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Is a basenji right for me?
Before deciding whether to bring a basenji home, work through these three pages. They will tell you what the breed is really like, how to find a responsible source for a puppy or an adult rescue, and what to expect health-wise across the dog's life.
Decide
Is a basenji right for me?
The honest introduction to living with the breed. Read this before you start looking for a puppy.
Find
Find a Breeder
BCOA member breeders organized by state, with the screening questions to ask any breeder before placing a deposit.
Reference
Basenji Health
What to test for, how the testing works, and how to manage the conditions that are seen in the breed.
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The Owner's Handbook
Whether you have just brought home your first basenji or are still deciding whether the breed is right for you, the Handbook is the BCOA's introduction to the breed. It covers personality and physical traits, finding a basenji, bringing one home, feeding, grooming, training, activities, health, and the question of whether to breed your dog. Each chapter is a printable PDF.
Start with the Introduction and Understanding Basenjis chapters before reading more specialized topics. The chapters are self-contained, so you can also jump straight to a topic you need.
Starting out
Origin and History of the BasenjiThe breed's African origins, its first appearance in the West, and what makes the basenji a natural rather than a designed breed.
Understanding BasenjisYour Type of Dog? Temperament, intelligence, energy, independence, and what to expect day to day. Read this before deciding to bring one home.
Why Are Basenjis Barkless?Articles on the anatomy and behavior behind the basenji's distinctive vocalizations: yodels, screams, chortles, and the rest.
How to Find a BasenjiWhere to start looking, what to expect from a good breeder, and how to decide between a puppy and an adult rescue.
Bringing one home
Making Your Home SafeBasenji-proofing checklist and a shopping list of supplies to have on hand before the dog arrives.
Your New Basenji Comes HomeWhat to expect the first few days. House rules, introductions, and how to set the tone for the dog's new life.
Feeding Your New BasenjiFood choices, portions, supplements, what to avoid, and how to recognize allergies or intolerances.
Grooming Your BasenjiCoat care, nails, teeth, ears, and the basenji's well-known habit of grooming itself like a cat.
Day to day
Training Your BasenjiPositive-reinforcement training adapted to the basenji temperament. What works, what backfires, and where to find a class.
Activities for You and Your BasenjiAn overview of basenji-friendly sports and pastimes. A companion piece to the Activities pages on this site.
Travel and BoardingTaking a basenji on the road, finding the right boarding situation, and what to ask of a pet sitter.
About the BCOAWhat the Basenji Club of America does, what membership offers, and where the Club fits into the breed's support network.
Health and breeding
The Health of Your BasenjiAn owner-focused overview of the breed's health concerns and the testing your dog should have. A companion piece to the Basenji Health page on this site.
Health GlossaryPlain-language definitions of the medical terms used in basenji health discussions, from Fanconi to thyroid panels.
Should I Breed My Basenji?The questions to ask before breeding any dog, with the basenji-specific considerations that the BCOA hopes every prospective breeder thinks through.
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The Coloring Book
A 21-page coloring book created by the BCOA in 2009 for the basenji fans in your life. Each page is a printable drawing with a short message about how to treat and care for a basenji. Open or print whichever pages you like. Pencils, crayons, markers, or paint all welcome.
Click any thumbnail to open the print-ready PDF for that page. PDFs are sized for standard US letter paper.
Page 3 Welcome
Page 4 What is a basenji?
Page 5 Where do basenjis come from?
Page 6 The basenji's voice
Page 7 Basenji colors
Page 8 Wrinkles and ears
Page 9 Curly tails
Page 10 Basenji puppies
Page 11 Feeding your basenji
Page 12 Grooming your basenji
Page 13 Training your basenji
Page 14 Playing safe
Page 15 Basenjis at home
Page 16 Basenjis outdoors
Page 17 Basenji sports
Page 18 Lure coursing
Page 19 Agility
Page 20 Visiting the vet
Page 21 Older basenjis
Page 22 Saying goodbye
Page 23 More about basenjisDeveloped by the BCOA Public Education Committee in 2009 as a free educational resource. Feel free to print and share.
