The Miracle Cure

I live in the city, and my husband and I have to walk Denny twice a day (and sometimes a before-bed quick step outside the building, too). We try to give him at least a mile to two miles for each walk (depending on the rain, naturally).

For the first four years of Denny's life, this was an exercise in misery for me. I had watched the Dog Whisperer, read the books, and tried every single device out there to try and get Denny to heel. We did short step exercises with treats. I tried tying him to my belt loop on the left side around the house (never again!). I tried martingales, chokes, chain chokes, prong chokes, halters...nothing worked.

His neck was so skinny that all the stuff that was supposed to stay up around the top of his neck just slid right down (and yes, I know about the technique and all that, but either I was too uncoordinated or they never worked with a Basenji).

Denny lunged, pulled, tugged, refused, ran, jumped, snarked...whenever and however he wanted. In the house, he obeyed me perfectly. He even does tricks (sit, stay, lie down, tummy, shake shake, paws up, say your prayers, dance). But outside, with squirrels and birds and little dogs abounding, it was a lost cause.

It got to a crisis point after I had my kidney transplant. I had a 10-inch incision in my abdomen, meaning that I had no ability to tense my abdominal muscles and any little effort would put me into waves of pain. It was three weeks, I think, after the surgery that we brought him home, and I was determined to use him as part of my recovery to get me walking.

Well...I was so frustrated and in so much pain that I was really at my wits' end. Finally, a man at pet supply store suggested the Gentle Leader. It was expensive, and I already had a basket full of failed contraptions, but I thought I would give it a go.

I bought it, and my husband and I watched the training DVD. The first inkling of hope I felt was that there was a Basenji featured as one of the dogs used for training. Naturally, the Basenji wasn't as good or obedient as the other dogs, but it was good enough for me!

The first few times, Denny pitched a fit, trying to pull it off his snout and thrashing as we dragged him along. But, practice, with the help of liberal dosings of training treats, had him walking like a pro just two days later.

Now, Denny is a dream to walk. For the most part. He still refuses sometimes when he wants to go another way or it's wet outside, and if he sees a squirrel, all bets are off. But otherwise, he walks beautifully. We can go for miles and hours walking, with him trotting perfectly at my side. He's easier to control if he gets snarky with other dogs and people, and it's transformed our walking relationship.

So, for anyone out there who despairs of giving their B a long, easy, disciplined walk, I highly recommend the Gentle Leader!

Construction and Destruction

We are getting some work done on our bathroom and the house is a construction zone. The boys, Apollo and Asta (BRAT Rescue), are out of their minds with nervousness and high high high anxiety. Since the bathroom is next to the bedroom, we have been keeping the boys in the kitchen so that they are as far away from the noise of the construction as possible. We have put up a baby gate so that they stay in the kitchen.

There is not much to destroy in the kitchen, but they have been doing their best to model bad Basenji behavior. The first day of construction, they jumped over the baby gate and we had to get our Super to put them back in the kitchen and put sheetrock over the doorway to keep them inside.

The second day of construction, they pulled out a bag of recycling and shredded it so it lay in strips all across the kitchen floor (see reenactment photos). Finally, on the third day we thought we had removed all that could be destroyed.

We came home to a mess. They had gotten into the cabinet where we kept some household supplies. They had shredded the light bulb box to nearly unidentifiable bits; the light bulbs were on the table, so we assume the Super came over to remove the dangerous items from the floor. We also found a half-eaten roll of blue masking tape and a bicycle tire repair kit under the counter, the glue tube open and sticky.

Help about how to keep the destruction down in the construction zone is welcomed.

Update on Pona's Recovery

Pona has been a rescue at my home for 11 weeks now. What a journey. I'm happy to report more good news about his recovery -

Pona and Ike in the morning sun.

His leg is healed, and all of the hardware has been removed. I'm really happy about this for selfish reasons...Pona had been pain-free for a week or so before the hardware was removed, and so he was no longer protecting that leg. He was laying on that side, using that leg to scratch is head, and body-slamming. I have the bruises on my shins to prove it. The other dogs and I suffered until that hardware came off!

Once the hardware was gone, Pona started to use his leg a little more, but still "went tripod" when he really wanted to move. It didn't seem like the leg hurt him, but he probably felt like it slowed him down. Then...

Thursday of last week, I dropped Pona off at the vet for his overnight heartworm treatment. They admitted him in the morning and gave him the first injection, then observed him overnight and gave the next injection the following morning. I wasn't able to pick him up until late afternoon on Friday, so he had two solid days in the crate. I felt badly for him with all that crate time, until I got him home and saw that the time off his leg did him some good! He walks on his healed leg 100% of the time now.

Pona's lucky that his case of heartworms is mild enough so that he is able to endure the "fast kill" treatment, and he should heal quickly and completely with no permanent damage to his heart or lungs. He's taking the treatment in stride...he feels fine! No one would guess his little body is loaded with poison. He is naturally a very calm dog (surprising for a one-year old), so I haven't had to crate him to keep him quiet during treatment.

Pona joined me at knitting group and made new friends.

Personality-wise, Pona is a delight. The little victories are so fun to watch...like when he realized he could use the fireplace hearth as a step to get up to the sofa on his own, then when he realized he could jump right on to the sofa, then when he realized he could jump all the way up on to the bed! I can see the surprise in his face, and I reward all of his achievements with plenty of cuddles and kisses.

