Hi all. 
Binti is now coming to the 5 month old mark and I am wondering if you have any suggestions as to the best time to spay her. Are Basenji's different from other breeds in this regard and are they sensitive to any of the anesthesia (sp?) vets use? Also, she has a herniated belly button. The vet checked it when I was in getting shots and said there are no intestines going in or out of it. Apparently it is a safe hernia!:p Do you recommend getting this fixed when she is spayed?
I have sent away for the Fanconi test and am waiting for it's arrival. Should I wait to get the results before I have her spayed? If she has Fanconi, would the vet treat the spay any differently?
Also, just an aside, do any of you who breed know if her length/height ratio will remain the same as she grows older–---she is 13&1/2 inches tall and 14&1/2 inches long now. Just curious. I read she is supposed to be square, and it looks as if she's heading into a rectangle!
All this aside, our family has fallen in love with her. She is tons of fun. I will post more photos soon. Thanks.
Happy days,
Holly
Umbilical Hernia's in our breed are very common, over 80% of Basenjis has hernia's of various sizes… most people have them repaired when Spay/neuter is done as normal course. No need to wait till getting the DNA test for Fanconi, as regardless of the results, the spaying would be the same.
Sighthounds are sensitive to anesthesia, your Vet should be able to discuss this with you and also if you search the archives of the Forum you will find other threads about it.
As far as size, until she is full grown, hard to say about "Tall and Long".... When responsible breeders evaluate litters it is at 8wks as what they look like then is what they should look like full grown as far as conformation. But that is a pretty big difference even at this age, so I would say she is going to be longer then taller which would be a fault in the conformation ring.
Are Basenji's different from other breeds in this regard and are they sensitive to any of the anesthesia (sp?) vets use?
Yes, they are different.
Here is a previous discussion on this matter: http://www.basenjiforums.com/showthread.php?t=3401. There may be more if you do a Search.
Isoflurane is the preferred anesthetic. If your vet isn't familiar with treating sighthounds, Basenjis in particular, you might want to print out this information and take it with you. I would also recommend having a pre-surgery blood test done.
You might discuss with the breeder as to how often her dam went into heat. MOST basenjis only go in once a year, usually fall to early winter. I personally would wait til late summer to give her the most growing before spaying.
My girl Shaye had a herniated umbilical also. When my vet spayed her she was at the 6 month mark, and we had the hernia repaired at the same time. She came through it with flying colors. The only difference we noted was that her incision was longer. She was sent home with five little vials of honey-flavored painkiller and no e-collar - she did not seem to have any pain, and did very little licking of the area. So of course my recommendation is to have both done at the same time.
They seem to heal up well, and often keeping them quite is the most difficult thing about this surgery.
If you can wait, I would have her spayed in early Summer. I had one rescue whose birthdate was in early January and she came into season in early September. It was a surprise as I just got her and her sire and he was intact also. Luckily I was able to get her spayed ASAP.
I have a rescue who is 8 years old and is longer than she is tall. She waddles when she walks, swings her hips. Since I never had a B walk like this I did have her hips x-rayed and thankfully Dr. Tracy rated them as fair.
Jennifer