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Breed history
The Basenji Timeline traces the breed from cave paintings and ancient Egypt through Victorian-era documentation, the early 20th-century imports, AKC recognition in 1943, and the ongoing Native Stock Project that keeps the gene pool open to newly identified African dogs. Each entry in the timeline links to a deeper article where one exists.
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Recommended reading
Books about basenjis, the African environments they came from, fictional appearances, plus reference reading on feeding, training, and basenji-specific veterinary research. If you know of a book that should be included, let the BCOA know.
Books about the breed
General books about basenjis, guides to raising one, and compilations of titled basenjis.
Basenji Club of America, 1999. African Stock Project. BCOA. Binders with information on native-stock basenjis exported from Africa. Now continued as the Native Stock Project on the BCOA site.
Basenji Club of America, 1965. Year Book 1965. BCOA.
Basenji Club of New South Wales. Basenjis in Australasia. Photos and pedigrees from 1969-2005 in three volumes.
Bickering, B., and Brach, R. J., 1962. The Barkless Dog: A Handbook for the Basenji Owner. Exposition Press.
Camino Books Inc., 1988. Basenji Champions, 1982-1986. Camino E.E. & B. Co. Companion volumes cover 1945-1981, 1987-2003, and 2004-2011.
Cardew, Mirrie, 1979 and 1986. A Basenji For Me. Midlands Counties Publications.
Cole, Robert W., 1977. The Basenji Illustrated. Limited first edition published by author. 1987, The Basenji Stacked and Moving. Cole Book Imprint. Reissued 1996 by Doral Publishing.
Coe, Susan, 1990. The Basenji, Out of Africa to You. Doral. Reissued 1994 and updated 2000.
Cotter, Maria W., 1996. The Secondhand Basenji Handbook. Windigo.
Cunliffe, Juliette, 2002 and 2005. Basenji. Interpet Publishing, then Kennel Club Books.
Evergreen Basenji Club, 1986. Basenji Owners Manual. EBC. Updated many times since.
Ford, Elspet, 1993. The Complete Basenji. Ringpress.
Freund, Jan L., 1986. Basenji Champions, 1945-1981. Camino E.E.
Green, Evelyn M., 1976. Your Basenji. Denlinger's.
Johnson, Forrest Bryant, 1967. The Ancient History of the Basenji. Self-published.
Johnson, Forrest Bryant, 1970, revised 1978 and 1991. Basenji, Dog from the Past. The 1991 edition is from A Thousand Autumns Press.
Kenworthy, Mary Lou, 1990. So You Want to Buy a Basenji, So You Want to Course Your Basenji, and So You Want to Enjoy Your Basenji. Three booklets published by author.
Kenworthy, Mary Lou, 1998. Understanding the Practical Application of Genetics. Published by author.
Kenworthy, Mary Lou, 2006. Basenjis (Complete Pet Owners Manual). Barron's Educational Series.
Limouzy, Christian, 1996. Le Basenji. De Vecchi.
Löwbeer, Mia, Fornell, Lotten, and Selinus, Elisabet, 1997. Basenji Champions 1951-1996 i Sverige. M. Löwbeer.
Palukka, Petra, 2007. Basenji Suomen Suosituimmat Koirarodut. Perhemediat.
Polyakova, Kseniya, 2007. Basenji: The Gift of Far Africa (БАСЕНДЖИ. ДАР ДАЛЕКОЙ АФРИКИ). The first book about basenjis published in Russian.
Shafer, Jack, and Mankey, Bob, 1966. How to Raise and Train a Basenji. T.F.H. Publications.
Shafer, Jack, and Mankey, Bob, 1990. Basenjis. T.F.H. Publications.
Steele, Marie E., and Field, Barbara A., 1967. At Home with Basenjis. Self-published. Reissued in 1988 as Living with Basenjis. Expanded and revised in 2014 as At Home with Basenjis, available as a Kindle book.
Russell, Melody, and Coe, Susan, 1980. The Years of the American Basenji. Self-published binders of photos and pedigrees of American titled basenjis.