Now if he would just grow some hair on his hind-end. He was shaved over two months ago!

I'm sure I'll have another update on Pona in my post next month. In the meantime, you can follow Pona on my website as well as my fickr page.

Basenjis and Babies

When I first joined BRAT, I learned that one of the major reasons for rehoming basenjis was that they are given up when a baby enters a family. Sometimes it was the inability of a family to devote time to the dog when a baby entered the home. Other times, the reason given was that a basenji became jealous - and sometimes aggressive - of the new family member.

When I learned I was going to have a baby, my main concern was whether or not my two resident basenjis would be able to adapt to the new family member. After all, these guys were my babies for years!

I wasn't so concerned about my older BRAT boy, Mr. Calvin. At age 18, not much phases him. Sometimes, in his advanced years and senility, I am not sure he even realizes that there is a new baby in the house.

My "younger" basenji, Bashir, was my main concern. He has on occassion exhibited some alpha male characteristics, and he really was the spoilt one in the family. Would he be able to cope?

For months, I practiced a few techniques with the basenji, to get him used to the idea of a baby - such as tugging on his tail as a toddler might, or holding out food but not letting him take any.

When we brought our son Rowan home, it was a bit of a shock for Bashir (not to mention the shock for mom and dad!) However, he seemed to adjust nicely. He would alert us whenever the baby cried, and would sit on the couch and watch over the baby in his bassinet.

As the baby grows, and becomes a little more mobile, it seems that our basenji kid is adjusting. There is sometimes a bit of jealousy and "personal space" issues. I found out that basenjis like to lick bananas. But more often than not, they get on fine. Granted, I am not going to leave the baby with the dog unattended - AND UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES would ever recommend that anybody do that! But I am finally at the point where I feel that my two babies can coexist with supervision.

I use the phrase "Pat the Basenji" as often as I say "Pat the Bunny." I notice the baby reaches out for the basenji's curly tail, much as I predicted it would. Who could resist, after all? And every once in a while, the basenji will come running to let me know that the baby is crying.

So I would call this is a happy ending...

Or perhaps it's a happy beginning.

My Two Babies:
Rowan (two legs) and Bashir (four legs)

Happy Ending for Ivy

When I first contacted Liz Newton at BRAT about Ivy, we had just lost our sweet red and white basenji Jasmine Rose just before her 15th birthday. I wasn't looking for another pup yet, but I had always checked the BRAT website just to look at the pups and read their stories. When I saw Ivy and read about her heart condition, I just sent a casual note to Liz to say that she was beautiful and that I was sure she'd find a good home for her. I said that her heart murmur wouldn't deter me at all, if I were looking for a pup and if we didn't live so far away. Liz responded quickly with a note saying that mine was the first email she had received about Ivy, though she had been there for a while. She said no one had inquired about adopting her and if I were interested, please send in an application. Took me all of 5 minutes to talk to my husband and agree that we'd love to have her. The next thing I knew we were arranging for transportation from MI to NH on the weekend before Thanksgiving, and here we are a year later!

We're celebrating a very happy anniversary, indeed. One year ago today we welcomed Ivy into our home, and we're grateful every day that we have her. She's relaxed and happy and very much at home here. Her lush winter coat is back - glossy and soft. She has a collection of chew toys that she thoroughly enjoys and she has no interest in chewing anything else. As a matter of fact, she's so trustworthy in the house that she no longer goes in the crate when we go to work! She has a number of comfy beds scattered throughout the house but I think she spends most of her daytime hours snoozing in her bed in the living room.

She's still taking her two medications twice a day, and she's eating Royal Canin Early Cardiac prescription food. She also gets a bit of Welactin on her food a few times a week. She gets Mother Hubbard mini-biscuits and Zeke's salmon training treats, both of which she loves and she spends hours trying to get them out of her kong after I wedge them in there. I'll have to look for one of those kibble dispensers that she can roll around and get the occasional tidbit to come out - she'd love that! Anyway, her diet is working just fine - her coat is beautiful and she weighs a healthy 23 lbs! She goes on walks twice a day and she's come a long way from the time when every footfall made her jump!

She greets me at the door at the end of the day with a series of b-500 laps around the livingroom interspersed with hugs for me. When Neil gets home she gets up from her bed and greets him at the door, too. Much different from the early days when she hid under the table when he entered the room. They're fast friends now and it's fun to watch them together. She's first in line for his affectionate greeting when he gets home from work, and I don't get my hug until he's finished with Ivy!

When I tell people that Ivy has a heart condition, they always wonder why we'd take on a pup with a known medical issue that could shorten her life. I never thought of it that way. The more I talked with Tacie, the wonderful woman who fostered her, the more I knew she was the pup for us. Before I ever laid eyes on her in person, she was my pup and she had moved into my heart. She needed us, a quiet home as the only dog, and the kind of life we could give her, for however long it lasts. If someone were to knock on my door with an offer to trade for a different basenji with a perfect bill of health and a guaranteed life of 20 years, I'd refuse. Ivy is a treasure and we wouldn't trade her for anything!
We want to thank you again for your parts in bringing this precious girl into our home. She is the most wonderful basenji in the world and we are very lucky to have her. I'm hoping that we'll be able to enjoy her for many years to come.

Happy holidays to you and yours.

