Skip to content

How do I get my basenji to talk???

Basenji Talk
  • Hi! I'm new to the forum, my girlfriend and I just got our first Basenji about a month ago. His name is Ziggy and he's 4 1/2 months old.

    The "problem" is I can't get him to make much noise. I understand they're barkless dogs, but he never does any yodeling. Now I shouldn't say never, I'll hear a short medium volumed "bark" maybe once every couple days, but besides that he just whines when he wants anything. He'll make cute yawning noises, but that's about it.

    I'm sure this isn't one of the more normal questions, but how do I get him to speak? I love the sound of his voice!

    Thanks!

  • It took our basenji a little bit of time to talk. He's 2 yrs, now, and "tallks" all the time- especially when we get back home from being gone for several hours. It's hilarious! My daughter is raising a lamb,, and we take him to the ranch a lot. He tries to talk to the lambs- he has his own Baaaaaa- too funny!

  • Some talk, some never do. My OJ never uttered a yodel in 17+ years….

    Welcome to the forum... who did you get your Basenji from? Many of us are related by our Basenjis.

  • @tanza:

    Some talk, some never do. My OJ never uttered a yodel in 17+ years….

    Welcome to the forum... who did you get your Basenji from? Many of us are related by our Basenjis.

    Wow 17 years! That's a long time to keep quiet. My basenji came from harmony hounds, a breeder in Georgia!

  • Well, I am not sure if it helped to teach Kipawa, but I would 'baroo' at him, and he is quite vocal now.

  • Maybe play some videos of singing/talking basenjis off of YouTube. Those always gets my b-kids going.

    Once you get them to yodel, if you mark the behavior (and treat it), you might be able to get it on command. I have 3 that do it on command for their dinner. My forth only yodels when she wants one of the other basenjis to play with her or yodels at her reflection :D.

  • We tried to teach Paco to "speak" when we were training him, but it was hopeless.

    I now find that he yodels when I let him in the kitchen while I cook, and he wants what I'm cooking. Sometimes he'll wait patiently thinking that he'll get some food if he's sitting quietly the whole time, and then starts yodeling while we're eating and he doesn't get any.

    Also, having a lot of people over, or a new person over, especially someone who doesn't pay much attention to him, gets him going.

  • I think they're either talkative or they're not :) Maya always has been very keen to yodel but other than that, rarely makes any noise.

    She will yodel along with me if I sing (we must sound rather interesting in the car singing along to the radio!!) but I cant really "make" her do it. She has a mind of her own and doesnt she know it :D

  • @Maya:

    I think they're either talkative or they're not :) Maya always has been very keen to yodel but other than that, rarely makes any noise.

    She will yodel along with me if I sing (we must sound rather interesting in the car singing along to the radio!!) but I cant really "make" her do it. She has a mind of her own and doesnt she know it :D

    But of course, Jess… I mean she is a Tri after all! :D

  • Sometimes particular chords in music will set them off yodelling but then again as the others have said mabny never do. After all they manage to communicate with us in many other ways so why bother!!

  • Our red girl would always yodel when my daughter played her violin. Never fails. She chortles when she is happy.

    They all whine a lot!

    Or Tri used to yodel when a pup, but has not done anything in the last 8 years. However he did scream during the night, sounded like a human was getting stabbed to death. The most godawful noise you ever heard, loud and gut wrenching. We think he was having a nightmare, he sleeps in his crate.

    Anyone else have their dog scream like that (not getting hurt)

  • Both of my B's talk and yodel but maybe this will help. From day we brought Jayden home my daughter get on floor look at Jayden tell him to yodel then she would make this awful sound. Then Jaycee would start in and it could have been Jayden just could not stand all noise but was not long before he was make his voice heard and he is very much a talker. The only thing I am going to say be careful what you wish for when two of them get going I sometimes wish that neither of them talked.

    Rita Jean

  • Cara makes a great many noises (including a rather disturbing donkey one), but no yodel. I am definitely yodel/baroo envious since Arwen also doesn't do them.

