Basenji Training

People have matchsticked for decades and I can supply about half dozen VET SCHOOL links that tell people to do it for dogs who have had surgery. That said, paper or wood, works fine. Except, oh, Cara. She just leaves it in, I don't care how far you put it. The only way I got her to go when it rains is by giving her fiber in her food every 3 days. She held so long 2 yrs ago she got impacted and an anal fissure. After nearly 2 mos of hot compresses to heal it up, no more. Fiber. Yeah she often poops on the back porch or sidewalk but at least she poops. For normal dogs, I'd only add one thing to the above… tie the dog TO YOU if it doesn't poop until you go back out. Give it zero chance to poop inside. And if you need to add a tablespoon of fiber a few meals, some green beans for roughage to make the need more.. do it. And when the dog poops outside, CELEBRATE with one great happy dance and special treat. :)

Are you moving to the city or the suburbs?

Hi! just reading thru this and all the suggestions are great, but if I may back up a bit….Why rush mother nature???? If he has been crated and not familiar with the world, why not make and allow the time for the guy you adopted? Let him learn by watching and you in return can gain tremendously by allowing the trust/bond with him. Let him watch the handicapped, bicycle, whatever, praise him (verbal or otherwise what ever is rewarding for him) after a reasonable time for not 'over-reacting' and then he would be more inclined to go with you and finish the walk. Uzie was rescued under similar circumstances and though I 'worked' with him, I had to allow him TIME-time for maturity, learning curve, environmental enrichment etc. It is different in every dog, human, animal............Patience.

@QuizBasenji: Hi Kosuzu Please make sure neither dog is wearing a collar…that's how I lost my baby girl... I sure will Quiz. Thanks

@Kosuzu: I will get into agility when he is a little older, his bones are still too immature for that yet. I would also like to get Khalani into becoming a "therapy" dog as he has a beautiful nature, He can't be assessed for that until he is at least 18 months old. You must tell me more about the "skateboard", does he ride it? Have you ever videoed your agility, I'd love to see that. There are a few youtube videos of Zest! doing agility. Just seach "Zest Agility" and the r/w little basenji is mine. Those are all from her Novice days. She's now in Excellent. We've had quite a few set backs, but she has achieved her excellent agility titles in AKC. You can see my other 2 here: https://www.basenji.org/BasenjiU/Activities/Agility/AOb/stacles.html All but the dogs on the table are mine. Zest is also the star of the Agility Manuevers videos. Hopefully, you'll be able to find a local agility class. There are lots of foundation work you can do with puppies before you start doing jumps and weaves. The other two (Digital the brindlewonderkid and Jet the trying) are retired, but have certainly done a lot. Therapy work is so rewarding! You'll love it. Z and I are off to the Alzheimer's facility tomorrow. Both my boys also really loved it.

wish you can post some photos, these is Zulai, i think that stuff is the best option because is low set on the bike, i use another and cant keep and eye on Maca all the time. So in the future will buy these. Its expensive but well… [image: attachment_p_167712_0_zulai.jpg]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I feel assured what the breeder said was sound-That the dog can do both lure and show providing they want to. So since I really want to lure how soon should I start with the pup?

Oakley too..he likes pasta boxes and treat bags…scoot around like a skateboard!

That's great news, happy for you and Bandit.

Can she see you from her bed? Try raising her crate up so she can see you and give her something old that smells like you….she is so young to have left her littermates, she will need extra reassurance! Hope you get a good nights sleep soon!

@Voodoo: If he sees a rabbit, I can stand still for a long time, he wont come to me then. :p Yeah, rabbits certainly rate higher priority. As do deer. One little trick I know from way back when I was a teenager walking dogs for folks, is that if an untrained dog accidentally gets loose and wants to play "keep away", a good trick is to lie down on the ground. Almost invariably, I find the dog will come to check you out. If your timing is good, you can then grab him. But most aren't fooled more than once. :)

Lisa, please accept my apologies too.