All the best,

Elaine & Neil

P.S. My father and I have been involved in some basenji transports this year, bringing Stormy and Brady to their new owners. We very much enjoy doing it and look forward to many more opportunities to help basenjis get to their forever homes.

Update on PeeWee

I happened to find myself on your page again and wanted to update you on PeeWee. He is a 1/2 Basenji and 1/2 perhaps Jack Russell we adopted from the Virginia Beach Animal Control in July of 2007. Your group helped us with several issues including leash walking, biting, food and more. While he still has problems with barking and dog aggression, he is still progressing and is an absolute delight to have around. I wanted to share these pictures of how well he follows the "No dogs on the couch" rule. In the one where he is covered by the blanket with his head on the pillow, he did it all by himself - no one was home to tuck him in.

Thank you again,
Susan Wenzel (and PeeWee)

Issues? What Issues?

Ivan and Dasa are respectively our second and fourth basenjis. Dasa is sweet, quiet, and not nearly as high maintenance as Ivan. When I told a friend Ivan has food issues, he replied, “we all have food issues.” True enough, I suppose, but we don’t bite someone when they try to take the last brownie. OK, perhaps not the best example.

Counting a very nice foster home, we were Ivan’s fourth home when he arrived at our house shortly after his second birthday. Along the way, Ivan developed various issues that make life challenging. His food aggression has been character building.

The feeding routine and meal preparation for Ivan and Dasa involve logistical planning and choreography that make the average Broadway show look simple. Timing is everything. More precisely, actually delivering food to hungry basenjis is everything, but the sequence of events is crucial to success during the circus that is mealtime for the munchkins.

While we are busily preparing dinner to their exacting standards, Ivan races in a circle through the kitchen, living room, and piano room, occasionally barooing to encourage us to hasten preparations before he faints away, weak with hunger. He carries a stuffed teddy bear on these trips, which he drops at my feet and baroos to indicate I should simultaneously hurry up with the food and hustle to the doorway to throw the teddy down the hall. He races after the teddy and runs another lap while I scramble around in the kitchen before I am required to stop and throw the teddy again.

Ivan and Dasa have different dietary requirements, so we need to keep track of who gets what food and supplements while performing this dance. Dasa sometimes scratches at the door or even my shoes to let us know she is also anxious about receiving nourishment. She tends to stick close by while food is being prepared, occasionally doing a great meerkat imitation, standing on her back legs and peering up at the counter top as if hopeful I’ll just give her all the food while Ivan is racing about.

There must always be a door between Ivan and Dasa when we feed them. When the weather is nice, he eats on the patio. When the weather is less than ideal, he eats in the bathroom off the kitchen. Only after the door has closed behind Ivan do we give Dasa her food. There are no chewies lying around our house because even if we had dozens of chewies scattered so thickly we were constantly in danger of tripping over them, Ivan would go bananas if Dasa tried to chew one of them.

Ivan has issues with a lot of things, but we’ve learned to live with this. After all, there are rumors that I too am high maintenance; difficult to believe, I know.

Lucky's Matching Challenge!

To date, BRAT has incurred vet bills of more than $2,500 for Lucky in Tennessee:

http://www.basenjirescue.org/DOGS/TN/TN-Lucky.asp

Lucky came to his foster home in the summer with a broken leg and pelvis. After surgery and a lot of TLC, Lucky is looking for a forever home.

However, his vet bills have left a big hole in BRAT’s bank account. $2500 is ten times our usual vet bill.

The good news is that several anonymous BRAT volunteers have pledged to donate $1,200 for Lucky’s care *if* our volunteers can donate an equivalent amount. This will give us $2400---almost enough to pay Lucky’s current vet bills.

So, I am posting the challenge to all BRAT volunteers.

To make it easier for you, we will accept donations through Paypal. Just Paypal the cash to us at: bratinc@gmail.com.

You can also donate through Network for Good at:

http://partners.guidestar.org/controller/searchResults.gs?action_donateReport=1&partner=networkforgood&ein=75-2804588

Or you can send us a check by going to this site:

http://basenjirescue.org/DonationForm.htm

When you send a donation, please be sure to send us your name, address and email---and mention that it is a “Matching Donation for Lucky.” This is very important since we might not receive the challenge funds unless we know how to credit it.

Thank you to everyone who has pledged funds---and thanks in advance to everyone who send matching funds in this challenge. Special thanks to Lucky’s wonderful foster parents.

This challenge will expire in two weeks---on Friday, December 4th---so please make your donation today---no matter how large or how small. If we receive more than the challenge amount, we will use the funds to pay for vet bills on the dozens of basenjis currently in BRAT care.

Mike Swan
President, BRAT, Inc.
http://basenjirescue.org/donate.htm

When Moms Are Sick

We all suffer when Moms are sick. Dad says, "When Mom's not happy, aint nobody happy!" I think he says that mostly because he gets tired of listening to sneezing, coughing and the dredded snnooorrre... (which us B's kind of like, it's soothing) but maybe it has to do with Mom being grumpy, whining and complaining about being sick of being sick.

My mom's been sick twice now in the past month or so. first it was the flu then she got sick with this cold/sinus infection thing. It's a good thing us Basenjis don't get sick with that stuff. Mom would probably shoot us like Dad keeps threatening to do with Mom. That wouldn't be good. We don't like going to the vet so we really, really understand why Mom doesn't like going to the doctor either. I'm sure she hates shots as much as we do!

