Wow! Quite honestly, I don't think my dogs have met 40 different people or dogs in the past YEAR, let alone the past week. This past week? Aside from the 3 people who live here (me, husband, roommate) they have encountered three other people; the farm manager for the land we live on, the guy who is raising pheasants in the 3 acre flight pen in my backyard, and the UPS man. All people they've met before and encounter on a semi-regular basis, at least 1-2 times a month. LOL.

We live on 3500 acres in South Dakota and our next door neighbors are 3 miles away. :D

However, we've only been here 4 years. For the Senjis, the country life is a big difference from where they started out. Jibini lived the first half of his life with me as an "apartment dog" in busy-suburban Orlando & Tampa FL….not city environment but enough people in one spot that we might encounter 5-6 others on our daily walks, plus we hit the dog park every other day when he was young. Then I got a job driving an 18 wheeler nationwide, Jibini accompanied me for 5 years and over a half-million miles....he has "marked his territory" in all of the lower 48 states. For that time in his life, every day brought a new "backyard" and new neighbors and endless opportunity for new experiences for both of us. We adopted Tana while we were still trucking, she rode with us for 2 years :) Before BRAT got her, she lived in a puppymill for the first 2 years of her life and was scared of her own shadow....today 6 yrs later you'd never believe it- she is confident, friendly, playful and loves life :)

My other 2 dogs (mix breed and Brittany) joined the family after we moved to SD. And yep, attempting to socialize a rural dog & offer the same types of experiences that are easily accessible to a city/suburban dog....is a fairly monumental task. Puts a lot of miles on your vehicle for sure. Chloe our mix accompanied me nearly everywhere for the first 6 months I had her- luckily it was fall with cool weather so I could take her along any time I made trips into town. Farm stores usually don't mind you bringing a dog in, so she visited Tractor Supply and the feed mill a lot. We went to parks, walking trails, worked on obedience with distractions, etc. Once a week for six weeks, we'd drive 120 miles one-way to attend group Obedience classes in Sioux Falls (I mainly did this to address a few issues with being reactive to other dogs, the training I could handle on my own- but she was originally a city dog from Hartford CT and I think much of it was just her temperament type not a lack of early exposure).

Ellie my Brittany was a lot easier- couldn't ask for a sweeter, gentler, more confident and friendly dog. No issues, I can take her anywhere and do anything with her and nothing fazes her. Plus she's one heck of a fine bird dog. I do think a lot has to do with genetics, she is easily the most well-adjusted dog I have ever owned and she has had the LEAST amount of socialization. The breed is generally supposed to be friendly, energetic and confident and that's her to a T. I knew exactly what I was looking for when I bought her, and she comes from some phenominal genes to say the least.....I think in some cases when you happen to have a dog who's genetically predisposed to be rock-solid with a great temperament, you can get away with less effort when it comes to socialization....the dog is far less likely to develop any behavior issues that are fear-based, which most common behavior problems such as aggression, are. :)

The older Jibini gets, the less he seems to tolerate the A/C even on a hot day. He is always under blankets beside me if he's sleeping.

This year, we really threw a wrench in his plan- we got a ChilliPad mattress topper, its actually an electronic system that circulates cooled water (also heats) throught the mattress pad to keep you cool at night. I've had a hard time sleeping in summertime my whole life, even with the A/C on full blast and three fans- the ChilliPad is expensive but uses a fraction of the power as an AC unit AND for the first time ever, I sleep soundly in July.

But boy does Jibini ever DESPISE the ChilliPad. His usual spot at night is in bed under the blankets curled up by my legs. He still burrows under out of habit but if I don't stuff an extra blanket under there so he can lay on it and not directly on the bedsheet, he will actually curl up ON TOP of my thighs, lower back or wherever he can fit without having to touch the chilled evil mattress.

I continue to promise him I'll make it up to him in the winter time, since3 apparently the pad will also heat up to 110 degrees- I'll turn on my husband's half of the system and heat it up just for Jibini ;)

I'm kind of late joining in here, but I live in South Dakota and I keep my thermostat between 50 and 60 in the winter because I prefer it that way. I might bump it up to 65 if it's bitterly cold (sub zero) and windy, but otherwise I'm happy as a clam at 50-60 indoors. The dogs truly don't seem to be bothered, they adapt same as anything else.

