Basenji yodel

….is a wingnut, but can spot a squirrel a mile away.

Haley used to do this also! She REALLY didn't like me to leave her home alone and would not eat anything - even her favorite treat - while I was gone. Then as soon as I got home she'd run and get the treat from the very spot I left it and devour it. This all came to a screeeeetching halt when we got our BRAT dog, Prince. Now Haley (who used to be finicky) has to eat everything FAST and IMMEDIATELY so that Prince doesn't get it! She's always afraid he's going to get something she doesn't get, so at meal times she has to check his bowl out first…before eating from her own bowl. Of course, if he tried checking HER bowl out he'd get his face bitten off!!!! All of the individual personalities crack me up!

When we say responsible for the dogs forever - we do really mean forever. I have animals returned to me when they were 9 years old because of significant family issues or death of the owner - I currently have a 12 year old and a 7 year old that now live with me.

Think about what that means - because even those of us who are prepared for that - really are never prepared for the impact on our families houses and other dogs.

You say you want to keep 2 - be advised that the everyone hanging out together in basenji world is NOT the norm. Most can have 1 male and 1 female - if you are planning on keeping 2 - you may have a problem - not right away but eventually you are likely to do so. I am not sure that I remember who or where Chaos came from but fanconi testing and eye testing for PRA would be critical as well as thyroid screening. What titles does she have - is she a fast as the wind Field CH or Obedience or rally or conformation CH. That would allow you to have evidence that she has characteristics that are valuable to the breed as a whole and quite frankly if all you want are a couple more basenjis - there are many many out there that could use a forever home.

In any event - think about it - it's not as easy as you think - if you are going to do it right - and finding good homes is also not as easy as you think. You may not have the experience in weeding out puppy mills who might want your pups and living where you do - you are in the midst of some that do produce basenjis.

It depends on how they have to be removed. In crate would be the safest way for both humans and dogs, but some people have the crates in hard-to-reach areas and can only access the doors to the crates. They may have the crates secured to the wall or floor or even to each other.

Let's talk about fire, since that is what I know. How or whether to remove an animal depends on where the fire started and what condition that area will be in if you have to carry your tools, hose and a dog crate through it, all while wearing turnouts and an air tank. If there is a window, an animal can be passed through to other personnel, but is the crate too big to fit through it? The dog will have to come out of the crate in that instance.

Leaving the animal in the crate and carrying the crate out is safest also because dogs bite when they are upset or afraid, they run away and hide in comfort spots where we might not be able to find or reach them…they are unpredictable in situations like that. However, once outside in the crate and the animal needs medical care, how difficult will it be for rescuers to get hands on the animal?

Firefighters do their best to rescue animals and having easy access is a great way to assist them doing this. That said, though, human life and safety must take precedent regardless of the screaming pet owner outside.

@wizard:

How does one become a therapy dog? My Gossy has a great temperment and gets along with people really well. This sounds like something we could do together.

Start calling around to your local hospitals and nursing homes and ask if they have a pet therapy program and what it involves. (You might have to explain what you mean to get a good answer. lol) Some places require certification through a therapy dog company, others do not. They might just want to meet and evaluate the dog or have their own assessment test of some kind.

There are several therapy organizations, the most common is TDI. http://www.tdi-dog.org/ If you look at the links on the left, there is one for "upcoming tests" and that will give you an idea of where you can get them certified. There are no preliminary requirements for doing the test, but most dog training clubs offer some kind of therapy dog/CGC prep classes or just a general obedience class can help. TDI uses the AKC canine good citizen test plus 4 extra testing criteria. (having to pass by food without eating, being around kids and hospital equipment, etc.) Once you feel your dog has the social skills and obedience training to take the test, you can contact the test sites and sign up. They usually run around $20 to take the test. Once you pass, to become certified you have to have a thorough vet check with testing and proof of vaccinations, and also sign something that's like a code of ethics.

The big thing about being certified is that then TDI provides insurance for wherever you visit in case something were to ever happen when you're doing your visits. However there is a big list of rules you must follow to be in compliance with the insurance, like only using specific collars (no chokers) and not using your certification to get your dog into places, etc. (therapy dogs are NOT service dogs) A facility that does not require certification from TDI or the like will probably have their own testing procedure and rules because I'm sure they'll have to have insurance coverage too. So TDI would be a great thing to do, but contact your local facilities first because you may not have to go that route.

All my kids are TDI therapy dogs, it's a lot of fun. I used to visit a local hospital, but since I moved I haven't had time to figure out where to go around here and set something up. So we need to redo our certification, ugh. It's hard for them to pass the separation from mommy part. lol

I never took pictures because I didn't think it was appropriate where we were, and with it not being the same people like at a nursing home. But Susan has some other nice ones on her website that she's shared over the years. http://www.apubasenjis.com/TherapyBasenjis.html

We actually did know some of what Bs are like. We went for it though and was allowed a two week test run with Joey. It took more than two weeks for him to adjust so we really didn't know how he was going to be. We actually didn't officially make him ours until after a month so we could have decided not to keep him. Despite the detruction of two pairs of shoes, blankets and towels in his crate, and a few other things, we still wouldn't trade him in! The other antics and peculiarities of this breed make up for the things lost!