What is that - oh, I know, it's a …..

[QuizBasenji]

Looking at the thread about what people think about Basenjis - what has your Basenji been identified as?

Butu has been confidently identified as:

A long-legged Jack Russell with a curly tail….
A Husky(!)
A Jack Russell cross more times than I can remember.....and my favourite....
An Akita (twice!) My reply? "Only if it shrank in the wash...."

[Timesthemyth]

Great thread….

My dog has done pretty good; most people think he's a basenji mix (not sure how I feel about that one) or they recognize him right away as a basenji and are immediately interested.

Some kids thought he was a wolf? Not sure what was up with that. But they ran screaming to their parents (who were inside) that I had a pet wolf...lol

There was this one time where someone was 100 % convinced that he was a pitbull mix and wouldn't take any other kind of answer....That one kind of pissed me off...a completely ignorant/prejudiced statement. I really feel for people with pits, or even mixes that don't have any papers that might look like a pit...especially after that.

[urbanrob]

We have had the Shiba Inu and Jack Russell guesses. Also many furrowed brows after we say "Basenji." Therefore, we made small business card we hand out. See the attached images.

[QuizBasenji]

That's very nice - I might make one similar for the UK…Oh, I forgot Shiba - yes, slightly more reasonable than an Akita (but not much...) The funniest Akita one was at a show where they had a massive Akita Rescue...the girls were a bit sceptical that anyone could make that mistake, but yup, someone did whilst Butu was standing next to a fine shaggy grey and white example!

[TMartin]

Shiba Inu, Shiba mix, terrier mix, Schipperke, Fox Terrier, a fox, Pharaoh Hound, a mini deer (they really thought that could be true), random mix in general, and new cross-breed from who knows what.

[ownedbyspencer]

Ava has been mistaken for a fox terrier, a rat terrier and a corgi, but people usually wonder what she's mixed with. She has been recognized as a Basenji only once. People often thought Spencer was a dobie puppy, since he was a tri.

[stash]

Kaiser gets fox, I can go with that one or deer don't really understand that one, what is it? like he is some kind of Frankenstein dog to get all the different parts that don't seem to go together, I think the curly tail confuses them as they can't match many dogs to that. Do find a lot of people move out of our way or cross the street when we walk, so maybe they think he's got pitbull in him. I really love how special he is inside and out.

Jolanda and Kaiser

[agilebasenji]

@Timesthemyth:

There was this one time where someone was 100 % convinced that he was a pitbull mix and wouldn't take any other kind of answer….That one kind of pissed me off...a completely ignorant/prejudiced statement. I really feel for people with pits, or even mixes that don't have any papers that might look like a pit...especially after that.

Yes, i've gotten that too, but ONLY with my brindle boy. Now Digital the brindlewonderkid was very refined and elegant for a basenji. More so than Jet the trying, but both were/are breed champions. The person who thought he was a pit back tracked when I said "No, he's a basenji." and came back with "Oh, but I bet they used pits when they created the breed." (he wasn't being rude, just sort of excited.) Of course then I explained that the basenji, as a breed was 5000 years old and pre-dated pits by quite a few years. But I think the pit thing was mostly b/c Diggie was brindle and had short hair.

I've also had my dogs called JRT's, generic terrier and chihuahua (okay, my dog was a puppy and standing next to a Great Dane at the time). Non dog things include fox, deer and poinsettia. (The poinsettia requires and explanation. English was her 2cd language and knew my dogs weren't plants, but just used that word b/c she'd just blank out one the word "basenji".) .

[eeeefarm]

@agilebasenji:

I've also had my dogs called JRT's, generic terrier and chihuahua (okay, my dog was a puppy and standing next to a Great Dane at the time). Non dog things include fox, deer and poinsettia.

I've had the deer and fox thing, also Corgi (now, that's an insult, IMO!)