Even though Mom doesn't like being sick, there are definitely some perks in it for us Basenjis. We get to spend our days on Mom's bed with her or on the couch. She gives us extra cuddles and lots and lots of pets and tummy rubs. The bad part is that she really cuts our walks short. Walks make us feel better, I'm not sure why they don't make her much better. But hey, on the up side, she always wants to take a nap with us right after the walk, instead of putting us in our own crates and leaving home. We really much prefer to nap with Mom rather than in our crates, although Kayley is forever trying to bump me out of the best sleep spot. I think Mom should put Kayley in her crate so that I can concentrate on taking good care of Mom.

This morning when Mom went to stand under her indoor rain, we found her garbage sack full of used tissues. Bet you can't imagine what we two did with them huh? ;-) Dad was sooo mad he kicked us outside.... It snowed last night, that was definitely a punishment not suited to the crime. And you know what, Dad made Mom pick up our mess because he said he wasn't touching the nasty germ infested stuff. What germs? We were just having some fun!

Still, I know that Mom isn't happy being sick, so I hope she gets better soon. Join me in wishing her healthy won't you?

Thanks,
Reno

Sanji

Sanji came to us from Virginia as a BRAT dog. He traveled by air and arrived pretty upset. Poor guy, he was so nervous that he had messed in his crate, and he was overall pretty traumatized by the whole air travel ordeal.

We got him home from the airport and he was very happy to be out of the transport cage. Our other BRAT girl Ursa was not impressed by his arrival, and when he did a play bow to her she snarked at him.

Eventually Ursa learned to tolerate Sanji, but he never was able to play with her the way that he wanted to. But, I could tell that even though she didn't like him, Sanji still needed Ursa and he was both very sensitive to her and very stressed by her. As time went on and Ursa got sick, Sanji mysteriously got sick too. His system suddenly would not tolerate most foods, and he started losing a significant amount of weight.

Photo: An uhappy Sanji boy at 16 lbs

Our vet tried many natural herbs and drugs but nothing seemed to help, and his stomach rejected most of his food while his intestinal tract quickly got rid of the rest. Sanji went from 25 lbs to 16 lbs in a short time. He was tested for everything, including Fanconi and thyroid problems, but all tests came back negative.

Then we got Gumbo and brought him home as a 12 week old pup. Sanji was delighted-- at last he had someone he could play with! Gumbo of course wanted to play all the time, and Sanji tolerated his little sharp teeth and energy. We still had Ursa, but she was by this time quite ill and we had her put down a couple of months after we got Gumbo.

Photo: Sanji with Gumbo as a puppy

Over the next several months, Sanji began to gain weight and was throwing up less and less. He didn't curl up in a tight ball anymore, nor did he look sad-eyed. We attributed his decline to his concern for Ursa, and his comeback to his delight in Gumbo.

We have a dog park not far from us and my husband Jim retired October 2008, so Jim began taking Sanji and Gumbo to the dog park. Before we got Gumbo, Sanji was never a fan of the park and ignored all the other dogs and people. Now he had Gumbo to keep and eye on and make sure his little boy didn't get hurt or in trouble. You could see Sanji always being watchful and stepping in if another dog got too rough with Gumbo. The more Jim took the dogs to the park, the more Sanji became interested in playing with the other dogs and getting pets from the people at the park. He is now quite happy to go to the park. Gumbo is now almost two and Sanji doesn't have to worry about him taking care of himself. Gumbo is one of the most outgoing Basenjis I have ever seen, loves almost all dogs and people, and is totally a happy sweet boy thanks to his genes and upbringing by his friend Sanji.

Photo: Sanji {front} and Gumbo at the dog park

Sometimes I think we as humans may unwittingly introduce dogs who live with us to other dogs that do not care to live with each other. In Sanji's case, his basenji sensitivity to other dogs made an unhappy dog quite ill, not from any particular physical illness, but just from stress alone. But, now that we've overcome this obstacle, today we have two very happy, healthy Basenji boys who love each other and the rest of the world too.

--Marj Baker

Happy Fantastic BRAT Fundraiser

As some of you may know, I have been doing a fundraiser for Basenji Rescue and Transport (BRAT) in my on-line Happy Fantastic Designs shop (www.HappyFantastic.etsy.com). I just wanted to spread the word that I have cool basenji stuff in my on-line shop. I have tote bags, baby + toddler tees, magnets, and pins -- all with prints of my silly drawings of basenjis!!! And all would make AWESOME gifts for Birthdays, Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, Guy Fawkes Day, or whatever special day you need a present for.

What is Happy Fantastic Designs? Happy Fantastic Designs is a collection of unique apparel and accessories for women, children, and dogs made by me (Joanne Kalisz). I am a Rhode Island School of Design graduate, a BRAT volunteer, B-Com member, and slave to 3 basenjis. My original (and often humorous) work is inspired by pop art, 60’s mod, bohemian, preppy, and punk rock so there should be something to please everyone. Here's the best part: each time you shop at Happy Fantastic Design's on-line store I will donate 50% of her profits to BRAT!!! Visit www.HappyFantastic.etsy.com.

Please, please, please spread the word about this generous fundraiser to all the basenji + dog lovers you know. :)

Have a Happy Fantastic Day!

More on the topic of fostering...

Here are some precious moments and adorable photos of my fosters and placements, which I hope inspire people to become a foster home.