There are throw blankets everywhere, and extra blankets in the dog crates for when I'm not home to be snuggled with. I do have space heaters which I may bump on in the mornings to take the chill out of the air, so the Basenjis aren't shocked when they ooze out from under the warm bedcovers. And if anyone gets sick or has an upset tummy or something, I'll go ahead and put a heater on near the crate or something, as even I don't like to be cold when I'm sick…...but otherwise my dogs seem just fine with how I keep it in here.

But if your dogs don't seem to adapt or you don't feel comfortable keeping them at that temp, the aforementioned suggestions of heating pads, etc are great ideas :)

The saying around our house is "Jibini is not a morning person". The older he gets, the more he takes advantage of the option to stay under the blankets, and I say he's earned the right to sleep in as much as he wants (hes 12). Chloe and Ellie the non-B's, are "up at the crack of dawn full of energy like they just did six lines of cocaine" dogs and since I work 7 days a week, I'm up with them if not before them…..but generally NOT as chipper or energetic as they are LOL. In summer, Tana is eager to wake up with everyone else, but in winter she's learning that Jibini is smarter than she gives him credit for, lately I've had to bribe BOTH of them with food in order to get them up in the mornings.

Tana also snores, sometimes fairly loudly....but nothing compared to the way my old Boxer used to snore, good lord she'd give my husband a run for his money.

Just out of curiosity, would you mind sharing who Digital's breeder is?

Probably something that's still a few years away, but I'm already trying to pay attention & learn more about bloodlines, breeders, etc. Jibini is the first & only dog I raised from a pup and went through the whole "try and find a good breeder, then wait for pup to be born" process, 12 yrs ago lol…..I haven't paid close attention to "who's breeding what"- at least not from a puppy buyer standpoint- since then. It was easy enough to find a nice pet with a good temperament for my first Basenji, I could have probably gotten that from any reputable breeder. BUT my next Basenji I am looking for something a bit different, as I have specific, perhaps a bit unorthodox, training goals in mind.... :D Just trying to get an idea about where I might start looking for the pup I want, when the time is right :)....if I could find a pup with half of Digital's talent and versatility to work with, I would be off to a great start! :)

Oh this is such a great post to read!!

I remember reading your posts about Digital on the Basenji-L, back in 2000-01 when I was awaiting the arrival of my first Basenji ever, a little tri pup who would be my Jibini. He turned 12 this month :)

At the time I was actively training/competing in Obedience trials with a Boxer and I was thinking I'd attempt to work with Jibini as well. I followed your updates about Digital with great interest. I was always so impressed by all the things you & he were able to accomplish.

I never did follow through with trying to compete with Jibini- by the time he was 2 I had decided to start a career driving a truck over the road, Jibini lived the busy life of a Truckin' Basenji, so competition was not in the cards for us.

Still, I remained a lurker on the Basenji-L for a long time and always enjoyed reading anything about Digital…..he was & still is an inspiration to me as a Basenji owner and former OB trialer. Knowing how much work it takes to train & trial ANY breed, plus knowing how much of an additional challenge it can be to do it on Basenji "terms".....I've got SO much respect for how far you and Digital went with your competition! Truly an amazing accomplishment, and an amazing Basenji :)

And I am so thrilled to hear he's living a long healthy & happy life. Count me as one of those people now reading about 16 year old Basenjis and hoping I get to spend that long with mine as well. You and Digital are both truly blessed :)

I have also had good results with the food- I switched 2 years ago when Jibini got a stomach upset that seemed to be linked to Blue Buffalo and a minor formula change. It's the best food I can get without having to drive all the way to Mitchell and thankfully it worked out well for my pups! (They sell it at Runnings in Parkston.)

They only recently started selling the grain-free variety there as well; in fact I just bought a bag. Made me happy to find it, since Tana is the only one who just doesn't seem to handle "normal" food formulas and I was still getting her grain free TOTW in Mitchell when she needed it, (and rotating her onto a raw diet every couple of months). Up until now I was feeding the other dogs the regular adult maintenance and Ellie (Brittany hunting dog) was on the 20/30 performance food when we bred her (didn't take) and I kept her on it since pheasant season started right after we confirmed she wasn't pregnant :).

