Yes. They catch on real fast. I thought that would happen. Been there. That's why I've had to use the capsules. My dog is extremely smart. Their scent is nearly bionic. As Deb said ...even if the pills are mixed with anything like broth she won't touch it. My dog will also not tolerate having pills pushed down her throat no matter how many treats i would give her before or after. She can see that coming. She is not stupid. Not all basenjis have the same tolerance and temperment and many people don't understand this.

I have had a the same problem with my basenji. I thought it was hopeless but found that I needed to grind all the tablets in a mortar and pestle. I bought number 4 empty capsules online. They come in packs of about a thousand or so and the number 4's are small enough to hide in food. I put all of her required medicine into the empty capsules... Do this for about 2 hours on a day that you have extra time and you can have enough for a whole months supply. I then cut up little chunks of pork that has been grilled on my foreman grill big enough to fit each capsule in and totally hide the capsule. I take a chopstick and poke a hole in each small piece of pork and then insert the capsule into each piece. Before putting the capsules into the pork though, it can be helpful to wipe them off and make sure you have no residue of any of the medicine on your hands when you handle the pork. Rubbing them in bacon grease before inserting them also helps get any odors off the capsules but is not necessary. My dog rarely notices when I do this, and of course the capsules are tasteless unless she happens to break one... Which she'll spit out. But it's not a big deal as I'll just give her another piece of pork with another capsule in it. This method has worked great for me when nothing else seemed to work. It may seem like a lot of work, but once you get the system down it doesn't take too long. Hope that helps.

This will be my last post but I'm sorry about the problems you are having. They are similar to what I experienced. When dogs first get this condition they have little appetite. If you can get her on the medications her appetite should improve although as someone mentioned, you can only do so much and then just giving her the best foods and walking her so that she has an appetite may be the best thing you can do for her. Here is what happened with my dog: She wouldn't accept foods with pills hidden in them because she could smell it, and she had little appetite when the condition first appeared. As I said I ground up the pills and stuffed them in No. 4 capsules available on Amazon. Do a few hundred in a few hours when you have spare time. If you want, make some bacon and let the grease cool. Rub the filled capsules in the bacon grease to help hide any residual scent of meds then separate the capsules into plastic bags and label them how many of each she needs to take per day. Take your dog for a long walk and let her explore. Basenjis are hunting dogs so let them have fun and don't make them walk beside you. Find out what meat she loves, grill it and stuff a capsule in a small chunk of it just large enough to totally hide the capsule. Mix that with her kibble and mix that in with any oils that come from the grilling. I give mine about 10 capsules total per day in a combination of sodium bicarbonate, renal K, pet tabs plus and amino fuel. After being on this regimen for a time her appetite came back. It is a lot of work but something we accept. Dogs chew muscle meat but tend to swallow fatty meats. As a result she is less likely to notice the hidden capsules in small chunks of fatty pork. This is what worked for me. I'm not saying it will work for you but at least give it a try before you give up. I wish you the best.

This will be my last post but I'm sorry about the problems you are having. They are similar to what I experienced. When dogs first get this condition they have little appetite. If you can get her on the medications her appetite should improve although as someone mentioned, you can only do so much and then just giving her the best foods and walking her so that she has an appetite may be the best thing you can do for her. Here is what happened with my dog: She wouldn't accept foods with pills hidden in them because she could smell it, and she had little appetite when the condition first appeared. As I said I ground up the pills and stuffed them in No. 4 capsules available on Amazon. Do a few hundred in a few hours when you have spare time. If you want, make some bacon and let the grease cool. Rub the filled capsules in the bacon grease to help hide any residual scent of meds then separate the capsules into plastic bags and label them how many of each she needs to take per day. Take your dog for a long walk and let her explore. Basenjis are hunting dogs so let them have fun and don't make them walk beside you. Find out what meat she loves, grill it and stuff a capsule in a small chunk of it just large enough to totally hide the capsule. Mix that with her kibble and mix that in with any oils that come from the grilling. I give mine about 10 capsules total per day in a combination of sodium bicarbonate, renal K, pet tabs plus and amino fuel. After being on this regimen for a time her appetite came back. It is a lot of work but something we accept. Dogs chew muscle meat but tend to swallow fatty meats. As a result she is less likely to notice the hidden capsules in small chunks of fatty pork. This is what worked for me. I'm not saying it will work for you but at least give it a try before you give up. I wish you the best.

Yes. They catch on real fast. I thought that would happen. Been there. That's why I've had to use the capsules. My dog is extremely smart. Their scent is nearly bionic. As Deb said ...even if the pills are mixed with anything like broth she won't touch it. My dog will also not tolerate having pills pushed down her throat no matter how many treats i would give her before or after. She can see that coming. She is not stupid. Not all basenjis have the same tolerance and temperment and many people don't understand this.