  • I have an old harmonica that was my grandfather's, never fails to get a response. My first boy was pretty quiet on the yodeling front, but that would get him going. Current guy is more vocal on his own, but if I want him to go, harmonica always does the trick. Just to start, then he's all about the "singing" with me. Now that the weather is nice and windows are open, I often wonder what the folks walking/ running/ biking by on the street may think of the sounds….:)

  • My 2 1/2 year old r/w Shaye hardly ever makes noise - whines and mutters when we leave a dog park, and twice has copied her "sister's" bark - (Gemma is a mix and barks a LOT, also talks and yodels), but it didn't sound the same. One time she baroo'd when we came home from a long afternoon, but never repeated it. Because we keep telling Gemma to be quiet, sometimes Shaye looks at her as if to ask "What's wrong with you?!?" so maybe she has decided making noise is a bad thing. No matter - noise or no noise they can communicate very well.

  • Get a cheap Harmonica and try that or go to youtube and look for Basenji singing-turn up the volume and see what happens.

  • @2baroos:

    Get a cheap Harmonica and try that or go to youtube and look for Basenji singing-turn up the volume and see what happens.

    hello 2baroos - welcome to the forum! I see you are from BC - anywhere in the lower mainland?

  • I used to live in Vancouver and now live in Courtenay

  • i got my boy to "sing " by mistake…..lol. i was going through a web site called singing dogs ( basenji) and turned it up loud and guess what it got my boy singing along with the dog on line.... what a noise but worth it..

  • The two males I had previously never ever made a sound. My current female never has yodeled but she does "talk" back to me when I scold her and she "cries" like a tasmanian devil when in the car-kennel. My new male yodels every now and then but I haven't figured out what sets him off.

Suggested Topics

  • should I get a basenji?

    Basenji Talk
    21
    0 Votes
    21 Posts
    8k Views
    elbrantE
    @lovedogs @eeeefarm said in should I get a basenji?: wait until the time is right, even if you really, really want a dog now I agree... with everyone. Sometimes you just need to accept that (no matter how much you want a dog/car/kid/house) you aren't quite ready for it. I waited 5 years before I brought my Basenji home and it was probably the most adult thing I've ever done. I was still in recovery from a spinal injury and knew that I wouldn't be able to provide (her) the exercise she would want and require. Waiting made all the difference in the world. Whan I was finally ready, the most perfect little girl was ready for me. Don't fret about it. You can read, research, consider all of your options, and really prepare yourself. (Don't look at puppy pictures online! You'll fall in love without even meeting the pup(s) and it will pull at your heartstrings.) Remind yourself that "one day you will have a Basenji", just not today.
  • How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?

    Basenji Talk
    17
    0 Votes
    17 Posts
    13k Views
    DebraDownSouthD
    @eeeefarm said in How did you get your basenji to walk off leash?: What I find interesting is the change in attitude to dogs on leashes. At that time, many people walked their dogs off leash, and many left them loose on their properties all day long. First, and probably foremost, you're a excellent owner. We disagree on a lot of training things (like e-collars) but you are uber responsible. On the "in the old days"... I see parents talk about not how they roved the neighborhood or all over small towns and how safe. But I also worked with women over the age of 70 who had been sexually assaulted as children and never reported it. I am not sure kids were massively safer in the good old days except for the fact that back then, your neighbors DID look after your kids... they'd scold them or call you without being fearful of being called meddling... because it was about caring. We've lost that. As for dogs, yep... we're similar aged and I remember my grandmother's farm and the fairly steady stream of new farm dogs because they got killed by wild life/snakes etc or roving dogs. It was business as usual. Dog disappeared or dead-- get another one. I know many still feel that way. Rather have to dogs run free and happy and dead young than "cooped up." Our value for dogs as companions has dramatically changed, and our view of our responsibility for them. We always had cats and dogs who were allowed out, and like you, most stayed on the property. But I remember 3 dogs who didn't (one small, probably stolen) and cats didn't live long. We just took that as the norm. Obviously I have look back at that and am horrified. (Though there was an Irish setter who would NOT stay on his property and if the owners weren't there, he followed me about a mile to my house when I walked home from school. His owners laughed, would come get him when they got home if he didn't go back. I thought that was kewl back then but not so much then.) But my experience, and I lived in a very small town then, and a smallish one now, is very different. Then and now, dead dogs and cats on the road are incredibly common. The litmus test is research statistics. Cats who are even allowed out a few hours a day loose have dramatically decreased life spans. I haven't bothered to look about dogs, though a look at shelters should be enough to prove that dogs loose are often dogs lost. The number with electric fence collars demonstrates how ineffective even that is if prey drive kicks in. (for the record, your dog your choice. Loose cats however have an almost unimaginable impact on wildlife, so it IS my business if your cat runs loose.) Yep, times have definitely changed.
  • Interested in getting a Basenji… maybe

