My B will not listen to me

Basenji Training
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  • C

    How do you get your Basenji to listen? I've had my little girl for over a year since she was 8 weeks. She's very sweet and smart and knows commands but acts completely deaf sometimes. Anyone have any tips or tricks on how to get her to listen better?:confused:

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  • etzbsederE

    You come up with tricks. Usually it is a treat that they like, sometimes a toy, and sometimes they just feel like listening. Try to (re)teach her with a clicker and then maybe she'll listen more. The only downsides are that you have to have a clicker nearby when you want her to listen consistently, and you may spend a tad more on treats. (depending on how much you give her now)

    Michael Feldman
    Gilbert, AZ

    Chaverim Basenjis

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  • lvossL

    Start hand feeding her at least one meal a day. If you raise you value to her, she will want to be where you are and find you when you call her. Clicker training is a wonderful tool and you do not need a clicker nearby to use what you have built through clicker training. The function of the clicker is to mark the behaviors you like, and you reward with a treat, toy, etc. The more you reward behavior that you like, the more the behavior will be offered.

    I like using the clicker when working on recall work because I can use it to mark that instant that the dog makes the commitment to move toward me. Since they know the click means a treat is coming they usually hussle to get to me after hearing it. After the dog is responding pretty reliably to hearing their name, I start clicking for speed of response.

    Consistently rewarding name response and building your value through hand feeding can work wonders.

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  • wizardW

    I tried using the clicker but I think I couldn't get the hang of it. Then I took EL D to an obedience class - where he never did anything right in class but responded nearly perfectly at home :) Now I just use the simple treat method. I recently trained him to respond to a dog whistle using treats reserved for that and he comes to the whistle on the first blast (though I haven't yet tested it when he's chasing a squirrel).

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  • S

    Make sure when you call her, you never scold her or punish her.
    No matter how mad you are, if you call her and she comes, she gets a treat, a pet, or nice warm words.
    I also use treats…once they think they will get a treat most of the time when called, they really do pay attention.

    Sharron Hurlbut

    BRAT, basenji rescue

    Evergreen basenji club

    Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue

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  • agilebasenjiA

    you also have to increase you criteria slowly. if you can do a great recall of, say, 20 feet in your backyard, you can NOT expect to go to a park and do a reacall of 40 feet in the midst of squirrels, other dogs, etc. If you only practice "sit" in the kitchen, the dog honestly may not understand "sit" in the front yard. There are 3 D's in training criteria - distance, duration and distractions. be aware of what one you're working on and don't up the criteria of all 3 at one time.

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  • JazzysMomJ

    I'm sorry, but I had to chuckle when I first read the question, "How do your get your Basenji to listen?".

    I mean, isn't THAT the $64,000 question?

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  • renaultf1R

    @JazzysMom:

    I'm sorry, but I had to chuckle when I first read the question, "How do your get your Basenji to listen?".

    I mean, isn't THAT the $64,000 question?

    Ha, ha, ha…yes it is! ;)

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  • AndrewA

    @JazzysMom:

    I'm sorry, but I had to chuckle when I first read the question, "How do your get your Basenji to listen?".

    I mean, isn't THAT the $64,000 question?

    I have no idea what you're talking about… mine are great at listening!!! Its responding properly they sometimes have trouble with. :rolleyes:

    Carrie & the Brindle Babes, Callie & Lola (Not Andrew)

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  • dmcartyD

    My first basenji had a hearing defect. There was only one sound that she consistantly responded too - the toaster popping. So that wasn't too bad - at least it was something - I never could figure out how not to trip on the 50 ft extension cord though so I never used it in the ring.

    As she got older - she would 'bait' in the ring but only for money - paper money and I swear she could 'read' the demoninations. Had to hide it from the judge though cause I couldn've gotten in bit trouble for that.

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  • renaultf1R

    @dmcarty:

    My first basenji had a hearing defect. There was only one sound that she consistantly responded too - the toaster popping. So that wasn't too bad - at least it was something - I never could figure out how not to trip on the 50 ft extension cord though so I never used it in the ring.

    As she got older - she would 'bait' in the ring but only for money - paper money and I swear she could 'read' the demoninations. Had to hide it from the judge though cause I couldn've gotten in bit trouble for that.