Earlier this year we had 9 very nice French imported hunting dogs (including my dog's sire) from a well-known breeder staying at the kennel where I work; the owners use Nutrisource and all of their dogs were in excellent condition as well. Excellent muscle, beautiful coats, nice shiny eyes, compact poops, lol. I definitely think it's a decent quality food, especially for us rural folks who don't have much to choose from. I can definitely say it's the best available food in my area, unless I want to go all the way to Mitchell.

The only other "local" food I'd consider if I had no other choice, is the Native Performance line of foods put out by Kent animal feeds, but I kinda think the Kent dealer in my town is a bit of a jackass, LOL…..suits me just fine to go ahead and drive the 30 miles to Runnings :)

Welcome! I grew up in Orlando and lived there when I got my first Basenji, Jibini….it's been nearly 11 years ago now :). I grew up in the Lockhart area but lived near Winter Park off Goldenrod when I got Jibini. Several nice dog parks in Orlando as I recall!

Interestingly enough, my 2nd Basenji girl (adopted almost 4 yrs ago) is also named Tana. :o LOL, so I have to compliment you on your beautiful name!! :) She was rescued from a puppymill; and her original name was Tanya Ann. I didn't think that name fit her, plus I wanted her to have a new name for her new life. But amazingly enough she responded to her name even though she'd been a kennel dog all her life. So I tried to pick something that sounded like "Tanya" but with a more suitable flair for this little princess :) Started looking up Swahili words & definitions (my Jibini is also a Swahili word, meaning "cheese" LOL) and found the word "tanashati" which means "pretty". Shortened it to Tana; she responded to it, so the name stuck!

Such a pretty and fairly unique name....you are the first human Tana I've come across! I hope it doesn't bother you to share your name with the world's sweetest Basenji :) I used to try to avoid giving my dogs common "human" names mostly since I like to be weird & creative (i.e. Jibini=Cheese)....But kind of gave up on that a couple years ago when I adopted a 10 month old super smart shelter mutt named Chloe and last year bought a 14 month old fully trained hunting dog named Ellie. IMO not worth confusing the dog if they're really responsive to their given name. So I gave up having creative & unique dog names at that point. :)

Again welcome to the board, jump on in & join us! I love this forum; though I read more than I post. Tons of great info and great people here. I've "known" some of the folks who post here since before I got Jibini and we were all on the Basenji-L email list. Having easy access to advice & info from so many experienced people was invaluable as I was learning about the breed for the first time!

Oooh! I love that, it's beautiful! Thanks I'll definitely have to check her out!

I can see this being a problem for me, LOL….I'm going to end up not only buying a gift for our friends but having one made for myself with my dogs on it too, LOL :)

I want to get a really nice and unique gift for someone this Christmas; I have a general idea what I'm looking for but I am wanting to get some feedback & ideas of what else might be out there. I could spend forever looking through Etsy and the like, but I know we must have some artistically gifted Basenji folks (or folks who know other artsy folks, or folks who've had artists do custom stuff of their dogs) here so if I can patronize a "local artist" so to speak, all the better :)

The recipients of the gift are "dog people"….not Basenjis, but suffice to say they are very passionate about their breed so I am sure they would like something related to it. I know they have had paintings done of at least 2 of their foundation sires; excellent artwork and not cheap. I am thinking of getting something customized with one of their current top dogs on it; something nice that would do justice to their dog & add to tasteful home decor, but not quite as much of a 'focal point' in the room as an expensive oil portrait, lol.

My upper price limit is going to be about $200; I am looking for anything that would count as "home decor"....something that'll look nice hanging on a wall or sitting on a shelf basically. My initial idea was to have a stained-glass window hanging made, with a head study of the dog (based on a photo of course). I found a few online artists who do custom stained glass and it seemed like I could get a reasonably sized piece made for that price; but again I figured I'd see if anyone here did it as well.

