Hey. I have my first Basenji and the diggs crate is great but I must admit it is heavy and bulky to take up and down the stairs. I had to buy an additional crate for travel because it was becoming too much. If you were looking for something to travel with I definitely wouldn’t recommend it especially because it is expensive. My puppy loves it though since he can see everything from it but you could get that from another crate.
Home alone-but not in the crate
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I personally don't understand why you would take a crate trained dog and 'uncrate' them. I have had crate trained animals for a number of years and the fact is, when I come home I am happy to see them and they are happy to see me. We have no 'surprises' to deal with. At my last vet visit, I encountered a couple with a poodle who was missing half it's face because it had chewed a power cord. I prefer to never come home to that sort of thing. Both my B and my dachshund are crated whenever we leave the house as well as at night….that's just my 2 cents.
Brenda
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A WORD OF CAUTION
Caesar was around 2yrs old when I decided that he was awesome and could be left out of the crate when i went to work. And it was true, it was as if the man was hearing what I was saying…..brrrr, this is the time i am in the crate all alone, mom is giving me a special treat leaving me out.....dont mess up anything!!! brr...
A perfect angel! UNTIL Saturday came....my ex husband and I decided to go out for some fun and we decided to leave Caesar out. Well Caesar somehow knew it wasnt a work day and that it wasnt the routine. Wether he knew it was Saturday or not a work day, he was upset that we didnt take him with us.
When we got home, there was a hole dug to the concrete in the middle of out living room carpet!
Caesar is still and angel to this day when he knows he is being trusted to behave. But I learned my lesson. About 6 months later we added Beta our rescue to the family and she had to be crated due to potty training. So they both went back to the kennel together. Caesar didnt mind because he had her to spend time with....
Now that he is 6yrs old, he is ok sleeping out of the kennel at night and during the day. My house is completely basenji proof and zero carpet, LOL.
So, did the basenji train MOM?
I think if you work on time out of the kennel when you are not there and it is a regular routine....your basenji will understand. But I wouldnt recommend leaving out a bunch of magazines or toilet paper either.....
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After about 2 years we started leaving ours out of their crates "together". Funny but a lot of times we find them sleeping inside their crates on their own once we get back.
we find a tired basenji is a happy one. They are far worse behaved when we are home and they get bored. Bad attention is better than no attention.
We started leaving them out for short trips around when they were about 2 yrs old. Then we slowly increased the length of time we were gone. Now we go on 4 day trips with them gated with access to our family room & kitchen. The dog sitter visits 3 times a day to let them out in the yard. They are 6 & 5 yrs old now.
Ours have ripped holes in carpets down to the wood with in a few minutes, chewed furniture, ripped bed sheets, ripped apart stuffed animals, but all while we were home. As they got older they just became less intersted in house destruction. They are far more focused on other dogs that walk by, animals that come in the yard and food. We also try to walk them before & after we leave, but not as much anymore.They live for dog walks now. They even hold their pee & poop till they go on walks (being out in the yard or access to it all day)
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I guess it´s just different cultural habits.I crate myran every day for an hour or so just to keep him used to it for dogshows.Most of my friends keep their dogs uncrated.Max my has only been crated in the car and according to his exowner he hated it:)
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Ok something very odd happened today Max who detests crates has gone into Myrans crate and is fast asleep there has been now for a couple of hours hmmm…...I guess he then accepts the crate if the door is left open.
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Time to start feeding him in the crate with the door closed! I did this with Sugar and she's now starting to go in by herself! This from a dog that would scream, holler and cry and poop and eat it when I put her in!!
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I crate-trained Nala because I think it's best for the dog and the house (IMHO). My sister insists that her dog be out - for protection (from what - I don't know)! Her dogs have wrecked her house (chewed screens, couches, rugs, etc.)
