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Sleeping with your dog

Basenji Training
  • Wow, thats crazy! If Maya gives me the plague I will NOT be happy :D

    She sleeps in my bed everynight, i dont think she has any intention of that changing anytime soon..

  • Sounds to me that a long as your pets are well cared for medicaly, which they should be anyway, then the risks are minimised . I reckon humans pass more diseased and lurgies on to each other than animal to human.
    Responsibilities of Dog ownership state you have to provide your Dog with a bed anyway ;)

  • I think it's a good article. It's never wrong to warn people about the risks, how small they might be, right? We are all worried about Salmonella etc. in our eggs or on our meat.. but don't forget you can also pick it up from your pets!

    Tillo doesn't sleep in our bed btw. He has a bed of his own right next to ours. I know he loves to lay with us, but I just don't like it.. Especially not with a second dog on the way… Lycia did sleep in our bed.. on BF's side ;)

  • It is a sensation piece, lots of dire warnings, very little incidents. What a surprise zoonoses experts raising a cry of danger WILL ROBINSON. Basically keep your dog healthy, don't let it lick open sores (I mean WTH? who is that stupid and unhygienic… not just for YOUR health but your pet's? If you are, your dog is the least of your worries!) And nearly all of it can be gotten from HAVING a pet, sleeping with them just used for sensation.

  • @Barklessdog:

    I would think most people here take better care of their pets then they do themselves.

    So true. Of course, Kipawa is a Taste of the Wild boy. But what is funny is when I go through the grocery check out with all of this healthy dried fruit, unsalted trail mixes and veggies. When they ring in the dried blueberries, one of the gals always tells me (when seeing the price it rings through as) "do you really want these? They are pretty expensive". That's when I say to her, "oh, all of this healthy stuff is for my parrots".

  • Hmmm…I don't know...I had strep throat BEFORE I got Paco, and now that I have him, I haven't gotten it again. I want to argue that sleeping with pets actually prevents illness now!

  • Look scientists are always coming up with something. This and that can make you sick with a few number of examples. How many people do you think let their dog sleep with them? Millions! I rest my case your Honor!

  • If we all listened to all the warnings that come our way these days we would isolate ourselves like Bubble Boy and never leave the house, and never let anyone or anything in. I believe the more we are exposed to the stronger our immune systems get. I really worry about our children and grandchildren, who are kept from being anywhere the vicinity of anything even slightly likely to give them colds, or the flu or anything else - and they stuff antibiotics in them like candy - no common sense any more. My dogs will sleep with us, and hopefully, we won't give THEM any diseases.

  • I'm sorry but NOT sleeping with my animals has a far greater risk. Who knows what they would do if I couldn't feel them move and wake up immediately! LOL

  • Arwen, ROFLMAO, no joke!

  • I've slept with Basenjis for over 60 years and haven't yet succumbed to any fatal diseases!!!!

  • I can't sleep without them, so if they kill me with disease, at least I'll be rested.

  • @MacPack:

    I can't sleep without them, so if they kill me with disease, at least I'll be rested.

    Awwwwwwwwwwww!:D

  • My turn…I don't sleep with my dogs...but I do dooze off and snuggle with them lots :);)...since Pippin's moved in we have had company in our bed between 5 and 6 am mainly for me to get in one more hour of sleep but also because I love to snuggle with puppy breath and needle teeth.....the thing about salmonella and all those things..you can get that from eating tomatoes, spinach and even jalapenos in this country...shoot even breating the air here in Houston might be fatal...but Anne said it best..

    I can't sleep without them, so if they kill me with disease, at least I'll be rested.

  • Don't think Abbey is likely to give me either salmonella or the plague. I'd die of loneliness without my little cover lump, or else I'd freeze to death.

  • "I can't think what you all mean! I sleep with Basenjis every day of my life - Yours with love,"

    Jewel (16 and a half)"

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  • So much sleep!