Jazzie, Dixie and Pixie. In a kitty bed a friend donated to me. Hmmm... who's comfortable?

Much better now!

Night! Night!

Bandit and Bailey, who's parents also found homes through the BRAT adoption process.

My Jazzie with temporary foster Buster. He stayed with us for 2 weeks

My Jazzie & Dixie with foster Titan; piled on the dog bed, next to the heat register.


Stormy, a very active, playful girl who came from NJ and returned to NJ

Ruby, another sweet girl, very active. Is now in a loving home with another basenji.

More from Phoenix & Kenya

Hi Everyone, my name is Phoenix. Mom and dad say Kenya's is the charmer but I'm the real character. I'm also the worry wart. Mom's convinced that's why i have so many wrinkles on my forehead. Last week Kenya told you all about our new forever home and how great we thought things were till we went to the Rescue Convention. Thats when my wrinkles kicked in. Life was wonderful. I was having a blast running in the backyard, wrestling with Kenya, race tracking in the house and snuggling with mom (yeah...i'm a momma's boy). About a month after we moved in Mom had a friend come over to visit. Kenya went over to greet her with her usual breath smelling butt wiggling charmer routine. I hovered next to mom and wouldn't go near the visitor. Mom & Dad were surprised since when i'm alone with Mom and Dad, i'm the love muffin. I love to be held and petted. Kenya is more aloof...she wants it on her terms. Once the lady left i was back to my old self. A few weeks later i met the dog sitter. Same routine...Kenya charmed the pants off her. I hovered near mom and wouldn't let her touch me. Once she left i was back to my old self...grabbing toys out of the toy box and playing with Kenya. We were living with Mom and Dad about 2 months when they packed us up in the car. We went on a 3 1/2 hour trip to Albany NY. As soon as i went in the hotel room i got nervous and had an accident. I didn't like this place...it was small and had all kinds of strange smells. I didn't understand why the long car ride and why were were here. Only 2 months ago we went thru this long car ride stuff. Anyway...we went for a walk then to sleep. When we woke up we ate, walked and went back in the crate in the car for another 2 1/2 hour drive. We checked into another hotel room then went for a walk in the woods. I liked the walk but when we came back mom and dad locked us in the crate and left. I was starting to feel uncomfortable and sad as to why we were here. Kenya and i curled up and went to sleep.

The next morning Mom and Dad took us to this big room in another hotel with all these people and other B's. Having all these other dogs around reminded me of the puppy mill. I tried to be good. I laid in mom's lap or curled up on the floor. Kenya was pretty snarky. We stayed in this room for what seemed forever except for the pottie breaks in the pouring rain. I tried to be good but by the time the evening came around i was tired, stressed and Kenya was really irritable and looking to pick a fight which she did.

Our little snarkfest caught the attention of the dog communicator who singled us out and said she would get to us later. We huffed and puffed and unwillingly settled down. Afterwards, Mom and Dad took us over to the dog communicator. They didn't tell her anything about us except our names but she had us nailed. She told mom that i was really worried that Kenya and I would be separated. That someone would take her away from me. She was right, thats why i would get so upset when people would visit and Kenya would get all friendly with them. She told mom and dad that kenya was uncomfortable and angry because she was so itchy (not sure how she knew as Kenya wasn't scratching at all at the convention) and that she wanted a RED BED. (which mom and dad thought was a really wierd thing for the dog communicator to say)

Anyway, the next day before we got in the car for another long ride we and went to the dog park. There were 2 fenced in areas one for large and small dogs. We went in the empty small dog area. Mom thought it would cheer me up to be able to run around and play but all i did was sit there and hover near mom every where she went. Being in a fenced in area and seing other dogs fenced in made me uncomfortable. I was afraid she was going to leave me there. I was so relieved when we got back in the car. For 2 weeks after we got home i would lie around on the couch near mom and wouldn't play with my toys or go outside to play. In July Mom and Dad took us on 2 more road trips to visit family in NY. They took us on long walks in the woods (which was fun). Each time we came back to our home in New Hampshire. A few times they had a nice lady stay with us. Again they came back. I finally started to realize that when we went on a long car ride or when mom and dad went away they always came back and we were all together and that things would be OK. As for Kenya after the dog communicator made the "wierd" red bed comment Dad tried something and Kenya's snarky personality changed for the better. Mom will tell you more about the "RED BED" next time! Happy Baroos..... Phoenix

Signs of Further Bonding

It is fast approaching the one year point of having Bow in my household, making me surprised that so much time has passed so quickly but also now hard to imagine her not being a part of daily life.

Signposts of bonding pop up every week, sometimes catching me off guard. Some are endearing, and some can be a bit odd of confusing. One that I’ve heard many others describe and have seen plenty of YouTube videos of is the rubbing in dirty laundry on the floor. While I want to believe the theories that it’s her showing her deep bond by getting my scent all over her, I have my doubts. She does the same when she sees an abandoned, smelly mattress on the street or a pile of compost in the back yard. For a breed that supposedly is fastidious about cleanliness and without any real odor, she certainly has a strong desire to rub herself in the smelliest things she comes across. I hope she doesn’t equate some of the less savory ones to my dirty laundry on the floor.