Nala is 8.5 and we are just now leaving her out where she has access only to the kitchen & bath/laundry room. We have her food, water and a big bed for her to snuggle on. I give her a treat or something to chew on and then close the gate (a tall accordian "X" type) that is hinged and latched. She is quite content. I would never have tried it years ago, we always put her in the crate. I only do this now if I am going out for a short while, I think she feels much more secure in her crate, which is upstairs in our bedroom. It has become her "safe haven". Oh yes, Nala used to "scream, holler and cry and poop" too - (she luckily wouldn't eat it, Arlene) LOL! -
My first Basenji, when left in the house on Halloween night 1975 gave me and my Mother a big surprise. She was 9 months old at the time.
I went out and then my mother left to go out and decided to leave the dog alone in the house as it was sleeping peacefully on the couch. When I got home I couldn't open the door as the carpet was ripped back. When I finally forced it open and got in I found not only the carpet ripped up but the living room curtains shreded as well. Mom was very close to getting rid of the B but we decided to keep her. She turned out to be a wonderful dog to say the least. I had her for 17-1/2 great years. She died in 1992 and she's buried right outside below my bedroom window. -
Max sleeps there now every day with door open but no I won´t close the door he´s a dog who has almost never done anything silly at home.Also i´m at home all the time except if I have to do some shopping.If I visit friends or relatives they join me and if I have to go for a longer journey a friend of mine who used to having basenjis takes them.So all in all they are during an ordinary week 5 hrs left alone that being a hour at the time .I would say they are so activated that they sleep when they are indoors and i´m very strict with no basenji 500 indoors and no playing inside the house is for eating,sleeping and relaxation.The rest can be done outdoors in the garden or out in the field where they run free.
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When I got home I couldn't open the door as the carpet was ripped back. When I finally forced it open and got in I found not only the carpet ripped up but the living room curtains shreded as well.
:eek: LOL So you can laugh about it now.
Your memory prompted mine about a similar incident, even though it happened just last year. Duke is only 1.5 yrs old so he was maybe 7-8 mos old at the time. I think I just found out what breed he was and learning lots by joining this forum. Duke is crate trained and in crate all day while we're at work and my son in school. I drive from work to my son's school to pick him up. That day, I got home 1/2 hour early, and let Duke out of crate to go outside. Shortly after, I decided to leave Duke out of crate while I went to pick up my son at school. It would only take 20 minutes. When we got home, shredded pieces of bathroom rug were scattered thru the kitchen. The 1/2 bath is next to the kitchen. I went to see the rest of the rug, but couldn't open the door. It was jammed with the rug. and the plastic garbage can wedged between the rug and sink. The door wouldn't open! (I thought we'd have to destroy the door) :eek: I'd managed to push the door open enough for my little boy to squeeze in and move the trash can - Whew! What a mess. In only 20 minutes! I couldn't imagine leaving him longer. I can only imagine the damage. ie. your mother's carpet and curtains?? ooohhh:eek: Since then, Duke and now Daisy go in their crates when we're gone. I'd almost forgot about this incident. Seems we really only think about the good stuff for good cause. We love these smart-a## litte creatures! 
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ha ha, so these great stories are good examples of what may happen to you!
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Kinda like childbirth
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Ziggy is 9 years old, had never lived inside a house (and wasn't housebroken), and was used to being crated. When I brought him home from the rescue organization, I kept his crate in my bedroom and put him in the crate whenever I was out of the house. Now that he's accustomed to sleeping in my bed with me, and has learned that the entire bedroom is "the den," I can leave him in the bedroom while I'm out and he doesn't pee or destroy anything in there. ~ Lori ~
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She-Ra was one of those "Mall Pet Store" basenji's so even as a pup she'd gotten accustomed to eliminating where she ate, so crate training was really not much of a success. However, using pee-pads, if you're going to be gone, isn't a hard thing to train them to use (spray with bitter apple spray though…She-Ra LOVES to chew up the pee-pads!).
We've also used "baby gates" with success to keep her out of danger rooms (kitchen, etc.). While Basenji's are natural climbers, Target sells a nice one that she's not been able to handle.
Finally, just "Puppy-proof" your home and leave plenty of toys and chews around. Every now and then you'll come home to an accident, but for the most part she's quite content to have the run of (most of) the house.
