Oh God, I remember the first time I read this, way back in 1999, when this was a listserv. I printed it off, so I could show it to people. I have it saved and still laugh uncontrollably when I read it! Thank god there are no elk in Iowa. It's hard enough to wrestle a piece of pizza away from my two, let alone a carcass.

We got on here in 2009, and then I promptly forgot to get back on here! Sorry all! To restate, we adopted Franklin and Eleanor in Iowa in 2009, and we still have them. Franklin has just been diagnosed with low thyroid; Eleanor is doing well (esp. after I ran over her right rear foot last fall with a golf cart).

I shall attempt to get a picture on so I hope this shows up.

We live in Iowa, full-time rvers, spending 6 months up here and 6 months in Arizona working at a county park. This is our 2nd set of Bs.

We're in Cedar Falls with our 2, Franklin and Eleanor. I introduced ourselves in 2009, and then promptly forgot about it. I need to get better about being on this forum, obviously!

Franklin was just diagnosed with low thyroid; we think he's about 7 yrs old.

Have you had a basenji before?

When you are owned by Basenjis, you learn so many things.

Some background info. Franklin loves to escape. So in our Vibe we put a barrier behind the back seats and the dogs ride in the back. The Vibe has a liftup tailgate (a hatchback?).

So Frankie, Ellie and I are at my folks, getting ready to leave. This is in town, about a block from a very busy 4-lane street. As I lift the hatchback, Frankie jumps right in but Ellie sees something and rips the leash from my hand. Not wanting to try to get her with Frankie in tow, I throw my purse in the back with Frankie and slam the hatch shut.

Fortunately Ellie only went down the street a couple of houses and came to me. I go to open the hatch. It's locked. Oh ****.

All the doors are locked. And guess where the car keys are. Yep, in my purse, in the car. Which is locked.

I take Ellie back into the house and call my hubby to please come with his keys. Thank God he was in the area and not off somewhere out of town!

Meanwhile, I go out and talk to Frankie because he's trying to figure out why we're not getting in the car. And of course, he figures out how to get through the one small area of the barrier so he is all over the interior of the car, dragging his leash. A leash which gets caught on stuff, so of course he chewed through the leash. Oh well, it's a Lupine leash so I can get it replaced free.

After my husband gets there and we're all squared away again, I really start to look around. After Franklin got through the barrier, he not only chewed through his leash, he ate half a dozen brownies on the seat, shredded some Kleenex, and chewed the passenger seat belt in half. Damn.

So after 250.00 for a new seat belt and several hours of work done by us later, we have a new seatbelt in and several lessons learned. At least he didn't get sick from the brownies.

1. Always keep your car keys in your pocket.
2. Don't assume the barrier is fool-proof.
3. Always take the brownies with you.

We have used 6 ft leather leads with braided ends, which were nice. Also have used nylon leads from regular stores, but they are too slippery for me and the handle/loops weren't that big for hubby's hands.
So now we use Lupine leads that I have bought from vet offices or online. The handle/loops are large and padded and we like the clip end. And the feature we have had to use already that we like best: they're guaranteed even if they're chewed! Just send the leash back (don't even need the receipt) and they send you a new one. They try to even send back one in the same pattern if possible.
The website also has collars, etc.

I haven't posted on here probably since we adopted Frankie and Ellie a year ago. So I am going to try to put up a picture of them here. Eleanor is the tri, Franklin is the red; we think he is 4.5 yrs and she is 5.5 yrs.

The dogs have settled in nicely and we have had some great trips together to Minnesota, Oregon, and wintering in Arizona.

Randy and Georgia Henry in CF, Iowa. We adopted Franklin and Eleanor Apr. 2 from a foster in Des Moines. We were fortunate to get some background info on both dogs later on. It explained some of their behaviors, esp. Franklin.

Franklin is red/white; Eleanor is a tri. We are enjoying both and they are getting more used to us. We enjoy daily walks and visits to the dog park 3-4 times a week. They have also gone camping with us.

This is our 2nd set of basenjis; our first set, Joey and Sophie, broke us in.

Thanks for all replies. I have checked her for ticks and fleas. None. If it continues or worsens, I will have the vet check her for mites. Also, which I forgot to mention, is that occasionally when she is doing the "tracking" thing, she drools on her bedding. She isn't licking herself because I've watched her, but if you look at her bedding, it's like she's drooled on it or possibly licked it.

I think the dogs were on Nutramax when we got them, but I was looking for dog food when that ran out, and was looking for one that started with meat, not meat byproducts or grain. So we are feeding them Rachel Ray's Nutrish. Any comments good or bad about that brand? All input appreciated.

Georgia

Randy and I (Georgia) have recently adopted 2 basenjis, Franklin and Eleanor (Frankie and Ellie). Just recently I noticed Ellie doing a behavior that I'm not sure is allergy-related or if it's something else.

Ellie is tricolor. She seems to be showing more brown than black in some spots since we've had her. I attributed that to shedding or being in the sun. I have now noticed that, when laying down, she will act like she is watching or feeling something on her or around her. She does not scratch or bite at herself. But, rather, appears to be tracking something with her eyes or as though she is feeling something and looking to see what it is. I have checked her for fleas and ticks, both negative.

She doesn't do this all day, but off and on. She is a bit of a nervous dog when riding but otherwise not so.

Can someone give me some ideas on this? I'm not sure, but I have seem to have noticed it more now that there is more vegetation. We got both dogs on Apr 2 and now it's June.

Thanks for any help.
Georgia