Have you Strip Tested your Basenji this Month?

It is recommended to strip test a basenji’s urine monthly starting at age 3. This is done using urine glucose test strips that can be found with diabetic supplies in most drug stores. Presence of glucose (sugar) in the urine is the earliest indicator of Fanconi disease. Fanconi disease affects the kidneys by disrupting their filtering mechanism. Basically, kidneys filter waste products out of the blood stream to be eliminated from the body in the urine. The kidneys also should filter important things such as vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, water, etc. back INTO the blood stream for our bodies to use -- this is the function that is disrupted in Fanconi disease. Fanconi is considered to be genetic (inherited) in basenji and that is why all basenji should be tested. This testing can detect the disease early, before the dog starts showing symptoms such as drinking and peeing in large amounts.


This is my basenji, Cleo. She is 7 years old. From the time Cleo turned 3, I had been doing the test, but I wasn’t always consistent about it. Take last winter, for example. It was particularly windy, cold & icy where we live, and I got lazy about the testing. It seemed difficult enough to hold onto the leash & make sure neither of us fell on the ice during our walks; I didn’t think I could also hold onto that tiny test strip and try to stick it underneath Cleo while she peed in the deep snow. I guess it was one of those times I thought “It won’t happen to me”. But it did. Somewhere towards the end of winter my dad made the comment “Cleo sure does seem to be peeing a lot”. I had thought the same thing, but I think I tried to ignore it, or just thought I was being silly and overly worried. As things started to warm up in the spring I started the testing again. Not surprisingly the test strips started appearing positive. I tested Cleo several times over about the last 2weeks of March, and each time the test was positive to varying degrees. So when we went to the vet on March 31 for annual vaccinations I went prepared with two copies of the Gonto Fanconi Treatment Protocol, one for me and one for the vet. They checked her urine to confirm what I had found, as well as checking her blood sugar to rule out diabetes and confirm the diagnosis of Fanconi Syndrome. We came home that day with a confirmed diagnosis of Fanconi Syndrome… and more questions than answers.

Luckily, Cleo is doing well now on her medications, but she takes a total of 17 pills every day! If I had tested every month as is recommended I could have caught the disease in its early stages and maybe she wouldn’t require so many medications. We also don’t know what effects the delayed treatment will have on her kidneys over the long haul. So, have you strip tested your basenji this month??

- Sarah
sedouthit@gmail.com