Sweet 16 - Digital the brindlewonderkid
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What a great age to be, Digital! Happy belated birthday!
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Thank you. Digital is and always has been a very, very special dog.
Years ago, I used to see postings about people with 16 year old dogs, and I'd think "I hope I get to have that much time with my dogs." And here I am, with at least one of my Christmas wishes that came true. I hope all of you get to have as many years filled with joy as Digital has given to me.
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Oh this is such a great post to read!!
I remember reading your posts about Digital on the Basenji-L, back in 2000-01 when I was awaiting the arrival of my first Basenji ever, a little tri pup who would be my Jibini. He turned 12 this month :)
At the time I was actively training/competing in Obedience trials with a Boxer and I was thinking I'd attempt to work with Jibini as well. I followed your updates about Digital with great interest. I was always so impressed by all the things you & he were able to accomplish.
I never did follow through with trying to compete with Jibini- by the time he was 2 I had decided to start a career driving a truck over the road, Jibini lived the busy life of a Truckin' Basenji, so competition was not in the cards for us.
Still, I remained a lurker on the Basenji-L for a long time and always enjoyed reading anything about Digital…..he was & still is an inspiration to me as a Basenji owner and former OB trialer. Knowing how much work it takes to train & trial ANY breed, plus knowing how much of an additional challenge it can be to do it on Basenji "terms".....I've got SO much respect for how far you and Digital went with your competition! Truly an amazing accomplishment, and an amazing Basenji :)
And I am so thrilled to hear he's living a long healthy & happy life. Count me as one of those people now reading about 16 year old Basenjis and hoping I get to spend that long with mine as well. You and Digital are both truly blessed :)
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Truth be told, wolfless, mostly I was just Digital's chauffer i think. He's been an exceptional working dog. He loved knowing and doing his job. It took a little time for him to catch on to the therapy visits. He kept trying to figure out his "job" there. Meet-n-greet just wasn't enough of a "job" to him. Once he figured it out, he relaxed into it and became an exceptional therapy dog, just like everything else i asked of him
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Just out of curiosity, would you mind sharing who Digital's breeder is?
Probably something that's still a few years away, but I'm already trying to pay attention & learn more about bloodlines, breeders, etc. Jibini is the first & only dog I raised from a pup and went through the whole "try and find a good breeder, then wait for pup to be born" process, 12 yrs ago lol…..I haven't paid close attention to "who's breeding what"- at least not from a puppy buyer standpoint- since then. It was easy enough to find a nice pet with a good temperament for my first Basenji, I could have probably gotten that from any reputable breeder. BUT my next Basenji I am looking for something a bit different, as I have specific, perhaps a bit unorthodox, training goals in mind.... :D Just trying to get an idea about where I might start looking for the pup I want, when the time is right :)....if I could find a pup with half of Digital's talent and versatility to work with, I would be off to a great start! :)
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Digital was the last litter Mary Turner of Idlewild basenjis bred. He was co bred by Linda Ehlers of Jerlin basenjis. Jet the trying is a Jerlin dog and Zest! the superstar in training is Makalika/Jerlin breeding. All have stellar temperaments and have made wonderful, natural therapy dogs. Jet is a bit silly, Zest loves to train, but tends to get stage-fright (for lack of a better word) in the agility ring. But Z is a blast to work with and loves show off her tricks at the nursing homes.
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I thought I had replied but no. So a belated happy birthday! I probably should say I am impressed with the titles, but nah. What I am is so happy when I see those because I know it is a shared joy between the dog and owner usually that is so much more important than the titles. Hardly the chauffeur, but perhaps the cheering section and inspiration. What a wonderful life you have shared.