Going along that train of thought.....I was wondering about other artsy handmade home decor type pieces that can be similarly customized with their dog(s) on it? Tile mosaics? Needlework? Pillows? Pottery? Sculptures? I have no idea what else might be out there or where to go beyond taking a chance on Etsy and hoping for the best. I am hoping maybe somebody will come out with a neat idea I didn't know about :) If any of you do this sort of thing for a hobby OR you can personally reccomend an artist, or you just plain have a better idea for me altogether......please share any info you have!

Thanks!

@GeorgiaK9:

"In my opinion, I think we need to maintain hunting traits in the US dogs by recognizing those traits and breeding for them. If we do not, the American Basenji will NEVER be a hunting dog and should not be touted as one.

I agree wholeheartedly. The native hunting instincts are still present to some degree in our breed today- but who's to say they won't someday be lost if we continue to breed without any sort of emphasis or attention paid to those instincts?

Lure coursing is a fine activity; demonstrates prey drive, sure…..but at the end of the day it's a dog chasing plastic bags around a field. When I first began apprenticing with the hunting dog trainer I currently work for, this was one of the things he discussed with me in detail. The difference between a proven hunting dog's abilities on wild quarry....and a dog who can play a game in a controlled environment with a set of rules to follow. Almost any dog can play a game; but only a dog with the right level of genetic ability, drive & instinct can learn to hunt wild game WELL enough to consistently put meat on the table. A lot of things he said opened my eyes. Here we have a breed based on a handful of native dogs plucked from the bush a century ago, and since then maybe 10 people have made any real attempt to hunt with their dogs. It's a miracle the instinct hasn't been completely lost as it is.

We say the dog is a hunting hound based on its history....we all see indications that our dogs harbor their native instincts to some degree.....we enjoy the unique traits that make our breed what it is....so why isn't anyone working to PROVE that hunting ability and TEST those instincts so as to preserve them & improve future generations? Without proving ability AND working to preserve it, our breed is going to be nothing more than a backyard novelty with an interesting backstory. Realizing all of this made me realize that there is room for improvement. If the most anybody is doing with the Basenji to prove hunting ability is letting them loose on trash bags, how can we really say this is a hunting dog?

I don't think it's an issue of whether there will be "demand for hunting Basenjis"....please know I'm not talking about wanting to create a bench/field bloodline split like many sporting breeds have, where the "field bred" bloodlines are too hot & driven for the average pet home thereby making them undesirable for anyone but a hardcore hunter. IMO this would be a detriment to the breed. I am only saying there should be more of an effort to acknowledge the breed's potential and ability as a hunter, highlighting and preserving those traits. If a handful of us who enjoy hunting AND enjoy Basenjis get involved doing this, and we're able prove that these little dogs do a good job, then gradually there will be more of a demand. Right now this breed is not even on the radar in the hunting community and even if it were, there are too many unknowns for most people to feel confident messing with it. But all it takes is a few people to pioneer the effort- Jeff has a ton of training and hunting experience; if he can't figure out the best approach to use for hunt training Basenjis, nobody can. Someone like myself, I may not have anywhere near the level of experience he has but I do have all the resources I need right in my backyard- from the equipment to the fields to the pro-trainer-for-a-boss. With a little guidance from Jeff on how to approach the differences in Basenji temperament vs. a traditional bird dog, I am sure I could give it a darn good shot. And if a relative novice like me was successful, it might inspire someone else who doesn't have a ton of experience to go ahead and take on the challenge. And so on & so forth...the more people do it, the more information is shared, the easier it is for people to feel confident doing it themselves.

I've got to run so I'll finish this up with a picture of Tana, my puppymill rescue, flash-pointing a planted (pen raised) quail the very first time she'd ever been in a field about 2 years ago. Never been on birds, never been hunted, only been off-leash a few times but never in a wildlife-abundant place....and yet she put her nose in the wind, quartered, found the scent, flash pointed & held for about 20 seconds, then pounced and flushed the quail :) If I had the $500 for the Astro GPS collar (not getting into the Ecollar thing, but I'd need it to locate her since she's smaller than a popcorn fart at 15 lbs, lol) I would totally take her hunting. Not sure if she could retrieve a pheasant to hand but I bet she'd have fun trying.

