The Basenji

What is a basenji? Well, if you evaluate the breed characteristics—elegant, graceful, barkless, odorless, easily groomed, and relatively small [22 to 24 pounds if they haven't run to fat]—you might wonder why everyone doesn't own a basenji. Just think, you wouldn't have to vacuum up all the dog hair from a golden retriever; you wouldn't have to tolerate all the baying of a beagle; and you wouldn't have to fend an eighty-pound Labrador off your lap. For temperament, the American Kennel Club describes the basenji as intelligent, independent, and affectionate, all adjectives that add to the already impressive physical packaging.

So why doesn't everyone have a basenji? Why are basenjis number 89 [out of 157 breeds] on the AKC's 2007 registration list? Despite their advantageous physical characteristics and noble-sounding personality traits, basenjis are a real handful. When my friend Diane invites both me and my two dogs to her house, she says, "Oh, and bring the little thugs over, too."

That basenjis live up to all of their breed characteristics is the problem!

Are basenjis intelligent? Oh, yes. But not in the way you might first think. If basenjis were high school students, they would not be the brainiacs who score high enough on their SATs to go to Harvard on a full scholarship. No, basenjis would be the hoodlums with the smarts to bypass security, break into the principal's office, steal a copy of the test, and sell it for cigarette money.

How does this analogy translate into dog behavior? Never have I doubted that Oreo, my black and white female, wasn't smart enough to sit on command. I know that she knows what the word sit means. Occasionally, if the treat is something really delicious right off my dinner plate, she will, with an impatient snort, plop her butt down on the floor and demand the reward. Mostly, though, she ignores the sit command [and come, and off, and stay—you get the picture], because she is waiting for me to develop enough brains to figure out how to get her to feign obedience.

Are basenjis independent? Without a doubt! Independence, in general, is a great quality. Nations are willing to wage bloody battle against tyranny to get it. But do you understand what this trait means applied to a dog? Here's the reality: Your basenji doesn't need you! Do you want proof? Open the front door. Your dog will be gone in a flash, and before you can sprint to the edge of the front lawn, your little Houdini will be dodging traffic on a busy street two blocks away.

Your basenji doesn't need you for entertainment purposes, either. Oh, no! There are pages to rip out of magazines, toilet paper streamers to drag through the house, trashcans to topple, pillow filling to free from the case, and the edges of area rugs to unravel. Keep your money in a wallet, and your wallet in the car! A basenji likes nothing better than shredding twenty dollar bills. The puzzle repair work that you will have to do with scotch tape—and that's only if your dog doesn't eat the pieces!—is not worth the convenience of having your wallet in the house. In the evening, basenjis enjoy your warm lap, but they don't need it. In fact, if you get up for a snack, the little monsters will steal your spot and refuse to give it back!

Are basenjis affectionate? Yes, they certainly are. But affection has its drawbacks. I haven't gotten a good night's sleep since I brought home my first basenji. This breed likes to cuddle and "be with their people" as basenji folks say. Do you know what this really means? Here's the reality of "affectionate"—you will go to sleep with your adorable little dog curled up beside you. [In my household, Skeeter insists on his own pillow at the headboard, and Oreo requires the brace of a warm stomach.]

At some point while you are in dreamland, your basenji will begin to unfold those long legs. That little puddle of puppy will acquire more and more of the bed. Before you know it, you will be precariously balanced on three inches at the edge.

I know what you're thinking, scoot the dog over. Well, something beyond the laws of physics happens when basenjis fall asleep. They become stone-like lumps, too heavy—and sometimes too grumpy—to scoot, their legs stiffly extended like cactus thorns.

Don't try escaping to the couch for more room, either. Remember that these dogs like to "be with their people." They will follow you to the living room and, like black holes, gobble up all of the space there. As a couch has even less room than a bed, you won't get even three inches!

Are you wondering now why anyone in their right mind would want a basenji? Well, basenji folks are not only incredibly loyal to their personal dogs but also to the breed as a whole. Basenji owners unashamedly admit that they are "slaves" to their little monsters. Goldens, German shepherds, beagles, and Labradors might be in the top-five favorite breeds, but none of their "people" have organized a national rescue group willing to free puppy mill refugees and arrange medical and foster care for the animals.

I don't know—maybe we fell on our heads one night when our bed allotment was reduced to zero inches. Whatever my reason for being charmed by these creatures, this web site is my tribute to them. Basenjis are an ancient breed, and I have attempted to collect here as much evidence of them as possible from ancient Egypt.

Very few published Egyptologists will declare with certainty that the curly-tailed "Nubian greyhounds" that abound primarily in Old Kingdom art are, in fact, basenjis. Good scholarship requires proof, and, of course, no DNA evidence exists in paintings, wall reliefs, or statues.

Anyone familiar with the breed, however, will recognize that the artifacts collected here are depictions of their pets. Not only do these animals have all of the physical characteristics of basenjis, but the art also shows them moving in AKC-standard style and behaving like the typical little troublemakers they are still today.