Hi Hoot,
Welcome to the forum. I wanted to introduce myself to you because I too adopted a dog for the same reasons. I wanted a companion for my Golden Retriever who is also my service dog. He had gained a lot of weight during a period where I was sick with my MS. I decided to go to our local shelter and found my baby Taz. He had a great personality and got along well with my Golden "Levi" . I too did not know what kind of dog he was until my BF figured it out. All we knew was that he was hound/terrier mixed. Little did I know he was Basenji or even what a Basenji was. I learned quickly. lol.. He too likes to chew a lot and we have to put everything out of his reach, especially cell phones (from experience) He won't mess with the remote control though. He does like to table surf and will take anything from gloves to mail to cellphones off the tables. He is a very loveable dog though. He loves to be in my lap and is a leaner. You will probably find she is very cat like as it is a trait of basenji's. My Taz likes to lean up against me when i am getting ready in the bathroom or when I am standing around. He is very partial to me though he loves my BF (not sure why) but he doesn't sit with him unless I am out of the room. I have to put baby gates up to keep him from going into the kitchen or from going upstairs to table surf in the bathroom or bedrooms or keep the doors shut. You will find baby gates very helpful. Also you will find that keeping lots and lots of chew toys around will be very helpful to keep her attention off of things she shouldn't chew. We use Nylabones for powerful chewers and they love pigs ears and will take them a while to chew them. Kongs are great as well because they can chew them and not destroy them as they tend to do to other softer plastic toys. I have also found he loves tennis balls and won't destroy them as well. He is fully crate trained but will sleep in the bed with me when my BF is not here. They are very playful as well. Females do tend to try to be more dominant but being a dominant person can offset that problem. Here are some pics of my Taz and you can see they look very much alike. Taz's tail is curled but not nearly as much as a full Basenji. His ears also tip more like a terrier as well. He sheds very little though when I brought him home he was shedding very bad and I don't know if it was stress related to him being at the shelter or if it was just his diet. I feed him purina pro plan sensitve stomach and skin formula which consist of salmon, brewers rice and oatmeal which are very healty for them and keeps their fur shiney and their skin healthy as well as their stomachs. You will find though the longer you have her you will fall in love with Basenjis. I hope you enjoy her and have lots of fun.
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Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?
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@zande Gotcha. Thanks for the information. My husband is a marathoner and qualifies for Boston, so quite fast (I can not keep up with him for sure) but yes, a series runner.... not sure he will want to deal with a dog that won't run alongside him eventually. I will be sure to dig some more on this.
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@jkent said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
@eeeefarm at what age do you think you can tell the temperament? Mine female is 6 months and wondering if she's likely to change.
I think you can get an inkling early on, but things can change as they mature. At 18 months to 2 years they are growing up and may go through the "teenage" stage, becoming more willful, independent, and possibly challenging you over obedience. It's also the time they may become dog or same sex aggressive. Sometimes a pup that has been respectful and obedient may decide to "try it on" and test your leadership, and that is the time to be kind but firm. Yes, I am the boss of you! Consistency is key to having a respectful relationship with your Basenji. You cannot change the rules from day to day, and if something is out of bounds, it must continue to be out of bounds when you have company, same as raising kids! I'm wandering a bit from your question, but they do change somewhat as they mature and mostly it is for the better, as they outgrow some of the annoying habits, such as chewing inappropriate items, and generally require less close supervision, but I hasten to add, this is only true if you have made the rules of the house plain to them, and been diligent in enforcing them....
"In order to get along with a Basenji, you have to be at least half as smart as the dog!"
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@eeeefarm said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
@jkent said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
@eeeefarm at what age do you think you can tell the temperament? Mine female is 6 months and wondering if she's likely to change.