I don't have regular TV (just Netflix; we're too rural for broadcast or cable and I'm too cheap to pay for satellite, lol) so I haven't seen it, but my mom told me about it a couple weeks ago! She doesn't have Basenjis but might as well be a Basenji owner by association as much as she loves my two…..she is a proud grandma to my pups for sure! The way she was describing the commercial and her reaction, she sounded about as excited as I would have if I'd seen it myself, LOL.

I remarked that it's about time they used a Basenji to advertise something in a flattering manner. So far the only 2 times I've seen a Basenji on an advertisement or product, was on an in-store sign for Petsmart Obedience classes years ago, and on a bottle of flea & tick shampoo! Here it is in fact: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10312355&findingMethod=rr
Made it seem to the public like Basenjis were flea-bitten troublemakers LOL. At least now they're finally geting a little dignity back :)

I just have to say I LOVE her ears! LOL!

As the others have said, definitely not a full Basenji; possibly a mix. Does she have an underbite at all? I have seen a lot of Boxer mixes with similar heads and often they will inherit the underbite. The ear size is pretty close to an un-cropped Boxer's ears….and once in a blue moon you do find a Boxer whose ears nearly stand up naturally :)

She almost resembles my Chloe, without the thicker coat. We have no idea what mix Chloe is; best guess is Basenji/Cattledog (aka red heeler) but a lot of people see "pit bull" in her. She has a slight underbite which makes me think Boxer is possible as well, but her thicker double coat (much like a shepherd or heeler) is a mystery. She does bark but has a wide range of other vocalizations; she'll chortle and warble to show excitement or happiness more often than she'll bark. Whatever she is I think she's perfect!

@GeorgiaK9:

HI and I am sorry but I did not see your name…it sounds like you have a great situation for hunting B's up there and I envy you. Personally, I think a good hunting B will out work most other typical gun dogs. My B's consistently outwork pointers and labs...they just do not have the endurance. I also think the intelligence and nose of the hunting basenjis is better. I can't see myself working with another hunter. The only drawback is coat...without a hunting vest, they freeze their butts off. My B's hunt well in the snow but they need good waterproof coats.

I plan to keep this going for as long as possible. I just do not know if I will have the time. My business of training dogs keeps me very busy plus we travel each and every month all over the US and in Europe training handlers. I just cannot say for certain if I will be able to do this in the near future. I guess it depends on demand.

Jeff

I'm Danielle by the way, sorry. :) I believe you and my boss had a phone conversation a couple years ago when I first started apprenticing with him, if that might ring a bell?

One thing I've wondered about is working a Basenji in tall or thick cover, like the prairie & brome grasses we have up here? My "real" hunting dog is an Epagneul Breton (aka French Brittany) and while they are absolute little sticks of dynamite with twice the stamina of a bigger dog…..they are a compact 30-40 lb dog and they can completely disappear in tall cover if they get 15 feet away from you. Especially the more common red & white dogs, they blend in with the grass.....mine is black roan (French standard has always allowed black; AKC standard was changed when breed was first imported here)....but it can still be tough to keep track of where she is.

On the other hand, her shorter stature makes it easier for her to burrow under dense cover like brome, whereas I've seen long legged Pointers get tangled up and worn out from trying to go over it. And there's always beeper collars & GPS collars that'll help you keep track of the dog....so I would imagine as long as the Basenji had the passion & energy to push through tough cover they would do fine.

So your dogs hunt in the snow with just a vest on? No boots? LOL mine absolutely turn into whiny babies if it's too cold & snowy out....under 15 degrees or so they won't walk in the snow except to potty.

You've got me thinking about this....do you think there will be any available pups out of this litter or are they spoken for already?

Jeff you have no idea how tempting that is. Living in the heart of SD pheasant country, I'd hoped one day to obtain a Basenji for this very purpose, if not one day attempt to do exactly what you're doing- develop a "working" line of Basenjis using dogs that actually hunt. Where I live, a Basenji with its natural instincts intact would have the ideal environment to develop and utilize his abilities as an all-purpose small-game hunting dog. My two- an 11 y/o show-line dog and 5 y/o puppy mill rescue- have become remarkably adept at hunting in the 2 years since their backyard became a 3500 acre private preserve….if poor to mediocre genetics still retain this amount of ability I would love to see what an ability-focused breeding program could do.