Another morning routine that has become more common is seeing a red and white head peek through the corner of the shower curtain each morning. Though she is cooperative, her own bath time is not her favorite activity. But observing mine, and then licking my feet the second I step out of the shower is a favorite activity. (I had a cat that had a similar fascination of licking my wrists the rare times I wore cologne.) I’ve heard various theories that all dogs are attracted to soap because they smell animal fat, though I usually use ones made without it. I’ll continue with my belief that it’s her being maternal and thinking she’s found a few spots that I didn’t scrub well enough.

Please Vote for BRAT!

BRAT is now part of a new Shelter Challenge called the "America’s Favorite Animal Shelter Contest," with a top prize of $25,000!

This contest is a short one because it's only 2 weeks long, and you can only vote ONCE. Participation is easy: Simply click on the above link to the site and search for your favorite rescue or shelter by zip code (it’s 75042) or city and state (Garland, TX) and cast your one-time-only vote. That’s it!

So far, after being in the contest for only a day and a half, BRAT is already #11 in the nation! However, we know we can do better than that, so please VOTE for BRAT before midnight on Wednesday, Nov. 16. It only takes a minute -- literally, 60 seconds -- and this year with BRAT's vet bills way up and the economy way down, this prize money is needed now more than ever before to continue rescuing basenjis. And, it's FREE! Please help us claim it.

PS -- We are also still participating in the Petfinder Shelter Challenge, and we are currently #3 in the nation! Help BRAT win the $20,000 top prize in the Petfinder shelter challenge by voting EVERY DAY until December 21st (Look for "basenji" in Texas). We truly appreciate your ongoing support with this one, and it's paying off, so keep it up!

Foster Parents Deserve a Parade

I have the greatest admiration for foster parents. I can only imagine how difficult it is to send a dog you’ve cared for and nurtured off to a new home.

We are pathetic marshmallows. Sweet little Leo, the 13-year-old basenji BRAT found in a kill shelter, was supposed to stay in our house overnight on his way to a foster home. He stayed with us until his death, eight short months later, and he still hasn’t left our hearts. Thank heavens there are BRAT folks made of sterner stuff who can actually look ahead and see that sending fosters off to forever homes frees up space for still more troubled little curly tails in need of a second chance.

I think foster parents deserve a parade, because it takes enormous amounts of patience, determination, wisdom, perseverance, and courage to nurture sad and frightened little dogs, prepare them for their forever homes, and then say goodbye. When these little guys arrive at their foster homes they are often confused, worried, fearful, and dragging along more baggage than one small dog should have to carry. By the time they leave their foster homes, they have unloaded a lot of this baggage and blossomed under the TLC administered by their foster parents. They’ve benefited from a predictable routine and reassuring humans who helped them get rid of some bad habits and acquire some positive new ones.

We will always be grateful to Ivan and Dasa’s foster parents for taking such good care of our babies and then carefully handing them over to us. Aunt Joan and Uncle Ken, Ivan’s foster parents, and Aunt Dana, Dasa’s foster mom, are revered in our house because they gave us our precious munchkins. We so admire them for being able to give up Ivan and Dasa, and we do our best to live up to their trust in us. They get updates, photos, Christmas cards, and Valentines, none of which can ever convey how appreciative we are, how much we love our babies, and how much richer our lives are because we share them with Ivan and Dasa.

From the bottom of my joy-filled, doting mommy heart, thank you to all the foster parents who help these little dogs along to their forever homes.

Basenji on Vacay Part 2

Last time, I told you about my basenji, Kip, and the funny habits he adopted on our drive to Michigan. This time, I'm going to tell you about Kip's extreme hate of the cottage we stayed in and his extreme love of Mackinac Island.

When we first arrived at the cottage, Kip seemed fine with it. He sniffed around everywhere and explored every corner. Then, after a while, he started to get mad/annoyed/or something. He was always trying to escape and was super happy whenever he was outside or anyplace but there. Then, at night, he would not go to sleep immediately like he does at home. He would jump up onto the bed (which had to be at least 3 feet off the ground, we still don't know how he did it) and scratch at the sheets or at my dad's back. He would also bat and claw at my dad's face and jump on him. Kip must've been really angry.

But when we decided to do the 2hour drive and ferry trip to Mackinac Island, Kip was so excited to go. As soon as we arrived at the ferry port, he launched himself out of the car and did his signature "bulldog walk" (where he bends down really low and pulls with all his might. If you stand in front of him, he looks just like a bulldog) all the way to the ticket booth. Then, when the ferry pulled up, we climbed to the top level because we thought that Kip wouldn't be as crazy up high as he would be on one of the lower levels where more people were. I have to admit, this choice had me freaked. It combined my 4 major fears: water, boats, height, and loud noises into one long 15 minute ride. When the ferry started to move, it blared this super loud horn, which just happened to be located 5 feet in front of us. It sounded like someone was exploding fireworks in your eardrum. Of course, I yelped, but I'm sure that Kip was even more scared. Dogs hear things 4 times as loud as people do, you know. When we finally reached Mackinac Island, I was so relieved. We left the ferry and immediately fell in love. There, right in front of us was this... amazing place. No cars, only bikes and horse drawn carriages. Everybody was so very nice and they also knew something very strange: what breed of dog Kip is. Back at home, nobody knows what the heck he is. "Oh it's a chihuahua!" "Aww lookit, a shiba inu!" But here, everyone seemed to know what a basenji was and everybody seemed to have one or knew someone who did. It was definitely a dog friendly town. Kip loved all the attention he got from people. He was allowed in every store. When we were going to eat lunch, my mom ordered Kip a burger, but the people gave him three and brought him some water as well. Kip loved sniffing around everything, especially the horse poop scattered across the roads. He LOVES horses. They are his favorite animal. When we were exploring the town and a carriage passed by, he would just stare in awe and excited-ness at the "big dogs". When it became time for him to ride in one himself, he was so happy. He peered over the edge and watched everyone go by. It was so fun, the carriage ride. Our tour guide was so hilarious and had everyone in stitches. When we had to go back on the ferry, you could tell he was kind of sad. He wanted to stay there forever! And hopefully, next year, we'll go back. And we'll relive Kip's car madness, his cottage hated-ness, and his Mackinac love-ness. :)