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    JazzysMomJ
    Both of my Basenjis - aged 4 and 2 – sleep ALL THE TIME. If they are not actively playing, they are napping. They go to bed between 10 and 11 PM, and unless I have someplace to go in the morning, I just open their crate in the morning and they usually come out around 9 AM. They'll go out to potty, come in and eat, and within half an hour or so are in their chairs napping. If the weather is good, they'll head out to sleep in the yard where they will remain for hours on end. They love to sleep!
  • Hungry Dog

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    @Basenjimamma: Otis' favorite household machinery is by far the dishwasher…joy to the world, when it is open and the dishes are still dirty...yumm-o!! Dishwasher a favorite for every B I've ever had. One time I had a guest here and he had taken a shower earlier using a towel he brought. Ringo pulled his damp towel off the rack, hauled it in the living room and right in front of the guy proceeded to roll around on it until it was a twisted mess. I was embarrassed to say the least. He didn't care. :D
  • Growling at Other Dogs

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    If I tried to pick up Sam and carry him away from a fight he would have a go at me. When he is worked up and I've tried to get him away he has bitten me. In every other respect he is a wonderful dog whom I love v much. I find it interesting that I haven't come across any other basenjis in this forum as aggressive as mine. Sam doesn't just growl or snap at other male dogs he actively pushes them and tries to goad them into fighting. I'm beginning to think that Sam is a particularly 'rambunctious' pup?
  • Dog whisperer???

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    myranM
    I agree i´ve used those methods on all my dog´s(long before Cesar came along) not only the basenji and never has a dog questioned my leadership.But I always praise and i´ve never used force never had the need for it so there i´m different.These methods are common methods with working dog´s I used to have a Boxer and i´ve just adjusted certain parts of it to fit the Basenji ;) Many of the dog´s in that show are just left to "run wild" no training or excercise and instead lot´s of silly things with people who humanize their dog´s.And they looked surprised if they need to take walks jeez I take mine out 4-5 times a day and two of the walks are 6 miles and he he plays with other dog´s every single day to keep him socialized as he´s growing into adulthood.I also show train him every day not more then 10-15 minutes just to keep it fresh in his mind. What people tend to forget obedience training is something that you have to keep doing continuously as their memory is not like ours so you have to keep it fresh in the mind. I probably stated the obvious but I do agree with Jazzys mum:)
  • Dog Park Etiquette

    Basenji Training
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    MantisM
    I am not sure how old you basenji is, but i found basic training very helpful at the park. Caesar could understand what i expected from him when out. crazy running is normal humping or biting is very poor conduct at any dog park no matter what size…it is an action often immitated and is to show dominance there is nothing wrong with a basenji that prounces around stiff when other dogs are sniffing them....that is there way of saying, " you may sniff, but not dominate me! I am basenji". the hair standing on the neck and back or posturing is another way the basenji asserts him or herself at the park.... typically hair standing means nervous or scared= i watch that more closely than posturing or puffing up.... i am weary of the large dog areas when there are more than one pits in the mix. they naturally translate the basenji running as game and will try to tag team as well as play more orally than i like. if your basenji is humping a lot and is fixed, the small dogs may not be providing enough exercise or stimuli.... I try to have my basenjis in dog pens with vislas, bird dogs and running physical dogs. chasing retrievers is a great way to burn that basenji energy when casear was young and had difficult times at the dog park that seemed only addressed by a time out, we would leave and tight leash walk together. as soon as he would pull i would stop walking until he sat. then we would walk again. i also used hide and seek at the dog park as another technique for the park. Both my boys know to keep me in sight at all times. this keeps them from going off and getting into too much trouble. i would hide behind a tree until they realized i was gone and they found me. also, leaving the park with the dog in the pen is another way to let them understand that they should keep you in their sites. i did that a few times when i had a friend there with me and they stayed in the dog area. there is nothing more annoying IMO than an owner with treats in the dog park. or an owner with a dog on a leash in a dog park. or a person holding their dog in the air in a dog park. or a small unsupervised screaming and running child. the best rule is to communicate well with your animal. realize that time at the fenced dog park is free time for them to learn how to socialize. i have learned that basenjis do guard. if i am standing in the dog park, they run, sniff and play. if i sit in the dog park they will post near me and not go to far away. have fun, try new techniques, and watch other dog owners and how they participate with their dogs. you may pick up some good tips and see bad behaviors that you may want to avoid. as socialization continues at the park, your basenji will adapt and learn how to communicate with the least amount of conflict, so they can sniff as many butts as possible....
  • Sleeping through the nite

    Basenji Training
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    L
    Brownie sleeps with us and my other 2 dogs Shelby and Mo. I tried to get him to sleep in my sons bed so that there is no conflict with Shelby( hes the oldest) he did for awhile. after he was house broken, but now he thinks he has to sleep in my bed. on my pillow wrapped around my head. In fact he is asleep now and when it is time for everybody else to go to bed he wants to play. He is getting a little better.