resident Airedale tried to eat her. You did a really good thing, though, and Mowgli will find a good place to grow up into a fantastic dog.

That is so fantastic! Congratulations! For what it's worth, Yoshi was extremely fearful and unwilling to eat or play for about the first month I had him. Now he's the boss of all the four-legged members of the house.

Mowgli is beautiful, and lucky to have a place with you and Shango.

So glad to hear this. I talked to them yesterday and it sounded like they had a good escape plan, but this fire is pretty scary–I can see it all the way from my house.

My check, as they say, is in the mail.

Possibly not–this is one I haven't seen.

Good lord. You'd think that being on the lookout for a relatively rare breed would mean relatively few hits scored. But alas. This kid is in the LA City shelter in the East Valley Animal Care and Control center. I have no idea about size, mix, temperament or anything, but the city shelter doesn't usually classify a dog as a basenji mix unless it either a) looks very much like a B, or b) yodels. If you're in the area, check her out. She's about 9 months old. Medfly Basenji Rescue is, sadly, full to bursting with dogs in trouble.

Her ID is: A1048471

Here's her PetFinder ad: http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14237781

I'm just glad I had a place to send her where she'd be okay. Without a rescue available, I would have had to either pass on her entirely at the shelter or make Lady miserable with a 60-pound dog waiting to eat her every time she stepped out of the crate.

Everyone who can, please help out your local rescue, or at least just send them a thank-you email! I went to Karen's ranch, and they are quite full at the moment. Even so, they take great care of the dogs they have and work with quite a few sad and angry basenjis (and mixes!) to give them happier lives. I'll definitely be back to take one of them into my home for good.

@nobarkus:

It was a very good effort you made so don't be too hard on yourself. Karen does a very good job of finding someone or she keeps them. I think Lady will be easy to place and you will find one that fits in with your situation.

She said that she had ideas of where to look for matches already, so I hope she gets somewhere quickly. I felt bad about giving Karen yet another dog to deal with, but it's better than having Lady traumatized or worse. The right basenji for my house will come around, I'm sure of it. Until then, I'll keep learning about them and raising Yoshi.

Yeah, it really wasn't happening. And the size difference (Lucy is twice the size of a basenji) meant that Lady was getting increasingly terrified and at risk. I hated to let her go, but I really think it's the best thing for her. I was really hoping that I could get some friends of mine to take her–and they still might--so that she and Yoshi can still have play-dates.

My roommate and her Airedale mix came back on Friday, and Lady just about lost her damn mind. Unlike the snarking that happened between her and Yoshi, Lady and Lucy (the Airedale) fought with full teeth and murderous intent repeatedly. After a lot of attempts to keep them separated and/or distract them from how much they hate each other, my roommate and I decided that Lady should go into rescue, so we took her to Medfly Basenji Rescue. I'm certain she will find a great home and make someone a fantastic dog. Anyone in Southern California who wants a thoroughly lovely, trainable, affectionate, and non-destructive buddy (and doesn't have large-breed or female dogs) should definitely contact Karen.

I myself will probably be returning to Karen for a rescue friend that Lucy doesn't want to tear apart in the near future.

@AndrewnShango:

Please let me know if you have any specific questions about food. I work at Purrs and Gurrs pet bakery and holistic food carrier so am quite experienced with food recommendations.

For our Basenjis' I always, always recommend Innova's EVO. It comes in red meat and white and it's top-quality, NO grain, high-protein, low carb. It's a great food that I personally use and have seen GREAT results on.

Also, Solid Gold makes a good called Barking at the Moon which is quite similar to EVO.

Other than these foods here, Blue Buffalo is a good choice too.

I'd suggest staying away from grains and getting a food with a low carb, high protein breakdown.

Please let me know if you have questions.

Thanks so much for your offer. How much do you recommend feeding per meal? I'm currently doing 3/4 cup per day.

Thanks, everyone, for the suggestions! I decided to go with Innova Evo Small Bites for the time being, and when I get a little more money together, I'll investigate the Honest Kitchen stuff. I like the idea of feeding raw/fresh/homemade, but with a busy schedule, tight budget, and strict vegetarian roommate (no, she doesn't deprive her dog of meat or anything, but she's a little squeamish about meat preparation in her kitchen), I think I need some pre-fabrication.

So I have Yoshi on Canidae All Life Stages right now, and I don't think it's the food for him. He's doing better on it than on the lower-meat-content Three Dog Bakery food I was using, but it isn't making him as happy and healthy as it could. For various reasons, I don't think I can do a raw diet right now, so I'm interested in kibble recommendations. I'm willing to spend money to get good food for him to thrive on, but I'm also not made of cash. Recommendations?

Lady went to the vet today. She was scanned for a chip, but the only one that came up was the one that's registered to me, so I'm at a loss as to what else to do. I still can't believe someone would dump Lady (she was a stray, not "owner surrendered"), since she's such a sweet dog. She didn't even make any trouble for the vet at all. She's in excellent health, though of course she has some fleas.

As far as keeping her is concerned, my human roommate and her Airedale mix are out of town right now, and I'm not going to make any decisions until they're in the picture. The Airedale loves pretty much all dogs, but the human roommate obviously needs to be consulted about a) 3 dogs in a 2-bedroom apartment, b) Lady in particular, and c) another basenji mix versus full-on B. In the meantime, though, Lady is lying on the softest couch cushions in the house, eating snacks from the dog bakery, learning to like Yoshi (who's now being very solicitous of her), chasing the cat (if she doesn't stay with me, I think she might need a cat-free house), and learning all about bully sticks.

@tanza:

That is great news… and many time shelter will not just give them up to rescue... here in No Ca... we have two shelters next to each other... one will call breed rescue if they have a purebred... the other will NOT... as they claim they get "more" money when they place a purebred...

Ugh. I hate shelters that charge different fees for purebred or mixed breed dogs. It just keeps up the idea that purebreds are inherently "better" than mixed dogs. And for some things they are–we probably wouldn't be on this board if we all didn't like purebred basenjis--but for shelter rescues? Bah. I totally understand charging different rates for puppies in the hopes that they'll help float the less adoptable dogs, or lowering the fee on senior or sick dogs to get them into homes faster. I even understand a purebred rescue knocking off some money for a mix, but it's kind of...unseemly for shelters to do so, I think.

Oh man…Spencer looks like the mixes I have snoozing on either side of me now...hope they both get good homes.

Yoshi's tail curls loosely in one coil. He can straighten it but never does unless he's asleep or really upset. Animal control called him a shiba inu, not sure how. The only reasons I think he's a mix are: 1) he barks, and 2) he has rear dewclaws, which I guess never happen in basenjis.

Obviously, she's not ready for her close-up. It's weird–she has no other Corgi traits besides being rather low-slung. Does dwarfism (legs short, body normal) happen in basenjis, or must she be part Corgi or dachshund?

I'm still waiting for her personality to come through, since she's been through so much over the last couple of days. I have decided, though, that Yoshi may need a basenji friend--he seems happy to have another dog that gets him in a way that his Airedale friend sort of doesn't, even if the Other Dog snaps at him. I've got time and patience, though. She needs a safe, basenji-positive place to get back on her feet, and I can give her that. If she's a good fit for our house, I'll be happy to have her in the pack.