I think you can get an inkling early on, but things can change as they mature. At 18 months to 2 years they are growing up and may go through the "teenage" stage, becoming more willful, independent, and possibly challenging you over obedience. It's also the time they may become dog or same sex aggressive. Sometimes a pup that has been respectful and obedient may decide to "try it on" and test your leadership, and that is the time to be kind but firm. Yes, I am the boss of you! Consistency is key to having a respectful relationship with your Basenji. You cannot change the rules from day to day, and if something is out of bounds, it must continue to be out of bounds when you have company, same as raising kids! I'm wandering a bit from your question, but they do change somewhat as they mature and mostly it is for the better, as they outgrow some of the annoying habits, such as chewing inappropriate items, and generally require less close supervision, but I hasten to add, this is only true if you have made the rules of the house plain to them, and been diligent in enforcing them....
This why it is important to go with a responsible breeder, tell them what you are looking for and what you want to do with your Basenji.... and this is why a responsible breeder will "pick" the puppy that best suits your lifestyle
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But above all, establish yourself OR your husband as the Alpha, pack leader, with love, understanding and discipline from the start.
There will be constant challenges from the Basenji, which is why you need patience and a sense of humour, but whatever you do, don't break into peals of laughter or all discipline will be lost.
I would suggest whoever is most with the Basenji takes on the Alpha roll. Whoever feeds him. But the children must be disciplined too.
As long as the Basenji wants to play, fine. But he or she will let them know when playtime is over and they must respect that.
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@zande said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
whatever you do, don't break into peals of laughter or all discipline will be lost.
This is probably the hardest thing, because Basenjis can be so charming and their antics when caught out doing something they shouldn't make it very difficult to suppress laughter, but if you do laugh it is reinforcing for them and they will likely repeat the behaviour to get your reaction again.
"In order to get along with a Basenji, you have to be at least half as smart as the dog!"
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@tanza said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
All depends on where you live...
I thought she said she was moving to somewhere with large grounds.
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Zande, Guess I am lost because I frequently laugh with Prince, He makes my heart sing. He just looks at me, cocks his head, and I feel like he is thinking "I have done my good deed for the day". I absolutely a lot of his cooperation thus far is out of love...his bond and love for me so far is very strong. But that said, if he doesn't want to be near me, he will sit on the sofa at the other end and just look at me and refuse to come closer. I let him be...love and cuddles are always on his terms. Generally, he will look at the ceiling, then at the floor, then over his back (this is when I laugh) and he will come up to me an flop down. All is right with my world.
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Very hard not to laugh when they steal something and run off doing the victory trot!
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@daureen as long as you realise you are lost, and are happy to be so, I'm sure you and Prince will get along fine. Basenjis are often aware they have done wrong and challenge you to pick up on it in the most delightful ways.
Which is why, when I had 8 of these house pe(s)ts, I would make a song and dance over little things and give the impression more serious misdemeanors didn't bother me in the slightest. We got along fine that way.
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@italeigha said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
My husband is a marathoner
I picked the Basenji breed in part for a jogging companion. Not that I am doing any distance yet, but still... the other breed I considered was a Vizsla. Not sure which would win for distance/endurance...
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Hi,
I have lived with three basenjis. I acquired the first two in Sweden, a b/w male and a tri/female. The breeder was completely honest with me about what to expect. He told me all the good things and also the bad things, which included chewing. I don't know how many underpants and jeans' crotches the male chewed up but his actions didn't come as a surprise. After they outgrew puppy hood, they didn't play together very often but their antics, yodels, and beautiful selves brought us great joy. As someone else has mentioned, they are very affectionate, like to be warm and sleep under the covers. Unless they are hit by cars, basenjis tend to live well into their teens. Mine were 15 years old when they died.
My third basenji, Sasha, a tri female, was also bred in Sweden but spent her life in the States. I wanted a second dog so I went to the local Humane Society and found what turned out to be the perfect partner for Sasha. He was a mixed breed, probably had some beagle in him, and when they met, I knew that I had made the right decision. For 16+ years, they were inseparable, and neither one of them ever destroyed anything. They could spend hours chasing each other around the backyard and then once back in the house, they would lie down next to each other and go to sleep. Sasha was the alpha, and Dylan didn't mind.