Queen

I guess it would depend on how you look at things whether Queen’s story can be considered to be a rescue success or a failure. To really understand how far she came you have to understand where she came from. I know that many of you out there in rescue have done some work with puppy mill dogs either through direct rescue or through fostering and can understand how difficult they can be. But Queen was the worst case I have ever worked with.

Queen came to me shortly after her 10th birthday one of a group of 15-16 basenji’s rescued from a mill seizure in NE. She was the oldest lady of the group and therefore had been in hell far longer than any of the others. She had been so over bred that the skin on her belly was so over stretched it felt like very thin tissue paper. You know, the way the skin on the arms of very elderly ladies feel.

The NE group went to a vet in Topeka, KS to be vetted and during all of the routine care and the spaying and neutering we had glucose strips done on all and Queen was the only one who failed and was diagnosed with Fanconi after having her blood gases done. With her advanced age and the diagnosis of Fanconi and her absolute terror of people Queen was considered unadoptable so she came home with me as what we knew would be a permanent foster situation for her to live out the rest of her life in relative peace.

I took her home with me and settled her into a crate to start working with her and teach her what life in a home should be. I went into the situation with Queen armed with about 16-17 years of rescue work and also having two months prior having brought one dog out of a group of 100+ dogs from a hoarder. This dog too was completely under socialized but he was young and came around pretty quickly. My past successes left me completely unprepared for life with Queen.

After settling Queen into her crate I set about trying to teach her all of those things that we take for granted in most of our daily lives. She was terrified of everything, and I do mean everything. Just trying to take her outside to potty was a nightmare. I had to literally drag her out of her crate. She, of course, knew nothing of being walked on a leash and was completely sure I was trying to kill her. Because of her fear I had to use a 1” nylon choke to be able to make sure she could not back out of it.

Every noise in the house made her jump and cringe in fear. After several days of dragging her out of her crate and feeling like I was torturing her I began to wonder if it would not have been kinder to have had her euthanized but I soldiered on with her. However I decided to put a baby gate across my laundry room and put papers down on the tile floor and just clean up behind her until she got more used to me. I also put down a couple of the fake lambs wool kennel pads for her to lay on which she did gratefully but every time I would go to the door to check on her she would bury her head in them in such a way that I knew that she was sure that if she couldn’t see me then of course I couldn’t see her. That didn’t work because after 36 hours she still hadn’t pottied on the papers so I was left with no choice but to put her back on the leash and take her outside. Remember now, she was diagnosed with Fanconi, so I really didn’t understand how she could hold it for such a long time. When diagnosed she was put on the very minimum for the protocol.

I went on for weeks doing my best to get her comfortable with having me around with absolutely no success until I decided to see how she would do with one of my boys in the kennel. Queen, if not completely happy, was or appeared to be content. She went on and did start getting a little braver. When I went to feed her, she would hide in the beginning. In order to do anything such as trimming her nails or for vet appointments, it would take two of us to catch her because we had to trap her. She was like a little wild thing. We went on this way for a couple of years and with me trying, always trying, to get closer to her. As time progressed she started coming out of hiding when I went in.

A little later she did start coming closer to me as I fed her. Then after about two years came a day when she got close enough that I could reach out to her, but she jumped away. The next day the same thing happened. We went through this pattern for many more days until finally she let me touch the top of her head and give her scritches between her ears. Oh, how happy I was that day! After that she seemed to progress a little more quickly and didn’t run away from us anymore, but it took until she was 13 to get this far. Soon after Queen reached this point, her kennel mate became ill and we lost him to congestive heart failure, and that was a very hard time for Queen. None of my other boys would accept Queen so I ended up bringing her back into the house and even though she was easier with us we still had to trap her to bring her into the house because any strange moves would make her run from us.

Once I got her in, I settled her into a crate in the living room and proceeded to treat her as if she had just come to me. I walked her on a leash even though it scared her, but it really didn’t take long at all to get her used to it this time. I also put baby gates up so that she could be turned loose in the house under constant supervision. Once she was turned loose in the living room she would sneak around behind us and over to the side so that she could sneak peeks at us to see what we were doing and where we were going.

After a few weeks of this she started getting closer and closer and would sometimes pace a circle around and between the coffee table and the sofa. By this time Queen had been with me for around three years. There then came a day when during one of her circles she stopped right in front of me and looked up as if she was saying, “Well are you gonna scritch me or what?” I dropped my hand onto the top of her head and started scratching, and we never looked back.