    Ha, ha, ha…that's classic...will 'bait' for money! :D :D
    Yah, there are days I'd think Ruby was deaf except she always hears the "cheese drawer" open in the fridge!

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  • snorky998S

    HAHAHAHA…. yes, listening and responding are 2 different things. There's 'I'm listening but not responding because I choose to do so', there's 'listening and I'm looking at you but I'm pretending you're speaking a foreign language', there's 'Im listening, but the treat you have is not good enough.'

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    ^^^^^ I agree! The idea will be to reconfigure what the expectation is when you’re taking your dog for a walk. It will take training and I strongly suggest the use of a martingale collar or slip lead when working this behavior because it will send an additional, automatic, and silent message to the dog that will make a treat and voice command that much more effective in the long run. When you start you’ll have to keep a very short leash so that he learns what the expectation is. You want him trotting at your side, focused on you, not scanning the horizon for potentially poisonous yummies or the next thing to sniff. Eventually (probably far in the future) you might be able to loosen the leash and give him a little more room, but don’t change the expectation! Walks are about being focused on you. When it’s appropriate you can give him ‘sniff breaks’ where you can completely loosen the leash and let him sniff around to his heart’s content. Then when the walk starts up again, his attention must return to you. And yes it is possible with a basenji (it’s possible with any dog, and making excuses based on breed, which I unfortunately hear from way too many people, achieves absolutely nothing but a miserable owner and a miserable and possibly dead dog) because I’ve done it with mine and it’s made our walks far more enjoyable. I wish you the best of luck!
  • K

    Cycling with 2 B's is possible!

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    wish you can post some photos, these is Zulai, i think that stuff is the best option because is low set on the bike, i use another and cant keep and eye on Maca all the time. So in the future will buy these. Its expensive but well… [image: attachment_p_167712_0_zulai.jpg]
  • S

    Are B's good jogging partners?

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    That's great that all of you can run with your Bs. They love to run and it always seemed like a natural and fun thing to do together. Alas, I tried and tried, but Spencer would dart right in front of me and trip me up. I hate to say it, but I finally just gave up before I took a nasty fall. Spencer would never even heel, much less run quietly beside me. He obeyed almost everything else, so I learned to accept our limitations.
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    Training two b's at once?

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    I've got two B x's and I really feel your pain about trying to train them both at the same time! As others have said, it's best to try to get some alone time with each of them and then work them together….. As for when out walking, I have the same issue...our first born is much better behaved, except when they are together in which case he just stirs up trouble with the other one. What we have found works the best is to take them down to the park on leads, and then let the better behaved one off the lead and attach his lead to the others lead (so it's now twice as long) and do a few laps of the park with one off lead and the other on a long lead. Once we've gotten them around a few times and they are both a bit more settled we let the other one off. This works brilliantly. Once they are both off, they behave fairly well and come when called. If we started off with them both off they just tend to wind each other up and end up running around like crazy animals. As far as getting them to 'leave it' when off lead....I have had some success with this, although not always (foster rubbed his face in something very gross just the other day YUCK). I find a very stern 'leave it' works most times, however if it doesn't, I get as close to them as possible and clap my hands really loudly followed by a 'leave it' as loud as I can. I think this just shocks them and gets their attention away from whatever disgusting thing they were looking at. Best of luck to you!!!
  • MiaM

    B's toys and kids

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    lvossL
    If your dog doesn't like being crated then maybe creating a "safe place" for when kids visit that the dog can be where it can have some time away from the kids.
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    Travelling B's

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    Glad to hear the trip went well. I'm sure there are people on here that can tell you more, but Bs are about 17 inches at the shoulder. I use my crate all the time. Deke LOVES it. He'd rather sleep in there then with us! It's also his "safe" zone. I have two (human) girls 6 and 10 they are not allowed to bother him in there.. other kids that come over are also told to leave the him alone when in his crate. It is in our kitchen so he's always near us. He actually likes it covered(it's like a den), he's in it when ever we're not home and at night. When he goes to my parents it goes to and his bankets and the cover. He gets a treat most times he goes in. We trained him to go in with the command "crate" but "bed time" works at night. When he was little we just picked him up and put him in we said "crate, good boy" and gave him treats. He just learned to love it. Good Luck