I am ready to get rid of my Basenji

[Quercus]

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This doesn't sound behavioral to me. It sounds like she gets stressed at being left, and her biological reaction to being stressed is to defecate. Particularly if she has digestive problems, this is probably something that this dog can't help doing. If she is getting reprimanded when she deficates in the "wrong" place, it is probably making the behavior worse. I don't know if this is your scenario...but imagine this: Dog is with person, person leaves, dog starts to get nervous, poops; person comes back, yells at dog. Next time, person leaves, dog gets nervous, dog remembers 'last time person came back they were angry and yelled', dog gets more nervous, dog poops.
Sounds like a vicious circle. If you are really interested in keeping her, you should look for a positive reinforcement trainer who has some experience with behavior modification. I will look for a contact and send you a private note.

[Quercus]

Thanks for the support y'all. I honestly wasn't fishing for compliments…I just feel like I don't want anybody to say 'I won't bother posting, 'cause Andrea always does'. So much of what I know, I learned from being on boards like this...well, and my own basenjis!

But, obviously, I couldn't sit on my hands for very long! Thanks for the kind words.

[Duke]

Hi Andrea,

You are very intuitive, like the Dog Whisperer. Your posting helps, not only the particular poster, but those who are experiencing similar issues with their B. As Ambered mentioned:

i love reading your posts. you have great advice and articulate it well. please dont sit on your hands. maybe if i ever disagreed with you i would want you to sit on your hands, lol. but really, post away!

Ladydisaster - As Andrea indicated, try to look at your girl the way she may be experiencing this problem. Doggies don't like pooping in the house - She must be feeling really bad about something. If you try and go back to "puppy 101" and reestablish trust between each other - with lots of attention and patience - your girl will be your best buddy and make you proud.

Wishing you all the best.

[Lucythebasenji]

try nuetring her

[Ambered]

ladyd, how did you acquire your basenji? a lot of the breeders that i know, will always take their dog back, and by purchasing from them you are contracted to do that. in other words, if i couldnt keep fender anymore, he would have to go back to mary k (platinum) i know this is also true for my mom's dogs (undercover) and jazzy (jumoke). i am sure there are many other breeders with the same idea. even if you are not contracted to do so, it would be a good idea to contact your breeder before you make any decisions on what to do with your girl.

[Lucythebasenji]

i still think she is just trying to get attention but it may be becasue she needs a male basenji to do her buisness with this is why i recommend nuetering her, i remember lucy use to act just like how u explain her acting until she was about 2 1/2 when we neutered her. she became more relaxed and calm, and she is now more obiedient as well, so i would give that a try

[lauralopez]

How much exercise is she getting? Also, did all this start up again because of the move? It sounds like a lot of penned up energy that she getting out in a destructive way. I'm coming in late on this discussion but if you could post how much exercise she is getting and play time with other dogs.

Sorry you're going thru this.

Laura

[RockysWoman]

Okay, my turn! My turn! As we all live with semi-destructive B's evil grin, a couple of my thoughts for Ladydistaster:

1. A tired dog is a good dog. If you are truly intent on working with this dog, start with regular walks or get her a physically demanding "job" to burn off the energy.

2. Are you planning on breeding this dog? If the answer is "maybe" or "no", spay her immediately. Even if you think you want to breed her, take another moment and think if her bloodlines will improve the breed or just add more Basenji's to the mix. If she's not "star" quality or close to breed perfection, spay her immediately.

3. Crate train her. There are metal crates out there that B's cannot get out of. Ours is put together with metal rods in all four corners. Just for assurance, we put a piece of plywood on the top, turned the kennel into a "side table" and put a table cloth over it. This makes it a dark den for the dog to feel comfortable in. Also, when crate training, remember to put the crate somewhere quiet and out of the way. B's are nervous nellies about virtually everything. If she's destructive with food/water dishes, keep them out of the crate and only offer them when you are home.

4. B's love their food… especially people food. Keep a couple treats always handy in your pockets or in easily accessible dishes (easy for you to access, not for the dog or this defeats the purpose) and when you find her doing something right without you asking for it praise her and give her a treat.

5. Work on basic commands again. See treat rules above, and start asking for good behavior. When you feed her, make her sit before placing the food dish on the floor. When you take her outside, make her sit calmly to put her leash on and while you open the door. Make sure you are always the first to go thru any doorway. Make her wait for your command for everything, but remember to reward her when she does it. Food is a great motivator at first; after a week or so, you can simply praise her. But you must do this all the time. B's are starved for praise and believe they should be rewarded just for their mere existance on this planet. (are we sure they're not part cat?)

