@beth314 - I think the issue with a Basenji doing Earthdog is that those dogs go underground to seek their prey.... (as in for trials they make tunnels and the prey is in cages at the end).... and that is not an activity that Basenjis really do. They might try to get to the prey by digging on the top of the ground, but going underground I don't think so.
Rain rain go away!
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Best to address this as early as possible. Basically you have to convince him that the fastest way to dry conditions is to do his thing(s). Some dogs are better at figuring this out than others, so it may take standing out in the rain (with an umbrella or rain jacket or both) until he gets the idea. Once the lightbulb comes on it should be a piece of cake.
Agree with eeefarm that peeing should be easier than pooping. But if they get the basic idea you should be able to have them do both.
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Because I had a farm, when the weather was bad I could take my boy out to the hay shed and let him run around until the mood struck him. Exercise definitely seems to help! Before I had the farm my girls used to make me crazy when they wouldn't "go". I have had many walks in the pouring rain, but eventually we would get the job done! When I have a fenced back yard at my disposal it becomes a test of wills, and I can stay dry until the dog gives up and does what is required. Always worked for a simple pee, could be more problematic if I wanted anything more. (I'm sure my neighbours got tired of me yelling "go pee" at the top of my lungs on rainy days!)
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I got a little kiddie pool and filled it with pine straw. I kept it on the lanai (covered porch in FL). I added some poops to give them the idea. Unfortunately, my b's NEVER used it to potty.They would hold it for over 48 hours (we have hurricanes here but you can walk when the eye passes). I will take my current basenji in the car to a neaby neighborhood where he likes to walk and he will actually walk in a drizzling rain pretty well and go potty, but not in a pouring rain, and not if he has the option to walk from his house (sorry for the run on sentence). I just love the challenge of these basenjis.
My advice is to keep offering to take your b out and let him/her decide whether or not to wait it out. They really don't want to potty inside.
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@brindledogs
Luckily I have a potty station outside that is covered and protected against the elements. When it rains or snows for several days I drive my B to an underpass that’s nearby just so she can get her exercise. She knows exactly where we’re going because she will make a beeline for the car. -
Today was the first time doodle ever put the brakes on for rain. It wasn't raining that hard, just a little drizzle.... she litterally locked her front legs like she was saying, "no... not going out in that. No how, no way!" LOL I took her back inside and left her at home. Which she seemed ok with.
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Be firm ! Basenjis will flick their feet in disgust if the pavement is so much as damp - and that habit lasts as long as they do. But at 17 weeks, Nimbus should be totally house-trained. He has to learn to go out in the rain, even if he doesn't like it.
We had one who knew that, if it was wet weather, we would turn back from the walk as soon as the last one (of 5 at that time) had emptied. He held it, for AGES, subjecting the rest of the pack to the rain, because he knew we'd turn for home and he wanted to go further. That winter we had to walk the country lanes - being free in the woods is much easier !
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@zande said in Rain rain go away!:
being free in the woods is much easier !
Absolutely! When I let Perry loose at the farm he would go with me in weather that he wouldn't tolerate on a leash or in the dog run. Somehow it makes all the difference, at least it did to him.
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Binti will go out in the rain to do her business IF and only if, she has her yellow rain slicker on.
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My first basenji in the 1990's would put on the brakes if she was in the garage and saw that the pavement was wet - it didn't even have to be raining. I pulled her from a Humane Society Shelter and when I got her home, I gave her a bath. I swear she levitated out of the water. She taught me so much! One foster we had didn't mind the rain and would put his ears back and march into hurricane winds/rain just because he loved to go out on walks. He was amazing.
Each basenji is different. I never forced mine to be out in the rain - they never pottied in the house and could hold "it" an amazingly long time. -
My pup is a little over 4 months herself and she has the same struggle! Best suggestion I can make is if you have a deck or something similar that he can comfortable walk under to make that a new potty spot so there's less rain on him, that and a rain coat helps a bit too! Good luck!
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Have you tried purchasing a coat for little Nimbus? My little Basenji girl had the same issue when we first rescued her so I purchased a coat for her which helped her to feel less intimidated with the weather. Best wishes!
