I have an alpha female basenji and brought a newborn into our family. I was in the hospital for four days (my in laws stayed with dog and horse), when we came home, we had my Mom bring her new boyfriend. He was a great distraction, but also allowed me some alone time with Cricket. When they left, she noticed the baby in the bassinet and was a bit concerned.
She adapted to the baby, but I don't leave them alone just in case. Cricket is not nearly as jealous as she was, now that he drops food for her at the table, but she did get a bit jealous for a few weeks.
While I was pregnant, I was told that 'the test' was to play baby crying videos on YouTube. How the dog reacts will tell you how they will interact with the baby. Cricket beat the crap out of my phone when I tried… So not a great test! 🙂
Where can I get the "How To Be A Basenji" manual written in Basenji?
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I need to get one for my female. Pretty sure she didn't get her copy, or ever read it. It's common knowledge around BasenjiForums that Basenjis in the Northern Hemisphere come into season about late fall/early winter. Nope. She's decided to complicate the heck out of my summer by coming into season three days ago.
So, I guess it's something like a 12 day lead up to about 5 days of making damn sure she doesn't get anywhere near an intact male, and another 4 day wind down for a total of about a 21 day cycle. I recall someone saying they'd had a female heat cycle last for over 30 days.
But, oh no... I just had to have two Basenjis because one Basenji wasn't gonna be enough. Thanks for listening to me whine. :face_with_stuck-out_tongue_winking_eye:
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@jengosmonkey - 30 days is the typical for Basenjis, not 21 days.... and while 12 days give or take could be the time frame, I always use 10 days.... and then until the 30 days are up. You will see from the male that the last week the male will get even more interested as they seem to know that they are going to miss the time.... Not for sure but it is a pretty good indication. Just don't take a chance.... And yes, some will have a spring season, not always a "real" season but not something to take a chance with. My girls had once a year season until C-Me had her puppies, now it seems she believes that one year, once a year, the next twice a year and will bring in my other bitch.
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@tanza Safe side it is then - 10 and 30.
We spotted her spotting on 5/7. Logan seemed more interested than usual about 5/4 - 5/6ish, but we've using 5/7 as the start date. I may just back the start date up two days to be on the safe side. An accident is NOT an option. I will say that it's a little interesting seeing what Breeders have to deal with. Aye caramba. It's gotta be mayhem with 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 females all going into heat at the same time with a male lurking nearby. What if you had two males? No thanks. You guys are nuts! -
Very often my boys knew well ahead of the onset of any season that one (or all) of the bitches was coming in. That was when I put grab collars on them. . . Logan will have been aware of it before you saw any outward signs.
Because in theory (but you are so right that Basenjis don't read the book) they only have one season a year, it is very often considerably longer than 21 days.
Watch the color of the discharge but keep her well away from Logan and any/all intact males until you are completely certain.
We never had any problems with 3 entire boys and 5 entire ladies ! Luckily our property is set up with entrances on two different roads and a huge garden, easily partitioned so they never came into even distant contact. And as all the girls came in within a few days of each other it was all over and done with in about 5 weeks.
Just enjoy the experience ! Regard it as a learning curve -
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@jengosmonkey
Welcome to da club!
We had to search storage for her (re-usable) diapers
BTW: it's sporadic just to keep us perplexed. She had 2 seasons about 3 years ago; only one in 2020.
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My breeder is aware of what's going on and has been guiding me along. Still, really appreciate all the replies. Very helpful.
So far, the mood and behavioral changes have been the most interesting. They're no longer playing together. Sparkle is very moody. Lounges a lot. Doesn't like Logan near her, but whines if he's out back and she's not. At times she'll even get growly if he even looks at her. But, she's become more affectionate towards me. She snuggles up to me really well. Probably because she knows I'll protect her from Logan and she can relax. I like her attention. Logan doesn't. He, on the other hand, alternates between looking completely defeated as we keep them separated to strutting around, puffing up, and trying to stand shoulder to shoulder with her when she's near. I've seen where that posture leads...
I've seen him breed twice now and know he's a no nonsense performer. Fast. I bought a belly band for him that we can use when we need to. She has a wrap as well. We started using it at night only, but... lets just say it's a lot cleaner when she wears it more often. Without getting too graphic things seem to have increased a bit in the last day or so. Also, it's an extra layer of protection so to speak. She's gotten use to it and has stopped trying to remove it. We change out the pad very frequently.
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@jengosmonkey - If you are really worried... you can always have progesterone tests done... typically done to determine the time to breed but will also tell you if she is progressing to a "real" season. I had a bitch that had a spring season, but she never totally progressed ...therefore the male would not breed her... some males are like that... they know... not that I suggest that you let him decide, LOL.... but it would give you some indication. Just a thought
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I was just going to relate our summer season but decided not to relive my month in an insane asylum It was a month of pure unadulterated hell. Brother and sister, so obviously I had eyeballs on them 24 /7. Crates not doable, he tried to chew thru and rip them apart. Screaming as only basenjis-can. Hour upon hour, no eating and little drinking, another concern. Both lost weight. Everything else was horrible, 4 weeks later all done. Back to normal .sanity restored...somebody is going to get fixed.