Even though I hope to eventually build a professional career around traditional gundog breeds (have been getting my feet wet working for a pro for 2 years now), I will always have to have at least one or two Basenjis. :) And if my career requires me spending every day in the field training traditional sporting breeds....how much extra trouble will it be to bring along my Basenji and see what he'll give me? I just know I'll eventually be in a real position to take on the "hunting Basenji project" as kind of a side-hobby even if my main focus ends up being on a traditional bird-dog breed. My fondness for the Basenji combined with having the resources to produce serious hunting dogs, eventually on a pro-level....I could totally see it happening :)

Do you plan on making this an ongoing project? Any chance for future litters? I had it in my head that I'd be looking seriously at one of your puppies whenever Jibini passed away. Four dogs in the house is about all I'd prefer to deal with right now; so ideally a new-hire has to wait until somebody retires, lol. He's 11, and God willing that could be several more years down the road.

If this is likely to be a one-time breeding, however.....I would have a hard time passing that up. I could make it work; there's room in bed for one more dog, lol. Could you tell me your thoughts on this, any future plans, etc? Thanks :)

Tana could seemingly care less about noises, nothing seems to bother her, not even a shotgun being fired about 50 feet away a couple weeks ago. She was more interested in wanting the varmint two of my other dogs had put up a tree- which is what I was shooting at ;) As skittish as she was when we adopted her from BRAT (she was a puppymill dog) she really has turned out to be very laid back about a lot of situations :)

Jibini on the other hand, is weird. As a pup he didn't seem bothered by much- growing up in Florida he was accustomed to thunderstorms but when he was 6 or 7 he suddenly started getting a bit nervous/agitated by the sound of thunder….mostly pacing and whining. And now at age 11 he's not nearly as bothered by them as he was a couple years ago; he may whine and pace for a few minutes but is usually content to snuggle under a blanket and sleep it out. Fireworks definitely bother him and that started a couple years before the thunder anxiety. He isn't thrilled about gunfire either. But other loud noises don't bother him- when I drove a truck he was exposed to a lot of noisy situations- I could walk him through a busy truck shop and not even an impact wrench going off 10 feet behind him made him flinch.

I guess some dogs are pretty selective about which noises they'll react to- I know I've seen hunting dogs who were scared to death of thunder and certain other types of loud noises, but absolutely steady to gunfire.

Tana is a bed/sheet licker too. When we adopted her we drove 8 hours to pick her up from her foster home and spent the night in a motel on the way home. She did the exact same thing….sat on the bed and obsessively licked the sheets & bedspread wherever she happened to be. I thought it might have been a stress reaction (she was very fearful and stressed out when we first adopted her) but she continued to do the same thing on occasion even after she got used to being in our truck. We've had her going on 4 years now and she rarely does it but ONCE in a while she does it in our own bed even :)

The hunting dog trainer I work for has stressed the dangers of foxtails to me several times in the 2 years I've been there. He and another local trainer have actually each had one of their dogs die from getting a foxtail up their nose or in their eye & boring itself deeper into the cavity and causing an infection. Granted these guys have been in dogs for over 30 years and 15 years (respectively)….and this is two dogs out of hundreds over a lifetime....so it isn't a HUGE risk but it is still a risk.

This year is really bad for foxtails too where we live....they are growing up everywhere! All we can do is check the dogs over really well after we take them for a run....hard to avoid them when you are training hunting dogs, can't exactly keep them out of the fields :)

Maybe mix some water with the food to up her fluid intake? I do that occasionally especially in the summer when I want to make sure they stay hydrated enough. No need to let it sit & make the food soft, by the end of the bowl any water that's left is food-flavored & mine will lick their bowls clean.

With added water, plus the wet food, and cutting out the pumpkin I'd think it would decrease the fiber while adding moisture? Worth a shot? Fish oil would probably help too, I'd guess.

This is true, but all of the debarked dogs I've seen (granted, not many) still vocalized quite a bit, it was just in a "whisper". They still retained the noisy behavior.

Tana is quiet by nature….not much gets her to vocalize, really. Would debarking ever traumatize a dog to the point of completely changing their noisy behavior pattern??