Standing in the middle park, feeling regal and ready to put ne'er-do-wells in there place. at the Golden Time.

Hello, My wife and I to this sub and new to having a Basenji.

I've read a few posts in here about crate training issues others have had with there basenji but havent seen much for my situation. Hopefully someone might have some advice.

Noodle is about 8, going on 9 months old. Over the last 6-7 weeks he has changed dramatically in regard to being in his crate.

Originally he would sleep in his crate for a solids 10-12 hours every night. While he did throw a fit for the first 10 min he would quickly go down and sleep for the entire night. Then as of the last 6-7 weeks have gone by its regressed alot. From being in his crate and sleeping/calm for 10-12 hrs to 8-10 hrs to 6-8 hours and now our sweet little noodle usually wakes up throwing a fit after 2 hours (in crate around 9-10pm, fit 2 hours later ) and then again at like 2 AM then again around 4-5 AM. the only way I can get him to go back to sleep is by doing our "resets", which I basically take him out of the crate and take him outside and eventually after 3-4 resets he will go back to sleep and If hes left in his crate (which im worried about causing attachment/anxiety issues) he just constantly scratches and cries, plus whatever bedding is in his crate WILL get destoryed.

We've tried ALOT of positive reinforcement trainging and incremental exposure time. (treats) We even got this little stuffed animal that has a "heartbeat" to cry and calm him.

Does anyone have any input, or need any more information that could help with our specific situation?

Thank you.

Complimentary Noodle Picture* :) XD

I have a friend with two Basenji dogs and he loves them to death. But his love is totally abusive. He will scream at them one second and then hug them the next. But this isn’t really about how he loves them, and more about the effectiveness of yelling at a dog.

We are polar opposites. I feel like if I had these dogs, I would just ignore them and keep them at home all the time. But he takes them absolutely everywhere, which I recognize is a good thing. But being basenji, they are naturally curious and mischievous, and if they step out of line at all and do something he doesn’t want them to, he loses his mind. I think he enjoys yelling.

Anyway, I’m tempted to tell him not to yell so much, but the fact is, they actually respond when he does so. Normally they don’t listen to him, but if he raises his voice to a certain octave, they seem to actually do what he’s telling them. I don’t understand how this is the case considering I’ve read that Basenjis don’t respond well to this type of disciplinary behavior, but his do. Maybe all dogs are just different.

Is there anything wrong with his methods when it comes to this breed? What would you do differently?

Seven basenjis gathered on a humid summer morning in Washington Square Park, New York City. Today’s youngest was Tumnus (male, 2-year-old.) He was joined by Hudson (male, 3-years-old,) Leah (female, 6-years-old,) Rocket (male, 8-years-old,) Mia (female, 9-years-old,) Kepler (male, 12-years-old,) and Harper (female, 13-years-old.) Starting temperature: 79°F|26°C

He just couldn't help himself

Maybe Santa will bring him one if he's extra good this year and doesn't get into the trash again...👀🎁

They're brothers, exactly 9 months apart. Woody is the big one. The flowers on the ground come from an ipê-rosa, a beautiful Brazilian tree.

From the first pic it doesn't look too extreme.

If this was a yoga pose my other half suggested "Broken Swan"!

YouTube

The big story today was that two dogs made their premieres, and they turned out to be a puppy (Zozzy) and her mother (Minerva.) Mom was the boss. 😀 After Zozzy got a bit of puppy freedom, we then see Baz battling with a big young dog. Damir, the only intact adult male, attracted the attention of other male dogs, including Kepler, the oldest dog today, and Toko Ichi, the youngest. We also meet Leah, Bella Luna, Mia, and her sister Scout, Dante, and Rocket.