    Basenji Talk
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    1k Views
    nomrbddgsN
    There are some breeders out your end of the Country that could probably help you out. Cheryl Myers Eggerton is a Judge and also a breeder, she is in Minto NB and has Connamore B's, Simone Guadet (Beaubri) is on PEI, Valerie Rodger (Miloki) is in Beaver Bank NS. I have two that I can leave out without issues, and two go in the crate when I am not home. It is all dependant on the dog. But, like Anne states, puppies are a lot of work and sometimes the older dogs, young adults and retired show dogs are the better ones to start with. You can find all of the above on the Basenji Club of Canada website under breeders. At least with Val, you could probably visit her since she is in NS directly. Let us know how it goes,
  • Mistake getting a Basenji?

    Basenji Talk
    35
    0 Votes
    35 Posts
    13k Views
    PearlsMomP
    Hello! I wish to comment on my dog Pearl. She is Very quiet, hardly a sound. I try to encourage her to speak. She does a lot of nonverbal communication. About the child issue. Pearl came to us as a puppy. My kids (12 & 13 at the time) spent time with her, the neighbor kids played with her, and she loves kids. No problems socializing with young people. I guess the point is, your pup will love anyone who treats it well and cares for it. At 5 , I'm sure your child understands the importance of being gentle with dogs. Pearl has done her fair share of chewing. Interesting what she likes. She will be 2 in October, and is better, but she has lots of bones! I love Pearl, however, I am easy going, and enjoy taking her on walks, playing with her, and having her as a family member. Its up to you what you want from a dog. Pearl is pretty free, and thats what I like!
  • Considering getting a Basenji

    Basenji Talk
    4
    0 Votes
    4 Posts
    1k Views
    lvossL
    Yes, early socialization and positive experiences is the best way to go. I think the most important thing about puppy kindergarten is that it is positive based and focuses on socialization with both people and dogs. Some basenji don't necessarily do well with the small dogs and other love them. Sophie was always the best with the new pups of any size in her puppy class, she just had phenomenal dog language and would make herself as small as possible and go at their speed. What you want to be careful about is people who have already formed a preconceived notion of basenji behavior. My mom's first puppy class instructor always expected her boy to be aggressive even though he never showed any aggression and was always very appropriate in his interactions. I crate puppies next to the bed while housebreaking and it works fine. I have always used a large stuffed toy in the crate and this year used SnugglePuppies, they were wonderful. The pup snuggled right up to warmth and fell asleep, provided we did a good job of tiring him out for the night. I got my first basenji while I was in Grad school and lived in an apartment. It is doable as long as you are willing to make sure they get enough exercise and mental stimulation.
  • Thinking about getting a basenji…

    Basenji Talk
    32
    0 Votes
    32 Posts
    26k Views
    tanzaT
    @JazzysMom: Well, it's a good thing we went straight to a breeder! I'd considered BRAT, but decided to get a puppy instead. Good thing, because with six kids at home and lots of other kids in and out, we'd have never gotten a dog! Sad isn't it….