I have had a the same problem with my basenji. I thought it was hopeless but found that I needed to grind all the tablets in a mortar and pestle. I bought number 4 empty capsules online. They come in packs of about a thousand or so and the number 4's are small enough to hide in food. I put all of her required medicine into the empty capsules... Do this for about 2 hours on a day that you have extra time and you can have enough for a whole months supply. I then cut up little chunks of pork that has been grilled on my foreman grill big enough to fit each capsule in and totally hide the capsule. I take a chopstick and poke a hole in each small piece of pork and then insert the capsule into each piece. Before putting the capsules into the pork though, it can be helpful to wipe them off and make sure you have no residue of any of the medicine on your hands when you handle the pork. Rubbing them in bacon grease before inserting them also helps get any odors off the capsules but is not necessary. My dog rarely notices when I do this, and of course the capsules are tasteless unless she happens to break one... Which she'll spit out. But it's not a big deal as I'll just give her another piece of pork with another capsule in it. This method has worked great for me when nothing else seemed to work. It may seem like a lot of work, but once you get the system down it doesn't take too long. Hope that helps.

As Tanza said, the nature of the breed is that they do pick things up and can destroy things left sitting around….even as adults. So you just have to be careful what you leave sitting and if it is valuable, put it out of her reach. My B has also vomited on the bed, and like eee said, I try and get her off it when she starts heaving, but sometimes I'm not quick enough. Don't expect that they are smart enough not to vomit in a bed. Some humans can't make it to the bathroom either, so I wouldn't expect my dog to.

Regarding digging in the couch: My dog does that occasionally as well. I just put a cover over my couch so she wouldn't ruin the material. That's a Basenji for you. I'm sure I could probably train her not to do it eventually, but I find it easier just to cover my couch., and she doesn't do it too often anymore. As others have said, I think she has picked up bad traits from her previous owner who was obviously stupid and not a dog lover. If you are persistent you will continue to make slow improvement. Always substitute a rawhide or some type of toy if you take something away from her, otherwise she will get mad. And, if you kick her out of your space on a chair, be nice about it and give her some treat or compensation. Basenjis are special. They're only on this earth for 10-15 years so enjoy both the good and the bad. They are wonderful animals.

She wants your attention and this is her way of getting it. Basenjis are extremely intelligent. You have to praise and reward her greatly when she goes to bathroom outside so that she will WANT to go there instead of in the house. She doesn't go to the bathroom in the crate because Basenjis are very clean dogs and don't like to sit beside their own droppings.

RE: Running free without a leash. Forget it. You have a Basenji. If you continue to do this she will eventually get hit by a car. I never leave my dog free without a leash except in a fenced in area. Period. Basenjis are hunters. Of course others will dispute this, but I know my own dog.

She runs away when she does something wrong because she's not stupid. She knows you disapprove but she is craving your attention and she's getting it!

My dog takes things off the table to get my attention then jumps up onto the couch and looks at me as if to say….LOOK AT ME! I think this is inherent in most Basenjis eventhough we give her plenty of attention they need to be included in your family and treated as such. You just have to reach an acceptable medium between both of you. Basenjis work for treats and I would start there, plus get a professional trainer to help you.

If it works for eee then that's fine IMO. I can appreciate the point of the dog having some more freedom, but still being under control and I would use it if I were sure it would be effective. I'm sure the dog appreciates a little extra freedom too. I live in the country so prefer the longest flexi leash when there are no people around. It gives her the freedom to run 60' in radius and provides some more exercise and room for exploration. If a dog was nipping at strangers whether with an e collar or flexi lead then it would be a problem, but that is not the case here if used correctly. People need to be able to think for themselves, use common sense, and use their own discretion. Personally I wouldn't trust an e collar because there are too many animals where I live and my dog has helped me to track wounded deer so she will go after them without my rebuke, but to each their own. Evidently they can be used effectively. I just wouldn't want to chance mine getting hit by a car at some point and don't want to go through training processes such as classes etc. Everyone must reach an equilibrium with their own dog for god's sake.

I've hunted deer with my basenji in emergency situations during archery season. She has helped me find several wounded deer in the woods after dark. Basenjis are easily distracted by other trails and other deer scents so you need to make them associate the smell of deer blood with getting a raw venison treat. My basenji found a deer for me the first time I tried it with her. Most dogs need extensive training for this but she picked it up in 10 minutes. She has helped me a great deal. If there is no blood on the ground however it'd be tough depending on the wind direction, and they usually get distracted by diverging deer trails if there is no blood to follow.

He should adjust in time to losing his companion. However long that takes is questionable though and he will continue to be angry and feel neglected and reflect that anger with destruction just out of loneliness. It may improve with time and may not. You have to ask yourself is this fair for your dog? I would spend nearly all my time with him when I was home taking walks, etc. and if you can't do more than 2 hrs. it may be best to find a better home for him where he has a better environment. If his new home is a better place where there is a yard to run, and owners that can spend more time with him he will gradually accept the new home and owners. I know that is hard but may be the best. When your living situation improves you may think about owning another dog.
Other than that, working 2 jobs leaves the dog alone too much to be fair so you need to get someone…the same person all the time... over to your apartment to spend time with him if you don't want to give him up. He can bond to that person and that will help the loneliness somewhat. If you decided to give him up, the new owners could come over frequently for walks and visits before you gave the dog to them so that the dog would consider them friends before adoption, that would help the dog transition. I would not give that dog to an inexperienced owner though. That could end in disaster. It will do the same things with the new owner although it should get over the transition quicker because it will be in a better environment. Also, was your husband the dog's leader? You now have to be a positive leader for him because it sounds like he lacks leadership.

No, I don't know that one but these are beautifully hand carved collars made specifically for Basenjis. They're custom made in very limited quantities. Worth a look…

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These are beautifully hand carved collars custom made specifically for Basenjis.

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