6. If you catch the dog doing something "bad" (ie eliminating in an inappropriate spot, eating underwear, etc) immediately say "no!" firmly and loud enough to get their attention, remove them from the "bad", and give them something else to occupy their minds (ie chew toy, treat, trip outside).

This is all about management of the situation. They are like super-smart kids. They want to please you, but only if they see something good in it for them.

Good luck, and if you don't feel you are up to the task, call BRAT.

[YodelDogs]

Anyone know what happened to this dog?

[Bambismom]

My Basenji is 7 months old. We try to watch her every moment but sometimes she's so quick that she darts away and has chewed furniture in a split second. She has chew toys and bones, but when she gets bored with that, she looks for something else…our furniture, moldings, window sills, etc. Does anyone know if this is temporary? Her teeth don't look like baby teeth to me.

[tanza]

@Bambismom:

My Basenji is 7 months old. We try to watch her every moment but sometimes she's so quick that she darts away and has chewed furniture in a split second. She has chew toys and bones, but when she gets bored with that, she looks for something else…our furniture, moldings, window sills, etc. Does anyone know if this is temporary? Her teeth don't look like baby teeth to me.

At 7 months, most of the baby teeth are gone, but I believe they are still cutting some of the back teeth… that said, I don't think this is a teething problem.... sounds to me like this is an on going problem and you need to confine her when you can't watch her..... and you need to be consistent in your correction of her when you find her chewing something she should not... bored tells me she is trying to get your attention and she knows that by chewing on the "wrong" things, she gets attention even if negative....

Is she getting enough exercise? Remember a tired Basenji is a good Basenji

[lvoss]

After the baby teeth fall out dogs go through another major chewing phase as they work on jaw strength. Does she show interest in her toys? Here is a toy that one of my puppy people has found really keeps her dog's interest. You do have to use supervision because a basenji can destroy it, the large is the recommended size for a basenji. http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Orka-Jack/142012.aspx

Another thing is to tether her to you while she is loose in the house so you are more aware of what she is doing. Also you can reward her for her good behavior while she is with you.

[Bambismom]

Thanks, this helps.

[Bambismom]

Thanks, I'll have to try the chew toy

[Duke]

@Bambismom:

My Basenji is 7 months old. We try to watch her every moment but sometimes she's so quick that she darts away and has chewed furniture in a split second. She has chew toys and bones, but when she gets bored with that, she looks for something else…our furniture, moldings, window sills, etc. Does anyone know if this is temporary? Her teeth don't look like baby teeth to me.

My 6.5 mo. old puppy girl, Daisy and your 7 mo. old puppy could be related. They're certainly still puppies and I know she knows better, but lately has had an irresistable urge to chew things "not toys". I sometimes think she's testing me and my territory, to make sure what IS off limits to her. When we brought her home, I bought a big bottle of Bitter Apple and sprayed everything I saw her taking an interest to chew on. I have recently resprayed the sofa legs and skirting, moldings and table legs because I caught her revisiting the forbidden. I think she is bored and tired of her old chewy's. So, back to the store for a new toy stash, she can destroy them quick, so I buy the bargain bin plush. Also, she loves tennis balls. They are more time consuming to destroy - one ball will last a week or two.

I have to remember she still needs supervision. Yesterday, I told my husband to keep Daisy outside with him when I took my shower. Earlier that morning, he picked up what was left on the toilet paper roll. LOL!!

[RockysWoman]

lady disaster… an update please? I'm dying to know what happened to your pup and the household!

[achandl2]

Even though this is coming late maybe it can help somebody so just thought I'd mention that we had trouble keeping Manning in a wire crate. He could unlock the bottom lock and squeeze through the crate door by pushing it open with his body. We ended up having to literally lock him in the crate with a lock when we left. Instead of a real lock we usually used the metal part of the leash that you attach to the collar. I was afraid that he would get hung and hurt himself otherwise. I hate to say it but I actually jailed Manning lock and key.

[RockysWoman]

Ah the things we do to keep our kids safe. No worries Achandl2… we locked Rocky in the cage with the double snaps we'd use for the horse buckets to keep our daughter out of the kennel and give Rocky some peace. grin

It's all good.

[Mantis]

Update????

[luzmery928]

no more posts….wondering.....my B drove me to tears at times but I'm so thankful I kept him cause he is my baby and now waiting for #2