[Chealsie508]

I always get Jack Russell…and I think to myself, how many black and white Russell's do you see people?! Nonetheless, with ears the size of dinner plates standing upright!! It's very rarely guessed correctly and there is always interest in him..people always comment that he's beautiful and sleek and he does elicit many looks from passerby's driving cars or when we are on walks...but very few people are in the know (and I kind of prefer it that way)

[QuizBasenji]

If this was a contest I think the winner would have to be the poinsettia - an easy mistake to make…

[kjdonkers]

A Japanese dog
A Shiba
A fox
A boerenfox (farmer's fox terrier): a non-official breed in The Netherlands that looks a bit like a Parson's Jack Russel
"beautiful dogs"
"luxury dogs"
"they look like small deer"

[MampM]

We have had "mixed with a Doberman" once and the women insisted my Tri boy was and would not accept any other answer, lol, other than that one time everyone else is very curious about both of them and will cross the street to come and talk to us about them. Both Mowgli and Miika are very social so just love the attention, but we always get the response "Basenji? I have never heard of that bread" they have been called adorable, beautiful, elegant, sleek and yes look like little deer's lol

[MampM]

Guess I should mention we live in a small town and they are the only Basenji's in town, the bread had to be added to the town data base when getting licenses for them lol

[Moth]

Watson has been identified as a terrier mix (this is the most common ID), a toy fox terrier, a rat terrier, a dobeman, and even a rottweiler

[Timesthemyth]

poinsettias, dobermans, deer….such a fun collection of incorrect identification.

[vickilb]

My first B, Congo, was once identified by a woman with a little boy as "one of those biting benjis!". He was the sweetest B I've ever had!

[Knipper]

I got a shaved chow-chow at a dog show once…
Our local Caesar Milan Wanna-be claims she's a stunning Pitty (while grabbing her face and pushing it up to his, as she's snarling... I kicked him in the crotch). Incidentally, he is currently in jail for animal abuse charges and for stealing aka. not giving back client's dogs after training them..
The best was when I was asked how I tamed a fox. I pointed to her tail and said after I used a curling iron, I had no other issues. This was from an Animal Control Officer that bragged about knowing every breed of dog, and having been a handler to many of the best dog shows world wide... my dry wit could not be contained!
The best positive ID came from a wheel chair bound senior in my Husband's Grandma's small town senior complex. We went to visit with Cricket, who was just sitting next to Grandma and me on the floor (we were actually trying to hide her from the nurses because we weren't sure if she was allowed there...). This older gentleman slowly wheeled up with this awed look on his face, but didn't actually say anything as he just stared at her in wonder. I jokingly asked if he was going to tell on us and get her kicked out, he said "god no, is that a real Basenji?" and he said the actual African name, which I had never heard before. I told him she was a basenji, but I had no idea what the other words were. He then told us about his trip to Africa in the early 50's as a young missionary and seeing Basenjis in the villages, how they hunted, etc. He had never seen one since. Our next visit, he had some albums out, which were amazing! I wish I knew what happened to those after he passed.

[Buddys Pal]

@quizbasenji:

if this was a contest i think the winner would have to be the poinsettia - an easy mistake to make…

love it!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Buddys Pal]

@Knipper:

I got a shaved chow-chow at a dog show once…
Our local Caesar Milan Wanna-be claims she's a stunning Pitty (while grabbing her face and pushing it up to his, as she's snarling... I kicked him in the crotch). Incidentally, he is currently in jail for animal abuse charges and for stealing aka. not giving back client's dogs after training them..
The best was when I was asked how I tamed a fox. I pointed to her tail and said after I used a curling iron, I had no other issues. This was from an Animal Control Officer that bragged about knowing every breed of dog, and having been a handler to many of the best dog shows world wide... my dry wit could not be contained!
The best positive ID came from a wheel chair bound senior in my Husband's Grandma's small town senior complex. We went to visit with Cricket, who was just sitting next to Grandma and me on the floor (we were actually trying to hide her from the nurses because we weren't sure if she was allowed there...). This older gentleman slowly wheeled up with this awed look on his face, but didn't actually say anything as he just stared at her in wonder. I jokingly asked if he was going to tell on us and get her kicked out, he said "god no, is that a real Basenji?" and he said the actual African name, which I had never heard before. I told him she was a basenji, but I had no idea what the other words were. He then told us about his trip to Africa in the early 50's as a young missionary and seeing Basenjis in the villages, how they hunted, etc. He had never seen one since. Our next visit, he had some albums out, which were amazing! I wish I knew what happened to those after he passed.

That was an extraordinary story! What a wonderful man to meet-must have brought back so many fond memories of the Bush!