• The breed standardApproved 1990, the official document

  The current AKC standard for the basenji was approved 8 May 1990 and took effect 28 June 1990. Read it before working through the rest of this page.

  • Basenji Breed Standard
  • Standard as a printable PDF
  • BCOA letter on brindle-pointed-tri color acceptability (2009) - for the AKC Judge's Newsletter
• Judge education presentationsSlide shows from the BCOA and AKC

  BCOA Judges Education presentation

  Prepared by the BCOA Judges Education Committee. Broken into sections for easier viewing:

  • Introduction
  • General Appearance and Size
  • Head
  • Structure
  • Coat and Color
  • Movement
  • Proportion and Side-Gait
  • Temperament and Character

  Voice-over breed standard presentation - the standard presentation with the seminar voice-over recorded at the September 2011 Judges Breed Study Group, about 40 minutes. Voice and video by Purebred Studios.

  AKC slide show on the basenji standard

  Developed by AKC in collaboration with BCOA in 1983, based on the 1954 Basenji Standard. The 1990 standard revision added the brindle and white color and updated the format; the meaning of the standard was not meant to change, so this slide show is still pertinent. Reproduced with AKC permission.

  • Introduction
  • Characteristics and General Appearance
  • Head and Skull, Nose, Eyes, Ears, Mouth
  • Neck, Forequarters, Feet, Chest
  • Body, Hindquarters, Tail
  • Coat and Color
  • Weight and Size
  • Faults
  • Final Comments
• Examining the breedPliant skin, retabling, ring procedures

  • Pliant Skin Examination (August 2021) - the correct procedure for examining a basenji for pliant skin.
  • Notice Regarding Retabling - BCOA guidance on returning multiple dogs to the examining table.
  • Suggestions for Judging Procedures - from BCOA in consultation with judges and exhibitors.
• Study aids and articlesMultiple author perspectives

  These study aids and previously published articles represent a diversity of opinions on the basenji standard. They were prepared at various times in the breed's history.

  BCOA publications on the standard

  • Illustrated Standard (2012) - prepared by Judges Education.
  • A Review of the Basenji Standard (1990) - by BCOA.

  On the standard

  • Animations and videos of trotting basenjis
  • The Basenji: Africa's Breed - Marianne Carden Klinkowski
  • Judging Basenjis - Doreen Duffin
  • Description in Detail - Veronica Tudor-Williams
  • Illustrations of Basenjis - Damara Bolte
  • Comments on the Basenji Head - Veronica Tudor-Williams
  • True Type of Native Basenji Head - Veronica Tudor-Williams
  • Breeders Talk About Basenjis - Sheila Smith, Diane Laue, Damara Bolte, Ross Newmann, Shirley Chambers
  • The Wrong Impression - Robert Cole
  • One Word - Robert Cole
  • Illustrations from "The Basenji Illustrated" - Robert Cole
  • Movement and Proportion Discussion - 1978 review of Cole's The Basenji Illustrated with the subsequent magazine letters and articles compiled.
• On the origin and functionBasenjis in their native land

  Three articles on the basenji in their native land. Additional historical material is on the basenji history page.

  • The Barkless Dogs of the Congo - Olivia Burn
  • Nature's Masterpiece: The Basenji - Bernice Walker
  • History and Function of the Ancient Basenji - Sandra L. Bridges
• Recommended readingBooks that attempt to explain the breed

  Cole, Robert W.

  The Basenji Illustrated: An Illustrated Explanation of the Basenji Breed Standard (1977, limited first edition). Reissued 1978 by the author.

  The Basenji Stacked and Moving: An Illustrated Explanation Based on the Basenji Standard (1987). Author. Reissued 1996 by Doral Publishing.

  Coe, Susan

  The Basenji, Out of Africa to You (1990). Doral Publishing. Reissued 1994, updated 2000.

  Ford, Elspet

  The Complete Basenji (1993). Ringpress.

  Tudor-Williams, Veronica

  Basenjis, The Barkless Dog (1946, red cover). The book everyone depends on for the earliest history of the breed. Reprinted 1954 (blue cover, with new photos). Revised and updated 1976 as Basenjis, The Barkless Dogs of Central Africa (David & Charles, London). An addendum was issued due to 1976 publisher errors.

  See also: books about basenjis in Africa on the Owner side.

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