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@joan-duszka Oh happy happy joy joy. That sounds just wonderful.
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This is tricky and you will need to be paying attention. Dogs are very fertile and fertile matings can occur five days before and six days after ovulation. So you see you're dealing with an extended time. The good news is that it's more like 11 rather than 21 days. The bad news is that unless you are hormone testing, you won't know exactly where those 11 days fall.
FWIW I think the manual says something like "generally speaking, Basenjis in the Northern Hemisphere come into season about late fall/early winter". She's likely relying on those two little "wiggle words"!
Good luck. I'm sure you'll find the whole experience interesting if a bit of a PITA.
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Again, really appreciate the insight and suggestions. Stella had clued me in to the Progesterone test some months back. I'll keep that in mind. Whining aside... I keep reminding myself that I was able to get two really awesome Basenjis. We made some agreements, Stella trusted us, and now it's our turn the live up to our end. We'll get through this... one way or another.
Poor Logan. He's like a hormonal adolescent at a Victoria's Secret runway show. He just doesn't understand why I'm being such a mean ogre and dragging him out of there!
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@jengosmonkey I am sure Stella will have warned you just how eager Logan will get ?
If you can send him to live with your sister (for example) about 200 miles away for the duration, it could ease things !
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@zande Yes she did. I will say... so far... he's being somewhat compliant. I thought about my Sister. She's a teacher and just went back into the classroom. Logan would be left by himself and/or crated for a minimum of 7 hours a day until early June. I'd never subject him to that.
Today is the beginning of day 8. Day 10 if I roll back the start date by 2 days, sooo... I think we're beginning to enter the danger zone. So far no howling. Just can't leave them alone together unattended for a minute.
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@jengosmonkey I was being a tad facetious when I suggested your sister. It could be anyone who loves and understands Basenjis !
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@zande Facetious? I thought you were being clairvoyant. My sister always watched Jengo when we were out of town. She was the only one we trusted.
We've renamed our dogs. New names are Heatie and Horny. Heatie no longer hates Horny. In fact she's become rather flirtatious. No color change yet, but I'd bet we're really close. Can't and won't leave them alone together for a second at this point. Gotta say... it's been an adventure so far...
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@jengosmonkey Its not difficult dealing with a seasonable bitch. But do have a grab collar on him and be prepared for the eagerness he will display to get to her, especially as he is not inexperienced !
signed : clairvoyant -
According to my math today should be the first day of full on fertile Myrtle. So hopefully that means we're at least to the halfway point if not a bit further. They're definitely more eager to get to one another, but it isn't all the time. No screaming yet. Whining occasionally yes. @Zande We're keeping collars (aka grab handles) on them right now for convenience.
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@jengosmonkey Basenjis can't read the rule book and they can't do sums. Forget arithmetic. He will tell you in no uncertain terms when you reach zero hour ! Well done for using grab handles. Just be sure you are close enough to grab them !
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Well... Everytime I think we've reached the peak, Heatie and Horny prove how wrong I am. The last two days have been... sporty. Logan has become much more vocal, insistent, and just wants to get right down to business. His knob doesn't go to eleven. It goes to holy crap! Keeping a diaper on Sparkle has proved an effective chastity belt. We keep them separated throughout the day, but have been trying to walk them together. That's now become a big nope. She flashes him her butt every time she sees him. If he walks by her while she's in a crate, to maintain separation, he looks at the crate as a minor obstacle rather than a wall. Relentless supervision is key. Teenagers at band camp aren't this much work. Makes me wonder how many puppies have been conceived through an unsupervised crate. We're still good. No accidents. Hope this ends sooner than later. Not quite insane asylum level @joan-duszka, but damn!
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@jengosmonkey If he can walk past her in a crate, poor boy is being teased ! Separation means that - being apart. Separate rooms if not separate houses, and walking them together ?????
I had a very experienced boy who would never mount a bitch until he had seen her defecate. So Marvin and I, or one of us with the owner of the bitch, would take them both down the lane alongside the house until she did.
THEN we would come back to the garden / house. But in single file, with Curly following his lady-love. It was important to keep a distance.
On occasions we never made it and Marvin had to sit in the hedge alongside the road, with his legs out into the carriageway, superintending the mating (holding them straight) while I directed local traffic - farm carts and tractors mostly - around him. One time an owner and I made it to the back door, but the mating took place on the doormat.
It wasn't easy to convince owners of visiting bitches of this fetish. . .
But you be careful - and don't tease the boy unnecessarily
