@Robin_n_Jack:
Believe me, we have been trying to teach Jack that nipping and biting aren't okay, and he is making some progress. At least now, when I tell him not to bite, he look at me like "That's right, you told me that before, I forgot…..here, I will lick you instead" The thing is that the very best teachers of that idea are the dogs littermates, who yelp when one of their siblings bite them too hard.....they are telling them "HEY-THAT HURTS" in their own language. Jack was separated from them are a very young age.....faaaar too young, IMO.
I will have to try Cheerios....Jack LOOOves wheat chex, too, but I am careful not to give him too many (have to watch his girlish figure) 
While he is still a puppy, I would be careful of giving him blankets with crystals unless they are completely non-toxic. Up until he was about 18 months old, Jack tore every blanket in his crate apart- not out of stress or anger, just because he was redecorating.:D Don't know if that is a purely basenji thing or not....
I think you might be surprised what you can accomplish by just telling him no biting, and either getting up and walking out of the room from him, or ignoring him. I have even left my finger or hand in Roo's mouth while I have told him no biting and he stops. We have found that unless he is wound up to play, or hungry, we have less and less of a problem. Ignoring him and staying calm has really helped us control him. In our experience, we have seen dogs react to whats demonstrated.
As far as anyone who wishes to question my experience or where my comments come from, maybe some of my background will help.
There have been dogs in my life since before I was born. My parents had and raised Doberman. I grew up with these dogs, in the house, the yard, and yes we also traveled in the car with them. In the 1950's my father used to buy the Chrysler limos just to have the extra room for the family and the animals. I have owned both AKC registered dogs and mutts, including, different breeds such as Springer Spaniel, Poodle, Old English Sheep Dog, American Black and Tan Coon Hound, American Eskimo, Boston Terrier, and even Chihuahua's. One of my favorite breeds were my Miniature Schnauzers. The only dogs I ever bred were my Schnauzers and that is because my Female had a 37 Champion Blood line and a wonderful personality, structure, health records, and markings.
Miranda also grew up with many dogs of different breeds. Miranda worked for a vet in the Davenport Iowa area for many years, and her dream which changed was to become a Vet. In fact the reason we live where we do now is because she finished her undergrad in Molecular Biology at the University of IL and U of I is one of the Top Vet Schools in the Country.
Snowy, our American Eskimo was a rescue. Snowy had been dumped, beaten with sticks by boys on bikes, and teased with hot dogs. Of course finally Snowy bit one of the boys that was abusing him. At that time the Vet that Miranda worked for was doing volunteer animal and rabies control for the county. It took Miranda a week of sitting outside Snowy's cage and being willing to share her lunch with him to get him to trust her. She was the only one that could go near him in the Kennel. After a week of this, Miranda was able to clip the dogs nails, and even shave the dog down because he was so matted.
Miranda sought and was able to get special permission to save Snowy because he was scheduled to be put down because of biting the kid. The vet had estimated Snowy at 2 years of age when they received him. Miranda had him two to 3 years before she met me. Miranda has been with me 13 years herself, so she and I together kept that dog alive for at least 15 years longer until we lost him to kidney failure back in March. Snowy knew not to bite, but would show aggression out of fear, or if he felt any member of our family was being threatened. At the time I met Miranda I have just gotten custody of my two youngest boys that were 6 and 8. Snowy never ever tried to harm or bite either one of my boys. They were part of his pack. We kept Snowy out of trouble by being responsible dog owners. Snowy was put up or muzzled if there was a sign of any issue. We never took chances with his life or any body elses.
Miranda's mother and father, also rescued, provided foster care, and adopted other breeds such as Great Danes, and even a White Shepard while she was growing up.
While Miranda and I realize that we are certainly not experts, we are very experienced. I know some might take issue with me over the following statements, but I am going to make them anyway and you can quote me.
In my opinion,
I personally do not care what the breed of a dog is. When it all comes down to it, a Dog is a Dog, is a Dog. They may have different things that they can do well over the next dog or type of dog, but underneath the breed labels they are still a dog. They have personalities, but they are not people.
Whether I have a Basenji, Great Dane, Cocker Spaniel, Poodle, Doberman, or mutt, I have found that the training methods and standards that I use for raising and training dogs work for me. This certainly does not mean they will work for you, but you never know.
I want to add that I read constantly. I have read and considered many opinions in regard to different styles of training. I have also seen conflicting opinions in reference to habits that should be allowed, so I refuse to accept any one methodology. So basically my opinions are based on my real life experiences as well as information I do accept that is supported by more than one source or expert opinion.
Add to this my previous time in the military and my understanding and respect for what the chain of command is, and maybe you will have a better understanding of where I speak from.
Anyways, sorry for the long winded post. Now maybe I can get off my soapbox. I will be sure to inspect any pad I buy for my animals for durablity. Believe me if you have ever owned a Boston, you would know that Boston's can destroy just about anything when they are teething. Their jaws are extremely strong. So far Roo has not shown us that type of power in his jaws or destructive behavior. I am sure as he grows and gets stronger that might be a possiblity. We make sure he has several toys to play with so that type of destructive energy is redirected as soon as possible.
Jason
