She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?

[DonC]

@brindlebasenji said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

In true Basenji form, she would perform flawlessly during training, because it was fun, and then go open loop in the ring.
Too many interesting smells and sights.
...
I gave up on obedience, she just didn’t want to behave in the ring. But, I’m not sorry we did the work. We had so much fun as a team.

So, I guess what I am saying is this, consider training you basenji.
...
It will be worth it.

Wow. The first part is so funny and so easy for a Basenji owner to relate to. The last part is so true. Good advice.

[Zande]

Mine have an 'Intelligence Cube' - always have had, but it doesn't affect waistlines. I measure out the day's kibble ration in the morning, whether its for 8 dogs or, as now, just 2. The cube gets a few pieces in it and I take a pouch of it with me to the woods (when lockdown lets me go there). All comes out of the daily ration - so no additional treats at all.

I'm confused by the '3 miles' ethos. If I walk 3 miles, my Basenjis go (and opinions vary) 2, 3 or 4 times that distance. So even if I go just 2 miles (more usual at the moment cos time is of the essence, we are restricted to how long we can leave home for and there are always vigilantes around) they still get a decent run.

It sounds as though your B is very demanding - you should make it clear to her that you will ignore her demands. My new puppy has a box of toys and bones. He LOVES the bones and so do I cos his sharp baby teeth are being blunted on them. He doesn't mind that they have long ago been discarded by more discerning adults.

Its time for our morning exercise !

[FernRN1]

@tanza I would be very afraid to let her off leash, I do not know that she would come to me if I called her. From what everyone has said, I am leaning towards obedience training, as a first step. But have also read that you cannot have just any trainer as the besenji is a little more difficult of a bread?

[tanza]

@fernrn1 - It is really not that they are more difficult, it is because they are a thinking dog as in "what's in it for me".... You need an instructor that uses positive reinforcements. Try to find one that has worked with Basenjis before or any sighthound

[FernRN1]

@elbrant I do give her a variety, we have 4 different paths around my home, and I have taken her to the state park a couple of times. She has one path that seems to be her favorite....as she spends a lot of time sniffing all the smells, there are a lot of dogs that use the path. And she definitely lets me know which way she wants to go for the day!!

[FernRN1]

@zande I am sorry if I wasnt clear, we have 4 different paths we can choose from each day for our walk, (actually it is her walk) and each is around 3 miles long. Some days if I am feeling up to it, or the weather is a little nicer we will go for longer.

[FernRN1]

@eeeefarm I did not see the link initially. That is amazing! DidI hear a clicker in the background?

[Zande]

@tanza said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

it is because they are a thinking dog as in "what's in it for me"..

A normal dog, anything less intelligent, planning and scheming than a Basenji, will routinely learn to do all the disciplines in the same order, every training session. And be perfectly content, Smug even.

But a high intellect Basenji will do the routine 3 - maybe even 4 times and a trainer who doesn't know the breed will be ecstatic !

But then the rot sets in. "Did this last time, no sense in doing it AGAIN. What's new ?"

A canny trainer will vary the routines, never follow the same order for the exercises. Keep the Basenji guessing. "Ohh, did that, that was fun, now what's coming next ? What do I get to do next ?"

(This could be why so (relatively) few Basenjis make it to the top in Obedience. Short sighted authorities set the same routines in the same order, every competition. How often do you see a dog who clearly knows ahead of the command what it will be ?)

[Zande]

@fernrn1 said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

she definitely lets me know which way she wants to go for the day!!

You mean, she really and truly has me under her Basenji shaped thumb !

No @fernrn1 - I wasn't getting at you, so many people over the years have used this 3 mile yardstick. I was generalising not responding to anything specific. I'm lucky. My dogs are all taught recall from a very early age and I let them run free in the forest or over fields where there is no danger of traffic.

In fact I cheated today ! Hush.... two walks !!!

I took them out this morning to fields and this afternoon we 'socially distanced' with a Border Collie across fields and through bluebell woods. The Collie is getting used to the puppy's antics and Mku is learning to treat his elders with respect. Something very necessary for when lockdown is lifted. The old lady just explores on her own and ignores the others.

[MrsCastro]

Have you considered lure coursing? When my pack was young (we have one left-age 15), Hubby would put a white plastic grocery bag (with a light weight so nobody got hurt) on a small fishing pole and pitch it around the yard. They went nuts. Literally played until Hubby couldn't play any longer. All slept very well afterward.

We also took them to a lure coursing center. They loved that too.

[eeeefarm]

@fernrn1 said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

@eeeefarm I did not see the link initially. That is amazing! DidI hear a clicker in the background?