I used the reusable washable hospital chux for my puppy but realized later that she was getting confused between the chux and regular blankets for her crate. I used to work long hours at the hospital, so when she was older I kept her in a circular play yard with her crate inside and a pee pad area on the opposite side. She would end up moving the pads around and yes, getting pee everywhere, so that wasn't so great. I'm on a list to purchase puppy next year, and I think this time around I will buy one of those "potty patch" or "potty park" things. They are plastic liners with fake grass turf on top. The puppy pees on it, and the urine flows into the liner, and poo stays on top. That way, my new puppy will get used to the feel of grass on her feet, and it will smell like her potty (to her)all the time, (vs wiping a bit of poo on a clean pad as some suggest).

I had a similar problem when my last dog was a puppy. She was a rescue, and barely 5 weeks old when I got her, so her ability to hold her urine or bowels was not a very long length of time. As puppies get older they can go longer periods of time between eliminating, but it's important to research (google puppy housetraining) lengths of time for your puppy's age, and work out a schedule for her accordingly. My puppy needed to be brought to the puppy pad and fed every few hours around the clock, and she was initially more work than a newborn baby. As far as the crating goes… puppies are more likely to soil a crate that is too large for them. That doesn't mean you need to run out and get a new one, but rather you can make the used area in her crate smaller. When my puppy was little, I had a soft bag carrier that was small that I placed inside the crate and closed both so she got used to the big crate, but was also just in the smaller carrier bag. You could also use boxes to reduce the size but I would worry about the puppy getting wedged in between the box and the crate, so if you use a box or wood or whatever, make sure it is secure and your puppy can NOT wiggle between it and the crate. Also, accidents will happen with puppies once in a while. They are like human toddlers who have very little control and are learning and gaining strength every day to become more and more house trained, so patience is key. Hope these tips help!

OH MY GOODNESS! Please please give her my congrats! LOL we should throw her a basenji board virtual shower. :)

Thank you guys for all of your input! Sorry it took me so long to reply, puppy preparations took up a lot of my time! Haha. I followed your guys' advice and puppy proofed the obvious, made sure to get used to not leaving anything on the floor haha. Since he will be home when I am home I will just observe and see what his tendencies are so I can make changes accordingly, as some of you suggested. The breeder gave me great advice on chewing and things like that too which also helped, including her own homemade concoction to prevent chewing. Will definitely keep you all updated and hopefully you all don't mind answering some more questions later! :) thanks again!

@Hooligan: Hello all, Plus it was expensive! Over 3k! I'd do it again in a heartbeat but it can only happen so many times, lol. yikes! I know some people have suggested getting another dog for separation anxiety, but he doesn't like other dogs at all, so that's not an option for us. Does anyone have an opinion on kennel vs. crate? I want either one to be positive - his home & refuge, not punishment. I don't want him to dislike going in the basement because of the kennel, because we want to encourage him to go hang out with Josh in the studio. I worry it's colder in the basement, but he'd have more room. I don't know if we should try covering all the wood somehow so he has only chain link, or if we need to buy a separate, fully-enclosed chain link & metal kennel? Or stick with the crate? I feel bad about putting him in the crate. He can stand and turn but it's not that big. It's kind of nice that we can have the crate upstairs anywhere and we have been playing games of find-the-treat with him so he gets to associate the crate with good things and it's not as easy to do that with the kennel. What do you all think? Thanks guys! I am sorry that I suggested the other dog, didn't know he 'came' that way to you. I have provided a referral list from the website of certified trainers and behaviorist in your state. http://www.ccpdt.org/index.php?option=com_certificants&task=directory&state=WI I personally know Sarah Kalanjas by way of attending her seminars. http://www.bluedogtraining.com/problem-behavior.html If you do hire someone, make sure that they understand the CAT/BAT or counter conditioning process for your boy and his (possibly) fear aggression with other dogs. Maybe in stead of having any wood in the chain link kennel, just have one or two kongs and such in a plain ol chain link with a chain link topper on it. Construct it so it is large enough for him to use a corner to potty (grass mat?) if he so needs (don't know how long you both are gone….) a medium large one or so for long periods. http://www.doghouses.com/dog-kennels/dog-kennels-and-runs/cottageviewdogkennel1.cfm hoping for the best for you!

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