They died within three months of each other. Dylan died first and Sasha, who was in fairly good health for her age, missed him so much that her health deteriorated. I think she died of a broken heart.
I guess the point that I'm trying to make is that I believe that basenjis can be only dogs but in that case they require a tremendous amount of exercise and stimulation. A companion dog can provide these things. An added bonus: when I left the house for any reason, they kept each other company.
Basenjis are not known for their ability to learn at the drop of a hat. They are very smart and need to want to please you. However, with patience, you can teach them many things. Finally, if you're looking for a dog that is submissive and knows their place, a basenji is probably not for you. A basenji will be your four-footed partner/friend for life. They will adore you and respect you but they will also be independent.
Good luck. Please let us know what you decide.
Mireille
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@elbrant Does the dog run well with you, or is he/she too distracted by squirrels, etc?
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I don't think there is a day that goes by when my Basenji doesn't stress me out.... But I cannot put into words the love, entertainment and joy he has brought into my life. There is just something about this breed that sets them apart from all the rest - I grew up with herding dogs, extremely obedient and loyal, but nowhere near as fun as the Basenji!
Anyway, the biggest struggle I have with mine is recall and pulling on the lead, which is a shame because I'd love to let him loose. But as for all the other issues that can be common with the breed, I haven't experienced them at all. Mine doesn't jump fences/walls, he has never torn up the house, and he can cope with a bit of separation. I have trained him to do sit, stay, lie down and fetch toys. He is extremely affectionate in the most heart-warming way. I would be totally lost without him.
If you do get a Basenji, you will learn A LOT! And yes, time and patience would be very beneficial. Good luck with your decision!
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@italeigha said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
Does the dog run well with you, or is he/she too distracted by squirrels, etc?
I taught her to run alongside my bicycle, without too much trouble, using a rather long leash. I hold the leash at the handlebars so that I can drop it if there is an emergency of some sort. Doodle does very well trotting next to the bike, about 8 feet away on the side. She doesn't want to be up close to the bike. That's okay with me. I ride a road bike, so we will not be trying this without a leash. I also don't go very fast.... not sure how hard to push her.... If I were in the woods on a off-road course, I would go fast and let her off the leash. I know a couple of young(er) girls who do this and they tie a plastic bag to the bike to get their dogs to chase them. (Like Lure Coursing in the woods!)
As for jogging, I'm not physically able to jog just yet. I work on it once in a while, but I'm not getting more than two tenths of a mile at a time. Again, she trots in almost a "heel" position. It probably reminds her of being in the show ring.
Finally, squirrels do not seem to be an issue while we are running or riding. There was a short learning curve with a couple of incidents where she wanted to go a different direction. But it was a very short learning curve.
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@elbrant said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
I taught her to run alongside my bicycle, without too much trouble, using a rather long leash.
I have biked several of my dogs. I taught them to run on the right side of the bike ("bike side" instead of "heel") so that the bike was between them and road traffic. I kept the leash short enough for control and to prevent any attempt to cross in front or behind the bike, and if there was a distraction I found that speeding up and getting past it quickly worked best. Basenjis are not big dogs, so it was fairly easy to prevent unwanted actions or incidents. I used biking when I needed to get the exercise done quickly or wanted to give them a run faster than I could do on foot, but mostly I kept to a trot pace for longer work, galloping for short bursts.
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@italeigha said in Considering a Basenji. Thoughts?:
@adina Thanks so much for this. The breeders we are looking at seem to have all those boxes checked and we found them through AKC. We are hoping this is surely a trusted source...
Alas, AKC lists breeders who have paid to be listed. There is NO vetting. Please apply due diligence in choosing your breeder.
You should spend almost as much time researching the breeder (and the sire and dam) as you have the breed of dog. The breeder can let you know much of the pup's temperament and potential character.
Good luck.