No, you didn't. I do use clicker training to teach a new behaviour, but once it is learned one does not continue to use a clicker. A reward for performance can be treats, or "thank you" or any praise you care to give. If you are using food rewards it is best to move to intermittent rewards once the behaviour is on cue.....your dog will generally work better and you are not dependent on them knowing you have a treat for them. (think casino.....people as well as dogs work harder for an uncertain outcome, as long as there is a "payoff" from time to time). If the dog needs to see a lure or fanny pack full of treats to work, you will be in a tough spot when you don't have any!

[eeeefarm]

@mrscastro said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

Have you considered lure coursing? When my pack was young (we have one left-age 15), Hubby would put a white plastic grocery bag (with a light weight so nobody got hurt) on a small fishing pole and pitch it around the yard. They went nuts. Literally played until Hubby couldn't play any longer. All slept very well afterward.

We also took them to a lure coursing center. They loved that too.

You remind me of the way cats will chase the end of a lunge whip when you are trying to work your horse! Always worrying that the cat will get run over. I can see a fishing rod with plastic bag working well for this. My Perry's thing was chasing crows in the hayfield. My avatar is a frame of a video when he was doing that...

[DonC]

@fernrn1 said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

@tanza I would be very afraid to let her off leash, I do not know that she would come to me if I called her. From what everyone has said, I am leaning towards obedience training, as a first step. But have also read that you cannot have just any trainer as the besenji is a little more difficult of a bread?

Following up on what Tanza mentioned about training, there is a book called "When Pigs Fly". It addresses training with more "independent" aka "bratty" dog breeds. You might want to take a look at that.

Nothing is more dispiriting than when you know your dog knows what they should do and they just choose to do something else. LOL However, recall is more serious. You definitely need to work on that. Never know when you might need it.

[DonC]

@zande said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

In fact I cheated today ! Hush.... two walks !!!

I took them out this morning to fields and this afternoon we 'socially distanced' with a Border Collie across fields and through bluebell woods. The Collie is getting used to the puppy's antics and Mku is learning to treat his elders with respect. Something very necessary for when lockdown is lifted. The old lady just explores on her own and ignores the others.

Glad to hear you are getting out. No doubt that lifts the spirits. The joke here is that some people are upset because the coyotes aren't wearing masks. LOL

Have you listened to the new song by The Rolling Stones? It's called "Living in a Ghost Town". I think they may have their first hit in, um, forty years.

[elbrant]

@zande said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

I'm confused by the '3 miles' ethos.

I think the difference is that you are able to let your dogs run through country woods. So they get to explore and chase things and use all of their senses, covering far more ground than you do. I find myself wishing I could give doodle the same, but sigh that's not an option right now.

Instead we are leaving the front door, crossing the railroad tracks, passing the bunny trails to see if they've been about, across a busy road, alongside the edge of a lake to check out the heron and geese, up a path and past a little park (where doodle sometimes gets to play with pals), across an even busier roadway, past the house I want to move into, then around the corner and down the road to a clear water creek (where we often stop to dip hot toes and get a cool sip of water), around and around until we pass the spanish church and cross another road before we get back to our door. whew! Leashed, the entire way, which she tolerates well. I have tried to make the journey interesting for her, but 3 miles (for me) is about as far as I can go and still move afterwards

[Zande]

@elbrant I think, given those conditions, you are doing well to complete three miles !

[Zande]

@donc said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

there is a book called "When Pigs Fly". It addresses training with more "independent" aka "bratty" dog breeds.

There is also a book by a Canadian, I think, Jean Donaldson.
ISBN 1-888047 -05-4
I have lent my copy out so often and had to buy it again and now it is chained to the bookshelf. . . called 'The Culture Clash.'
Published by James & Kenneth and available on Amazon.

It might have been written with Basenjis in mind !

I should have thought of it earlier - but better late than. . .

[Zande]

@donc said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

The joke here is that some people are upset because the coyotes aren't wearing masks

I have in front of me the latest edition of 'Basenji Buschtrommel' (Basenji Jungle Drums) - the monthly newsletter put out by the Basenji Club of Germany.

The front cover of this superb publication features three Basenjis seated on a grooming table, wearing hoods, apparently hooked over their ears and looking like hospital-scrub-blue halos, face masks, and with stethoscopes round their necks and hanging across their chests.

The photo is by Janneke de Graaf of Holland - of her three Champions.

And yes, DonC, it is wonderful to be able to get out. I am so very lucky.

[DonC]

@zande said in She is so bored. How do you keep them entertained?:

There is also a book by a Canadian, I think, Jean Donaldson.
ISBN 1-888047 -05-4
I have lent my copy out so often and had to buy it again and now it is chained to the bookshelf. . . called 'The Culture Clash.'
Published by James & Kenneth and available on Amazon.

Thanks. I just bought it and finished the first couple of pages. Looks like it will be good. Plus it was ON SALE! Under $10. Even a single insight is worth that, especially if it saves the sofa (which was her first example)! LOL

[Zande]

It's not a book to read from cover to cover at a sitting. But to dip into and return to, over and over again with each new puppy !

It will help as Mku grows up.