To make a long story shorter I will just say that from that point on she became a completely different dog and firmly settled her self into the heart and soul of family life. There have been challenges during the last 3 years between her and my girl Scat, but she did wholeheartedly place herself as Queen of the house. Once she discovered how comfortable life as a member in the house could be, there was no looking back for her. I also want to say that I would have thought it would be hard to house break her since she was over 13, but it was never a problem so I guess you really can teach old dogs new tricks.

As I write this I am looking at the end of Queen’s story and it is so very hard. She has lived the good life for the last three years. About a year and a half ago Queen started having issues where we could see there was some weakness in her back legs when she walked, and after a vet appointment and x-rays we could see damage and arthritis in her back which presented itself with neurological effects. At this point she was treated with prednisone and anti-inflammatory drugs. The drug therapy kept her on her feet until the last couple of weeks. I had to make a painful decision to help her cross the bridge and so she has an appointment with my vet. Because of her previous history and her fear of strange people and places, her vet will be coming here to my home on Tuesday 11/3/09 at 5:00 PM to help her cross, just short of her 16th birthday.

For such a quiet, unassuming dog, Queen has made a huge impact in my life and her loss will be far harder than I would have ever thought it would be. She will leave a giant hole in my heart, and I will also have to make room on the fire place mantel for another urn since I sincerely believe she has earned her place there.

Please keep Queen in your thoughts and prayers, that Queen’s final trip be an easy one for her. Also should an old dog need you, please keep Queen’s story in mind. Old dogs can adjust to a new life too, and they will bring you an amazing amount of joy while you are bringing comfort and care to them.

Yvonne Simms Ricroft
Jaiye Basenjis

Watch out for that Killer Plant!

Have you ever wondered why BRAT asks about toxic plants when we do home visits for potential basenji adopters? Just check out this list of Toxic Plants for Dogs! I never realized how many of my houseplants might be toxic for my two basenjis, until a friend sent me this list. I also never realized how many plants I have which I don't know names for :) Regardless, as I quickly scanned through the list of plants, I recognized at least 4 houseplants that I have easily within reach of the dogs, which are listed as potentially toxic to them. As soon as I went home, I easily swapped those plants with others on higher shelves.

In New Jersey, it's getting close to that time of year when I will need to start bringing my outdoor potted plants in for the winter, which will represent yet another hazard to the dogs as many common outdoor plants are on the toxic list. Also, soon it will be the holiday season and we'll be exchanging pretty red and white poinsettias to decorate our fireplaces.... but hold on a second, those are deadly toxic for dogs. So, what's a basenji mom to do? Throw out all the pretty plants? No way! I'm thinking of a beautiful red poinsettia mantel decoration this year :)

The moral of the story is that just like cats and dogs, you can easily find a way for your plants and your dogs to get along with just a little bit of knowledge and action. Now that I've used the list and checked for toxic plants in my home, I can rest assured that my home is safe(er) for my beloved furkids. Not that they have ever gotten into eating the plants before, but they are basenjis so I wouldn't put the idea past them!

Halloween Basenji Pictures - Part 4

Happy Halloween!!

This is Kenya (BRAT dog adopted Dec 2008). At the daycare she's in twice a week, they always remark that her yodel sounds like a rooster, so she got a rooster suit for their Halloween party on Tuesday. She's not happy, but willing to play along. Submitted by: Chuck & Carol Fetters - Amelia, Ohio

This is Reef and Biko (BRAT) in their superdog capes! They ate all the costumes bought at the store, so mommy had to custom make these so that they wouldn't get munched. Submitted by: Kristen Ayres, New Jersey

The 3-headed basenji Cerberus eats cookies! Submitted by: Liz Martin

Update on Tigger and Arrow

I have posted about Tigger twice before click here and here.
She came in to our lives in early Sept. while we were on our way back from the BCOA National Specialty in Lexington.

Our original plan was to keep her if things worked out. However, our eleven year old boy, Arrow, took an initial dislike to anyone else moving into his house—even if she was a cute brindle girl. The first time we let them loose in the back yard, he ran her down, knocked her over and attacked her.

What to do? We decided to take baby steps. We kept them in different rooms but walked them together at least once a day. During the walks, we let them sniff each other and sniff interesting places while they were walking together.


We would bring them in the same room and tether them to chairs at the opposite side of the room while we watched TV. Tigger slept locked up in a crate in our bedroom while Arrow slept on a chair in the bedroom.

After awhile, we found that one of us could walk the two dogs together without any problems. After a few weeks, after a walk, we dropped the leashes. They were too tired to squabble.

We were ready to give up after three weeks when Arrow attacked Tigger for no reason. We posted her to the BRAT website and even interviewed a few good prospective homes. When those homes didn't work out, we just kept up with the walks and other baby steps.

We were always careful to feed them in seperate rooms (Tigger while in her crate). If they had chews we made sure they were far apart.

After around five weeks, we noticed that they were starting to calm down. Arrow seemed to have accepted her into the pack. The only major squabble we have had recently was when she brought in a rawhide that she had previously hid in the back yard. The fact that she fought back rather than give up the rawhide seems to have made an impression on Arrow and he didn't go looking for trouble with her.

Tigger wants to play all the time but Arrow is still not interested. So, we take her to doggie day care once or twice a week so that she can play with other dogs. Maybe in time he will want to play but as long as they can peacefully coexist, we are happy.

The take home message is that integrating a new dog takes time. Sometimes several months. But, it is worth it in the end.