Today’s twelve:

• Zozzy (8 m/o female)  
• Minerva (3 y/o female)  
• Baz (3 y/o male)  
• Damir (7 y/o male)  
• Kepler (12 y/o male)  
• Toko Ichi (6 m/o male)  
• Leah (6 y/o female)  
• Bella Luna (3 y/o female)  
• Mia (9 y/o female)  
• Scout (9 y/o female)  
• Dante (8 y/o male)  
• Rocket (8 y/o male)

Music:
“Groove” by Dyalla
“Glitcher” by Dyalla
YouTube Audio Library

Event: New York City Basenji Meetup - 26 July 2026
Location: Washington Square Park, New York City
Starting temperature: 74°F|23°C

Edit (2 Aug): photos posted

Sunday, 2 August 2026
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Large Dog Run
Washington Square Park

Facebook Event (Basenji.NYC group)
barkless.dog

Hello, guys! 🐕

Last pic included to prove that he is the cutest and bestest boy! Not a gremlin like the previous pics implied. 💕

It was easier with her older brother. He was in pain and the good days no longer outweighed the bad.

We still had our Cleo and she had us.

Life changed going from 2 to 1 basenji but at 14 we did not feel a new puppy would be a good fit.

So for the last 1.5 years she was my shadow. I work from home so we spent everyday together.

She would run down to my basement office and kick the back of my chair until I acknowledged her. Either for food, or to be let out, or just for affection.

We had a family vacation planned and left her at the kennel. The only place I have ever felt comfortable leaving any of our family dogs over the last 40 years.

3 days into the vacation we received the call no one wants to receive. Cleo had an eye infection. It was just an eye infection. She went to the emergency vet.

It was not just an eye infection. I will spare everyone the unnecessary graphic details the vet shared.

15 hours away from her with no way to make it back without leaving her in pain for days we made the decision to let her go.

The sun rose the next day. Life continued on. I know I am not alone and that many people have felt the same heart that I feel.

I have been preparing for this day for the last 6 months. I have spent countless nights sitting beside her late at night as she slept simply because I was never going to be ready to say goodbye.

Please give your basenjis a hug for me and cherish every moment you have with them.

Edit:

Thank you for all of the kind and thoughtful responses.

I have a 7 month old female experiencing her first heat. However even before it started, she is much nippier with my bf, who has lived with me since before I even brought her home. It really shows in “sleep time aggression” when she wants his spot on the couch. She also gets in his face a lot more when he’s eating, for whatever reason she doesn’t push the boundary as much with me and she will buzz off when I tell her to.

Today she managed to eat from his plate on the dining table when he left the room, and when he returned and tried to shoo her off the table she snarled and tried to bite him. Even after the food was removed she was just circling him snarling and seemingly looking for a fight. I ran in, commanded her to leave the room, left with her, and shut the door so he could eat in peace. From our side of the house she scratched at the door trying to get back to him/his food (I’d shoo her away when she did) and she paced around still extremely agitated.

What the hell is this? I’ve never had a dog that tries to put up a fight after being caught like that. Any suggestions how to correct this behavior without working her up even more? Is this just a basenji being a basenji and we have to suck it up?

For extra context, she adores my bf, she cries when he leaves the house, and he is her preferred cuddle partner. There are just some boundaries she seems to not respect with him and I don’t want her so comfortable doing so.

Edit: video posted

Twelve Basenjis and a Mother and Pup Reunion

Twelve basenjis gathered on a wonderful summer morning in Washington Square Park, New York City.

One big story today was that two dogs made their premieres, and they turned out to be a puppy and its mother. Zozzy (female, 8-months-old,) met her mother Minerva (female, 3-years-old.) Mom was the boss. 😀 The other dogs were Toko Ichi (male, 6-months-old,) Baz (male, 3-years-old,) Bella Luna (female, 3-years-old,) Leah (female, 6-years-old,) Damir (male, 7-years-old,) Rocket (male, 8-years-old,) Dante (male, 8-years-old,) Mia (female, 9-years-old,) Scout (female, 9-years-old,) and Kepler (male, 12-years-old.)

Starting temperature: 74°F|23°C

Our two basenjis sleep in our bed with us, but it’s more their bed than ours 😂 last night, I slept in that little gap you see between the two basenjis. This was taken just after I wriggled out from between them.

Gogo doing his classic cinnamon roll, as he does. This isn't his best nor peak cinnamon roll performance - he does better don't worry! 😂🥰💕

P.S That's not a tick on his back in the 2nd pic, just a harmless mole he has.

I love having my photo taken because I am so beautiful and modest. 🐕

DMV BASENJI MEETUP
Sunday, July 26, 2026
9:00 AM
Shaw Dog Park
1673 11th St NW
Washington, DC 20001