Basenji Training

I figured after a long weekend with endless cuddles and attention, he was happy to have some alone time.

Glad to hear she did well. She must have heard what you said and wanted to prove you wrong. They are such stinkers!

My personal preference is a 300 series size wire crate… I use General Cage brand that fold flat when not in use or traveling. The size I use is 21 3/4 W x 30 L x 24 H I have used these at home for all my B's over the years.. I also have that size in the RV for travel... However in my Van I use the small 200 size... which is fine for short trips... or shows... easier to lug around at shows...

but I was concerned that too many treats was not good. Depends on what you use for treats. The treats should be tiny – like pea size or smaller. Sometimes I use "Carry-Outs", which are soft and maybe an inch long; I get about 6 treats out of one of those. Or I use puppy kibble -- a different brand than what I feed Keoki -- one piece of kibble is the whole reward {ya gotta wonder why Gypsy -- 70 lbs-- would even care, but she responds very well to those tidbits!}. And I only give food treats as a reward for behavior, never just to give the dogs a treat. If I want to give them a treat because they are so darned cute, I give them chewies of some sort, or a peanut butter stuffed {okay, not stuffed but you know....} bone to work on. They do not get those type of things every day.

When you have a new puppy, there is an adjustment period… first, I keep their crates in my bedroom so that if a pup needs to go out, I am able to hear them and get them up and out... Also, did you make sure that he pottied first? Had he ever been in a crate?... They don't just take to coming into a new home and then being locked in a crate without some "crate training"....

You can start them with a empty pack at any age, to get them used to it, ideally near they're adult size so you're not buying two. With adding weight it's just like hard exercise you'd want to wait till 18 months to 2 yrs. You can also add things light weight like empty water bottles or balled up news paper once they are used to the pack. This adds bulk to the pack without weight so they can then learn to wear it with the sides sticking out. Then you can add lighter things around a yr, maybe just house keys, two half empty water bottles, to get them used to gradual weight. Remember to make the weight even, that is the most important thing. Also when training with added weight don't go until they are tired start with slow times, maybe around the block or so, helps them get used to it and thier body to build up the desired muscle. Training to pack with any dog should be a gradual event, with a dog I'd say 3 months with a pup again the 18 months and up. Also a very important thing a dog should not carry more than 15% of thier body weight.

Sounds like progress! I am sure he will adust perfectly!

Yeah that bottle of doom worked for a few times. Now my B just licks of the water. Bitter apple, more like apple pie…nothing. Gonna get me some vapor rub.

This is really a mystery… I have no other thoughts.... I still think the key somehow is related to the fact that he just "pees"... without thinking about it.... very strange... You might want to just be sure and repeat the urine for a UTI... like I said they can be hard to detect sometimes... I have seen that before... One more thing, has his eating or drinking habits changed?...

It was 2000ft. The finish judge commented that maybe we should only have gone halfway-1000 ft. Next time I'll run her with a more experienced dog and on a shorter practice. And like I said, Mama's girl and all!

thank you thank you thank you..

Sounds like a typical B to me with the pooping on the B training manual. You sure you don't have my B, she is quite smart also. Be patient your B will get the idea, and being home next week so you can work with her/him will help. They are very smart, my B learned pretty fast, and when she would go outside I always gave her a treat that she liked. You have to have the treat in your pocket and give it right away after he/she goes to potty, they only remember 30sec. after the fact. Good Luck!

@luzmery928: That's great. Good thinking. Human 1 Dog/Cat 0…..for now. lol You are totally right. I have to stay on top of my game in order to keep order in my house :o

thanks for the info.

he's got a crate, and sleeps in it from time-to-time. as far as accidents go, he's had a couple. i bought puppy floor pads, and hes used them once, but never again. :( luckily i see that once he eats, whatever form thelast time he ate comes out, so i can time when to take him out. another thing – he doesnt eat his food! he always eating the cat food, and wont eat unless i sit on the floor with him, and hand feed him a few kibbles until he's like "hmm this isnt so bad" and finishes the bowl. & it's weird because im feeding him the same stuff his last woner did,. so its not like i completely changed his food.. :(

i always thought it would be a great idea to have an overhang over the grass for rainy days….

@youngandtired: My underground fencing is very good, she will not go over it b/c I have trained her not to. If she did she would probably be dead, lots of cars go by and she chases them just shy of the fence. If she goes close the collar device will give off a beep. When we are playing fetch outside and I throw the ball and it goes near the fence line she will stay put. She looks at me as if to say, "Go get it Mommy, I'm not. It has been great for us, I work and so does my hubby, and Sahara loves to be outside when the sun is shinning. Just an interesting related story…not a commentary. A client of mine has a dog that is very nicely trained to their underground fence. They had had it for a few months, and the dog had never attempted to cross it. But one night, it snowed over a foot, covered the flags. The dog went right through it, and took the shock! The "context" of the fence changed for her when the terrain looked different. Luckily, after the snow left, she hasn't tried to cross the fence again.

sounds like separation anxiety. You might try using a crate so he has less space; it might make him more comfortable to have less space, believe it or not! There is a thread here somewhere about how to go about desensitizing a dog to being alone. It takes a lot of work, and very small steps. If you can't find it, let me know, and I will make another post. Experts tell us that it can take up to a year for rescue dogs to settle into their new homes, sometimes. When they find something they really value (their new family) they are afraid when the people leave that they won't come back. Hang in there. Have patience :) Oh, and try the DAP plug ins. They produce a calming pheremone to relax a nervous dog. You can look online, or find them at some pet supply stores. I have no personal experience with them…I keep meaning to try it...but lots of people have very good reports about them.

@bethp14: Would these hot dog pieces be safe for my youngin's too? Missi and Cooper will be 11 weeks old on Friday! Well, I've only been giving them to Magnum since he was a year old (that's how old he was when I got him), but I can't imagine that they'd be bad for puppies. If someone knows otherwise, please let us know.

I do hope she losses interest. My B girl Sugar climbs. X-pens are definitely out unless they have a lid, and then she'll scream. I can block the kitchen off with baby gates if I have visitors but not from her-she'll hop right over from a sit. She has climbed the fence to get at a squirrel, but since I watch her I got to her before she got over. I'm just waiting for the tree climbing to start!