“To those in this forum that continue to call us liars, please know we have emails and pictures that could prove our statements.”
As far a I can see through the posts, nobody called you a liar? Not really interested in your emails and pictures, throwing dirt at this point discredits you and is pointless.
“We posted here to get sound, reasonable help from people experienced with Basenjis, help that we were otherwise not receiving. We needed to make an informed decision as soon as possible for the goodness of this beautiful pup that we did not want to give up on. It is STILL heartbreaking.”
You were given good advice, you made the decision to return the pup, which I believe is the right decision. Yet you state you didn’t want to give up even though you decided to.
“It was a horrible day and it broke our hearts that we were not allowed to say goodbye”
So now you are saying that they took the pup unexpectedly after you knew they were taking the pup?
@tanza Nobody called them a liar, the debate was whether two diametrically opposed versions of events could be possible without one side being a liar. I agree, the main thing is that the pup is rehomed.
You seem to want to twist my words. Yes, I hardly think you want all the details of this ordeal. This has caused us great anguish, we never dreamed we would ever return a pup.
Of course we knew we were surrendering the pup. The day could have gone a lot smoother.
Again, we came here for help with our puppy. We never named the breeder, we needed advice from people experienced with this breed. We wanted to make an informed decision.
For those that think we were wrong to return to the breeder, we had a contract and never considered not honoring it. The pup needs to be settled and with an older dog (as per our trainer) and that is where we understand she is. Not in some shelter causing her fear.
I don’t need to twist your words, your words speak for themselves. All you seem concerned about is yourself, which is why you continue the thread somehow looking at yourself as a victim.
The dog has gone, be glad that the dog is now in good hands.
try this -species identification occurs in the week after the eyes open and being nuzzled by the bitch may have been missing. substitute your face several times per day nose rub and breath on its face eye to eye the reflex nose lick may still be present it will go away when the fixation period is over- fixed for life... why is this dog humping my leg? domestic dogs do not develop on a normal mammal time scale and this period may get extended into puppyhood[neotenic behavior] in these wolves. basenjis develop 'normally 'like other canids. barking for instance is a normal canid puppy behavior and basenjis do it too until they are 'too old'. long distance calling [yodeling] is heard in adult wolves in the wild usually at dawn and dusk.
@mister-science said in Weaned too early, no contact with dam:
barking for instance is a normal canid puppy behavior and basenjis do it too until they are 'too old'
Adult Basenji's don't bark, but Basenji puppies do? That doesn't make sense to me. Perhaps one of our experienced breeder(s) could clarify this...
@elbrant It doesn't make any sense to me, either ! I've lost count of how many litters we've had over the past 38 - 39 years but nary a puppy has barked. That is absolutely certain !
Like the adults, Basenji pups can give an open mouthed cough, which can sound like a bark unless you are watching it. The mouth is open at the end of the sound, not closed as when any other dog barks. It is only a single sound - just like a single cough.
As the adults, they do it if surprised or backed into a corner or in any other situation where an adult might show a similar reaction.
I held the pups to the pulse in my neck as soon as they were whelped, to establish a comfort rapport and continued close contact and socialisation right through their first few weeks.
experience hearing basenjis bark? how old were they and did they 'grow out of it'
@mister-science said in Weaned too early, no contact with dam:
experience hearing basenjis bark? how old were they and did they 'grow out of it'
.... @mister-science, you suggested that Basenji puppies bark in the preceding post, so... perhaps you could share your experience with us. Did you hear Basenji puppies barking firsthand, or were you quoting something you read elsewhere?
contributing to behavioral science implies observational rigor beyond faded old memories and from as many people as possible
@mister-science said in Weaned too early, no contact with dam:
contributing to behavioral science implies observational rigor beyond faded old memories and from as many people as possible
excuse me... how does that relate to your claim that Basenji's "forget" how to bark? Basenji's don't bark because evolution altered their throat structure, not because they outgrew it. But I am curious about your claim that they can bark as puppies... where did you get your information?
Weird thread is getting weirder. Mister Science resurrects a long dead zombie thread, posts 3 times to the thread (the only 3 times he’s ever posted to the entire forum), is cryptic and indirect and now seems to be poking a long time member. Seems personal... like you’re trolling. This is such a good forum... please don’t do that. 
Back on topic. I’ve only ever visited Basenji puppies. Even then, I’ve never heard one bark. Jengo could and would make a bark sound from time to time, but it was usually one and never more than two. HOWEVER! He would bark continuously in his sleep while dreaming. Sometimes he’d go on for several minutes. I use to whisper “squirrel” to him in order to egg him on a bit longer. 