Tudor-Williams, Veronica, 1946. Basenjis, The Barkless Dog. Self-published. The red-cover edition. Additional editions in 1954 (blue cover) and 1976 as Basenjis, The Barkless Dogs of Central Africa, David & Charles, London.
Tudor-Williams, Veronica, 1988. Fula: Basenji from the Jungle. Published by the author.
Wilson-Stringer, Jayne, and Ford, Elspet, 1978. Basenji Champions 1937-1977 and Basenji Champions 1978-1989. Self-published each.
Basenjis in Africa
A sampling of books with information about basenjis in their native habitat. The older volumes help reconstruct how basenjis lived in Africa and how the breed was used in hunting.
Allan, Doug, 1962. Facing Danger in the Last Wilderness. Rolton House.
Bellotti, Felice, 1954. Fabulous Congo. Andrew Dakers Ltd., translated from Italian.
Cloete, Stuart, 1955. The African Giant: The Story of a Journey. Houghton Mifflin.
Denis, Michaela, 1955. Leopard in My Lap. Messner.
Duffy, Kevin, 1984. Children of the Forest: Africa's Mbuti Pygmies. Dodd, Mead.
Epstein, Hellmut, and Mason, Ian Lauder, 1971. The Origin of the Domestic Animals of Africa, Volume 1. Africana Pub. Corp.
de Bylandt, Henri comte, 1905. Dogs of All Nations. Kegan Paul, Trench Trübner & Company.
Gaisseau, Pierre-Dominique, 1954. The Sacred Forest: Magic and Secret Rites in French Guinea. Knopf.
Hallet, Jean-Pierre, 1964. Congo Kitabu. Random House.
Hallet, Jean-Pierre, and Pelle, Alex, 1973. Pygmy Kitabu. Random House.
Hare, Brian, and Woods, Vanessa, 2013. The Genius of Dogs. Dutton Adult (Penguin Group). One chapter follows a group of basenji fanciers obtaining new foundation stock from Africa.
Hausman, Gerald, 2001. Dogs of Myth: Tales from Around the World. Scholastic.
Hilton-Simpson, Melville W., 1910. Land and Peoples of the Kasai. Royal Geographical Society, London.
Kenney, Lona B., 1972. Mboka: A Congo Memoir. Crown Publisher.
Kingsley, Mary, 1897. Travels in West Africa. Republished by National Geographic, 2002.
Leakey, Louis B., 1969. Animals of East Africa. National Geographic Society.
Leighton, Robert, 1907. The New Book of the Dog. References to the Congo Terrier.
Myers, Rev. J. B., 1895. The Congo for Christ. S.W. Partridge & Co.
Quamman, David, 1988. The Flight of the Iguana. Anchor Books.
Schebesta, Paul, 1932. Among Congo Pigmies. Hutchinson. Four editions, 1932-1977.
Schweinfurth, Georg, 1878. Im Herzen von Afrika. F. A. Brockhaus. Translated as The Heart of Africa by Oxford University Press.
Trefflich, Henry, and Anthony, Edward, 1967. Jungle for Sale. Hawthorne Books. Trefflich was the importer of foundation basenjis Kindu and Kasenyi.
Turnbull, Colin M., 1961. The Forest People. Chatto & Windus, London.
Vlahos, Olivia, 1967. African Beginnings. Viking Press.
Wheeler, William F., 2000. Efe Pygmies: Archers of the African Rain Forest. Rizzoli.
Basenjis in fiction
Fictional books that feature basenjis prominently, plus a longer list of works where basenjis appear as a smaller part of the story.
Part 1: Basenjis as a central character
Anderson, Angela, editor, 1998. Yodels, Wails and Basenji Tails. Pam Maremont.
Badon, Celia L., 1995. The Homecoming. Northeast Pub. Science fiction featuring two basenjis.
Basenji Rescue and Transport, 2013. The Cookbook of Brats.
Benjamin, Carol Lea, 1996. This Dog for Hire. Dell. A detective in search of a missing basenji.
Chandler, Ruth Forbes, 1961. Middle Island Mystery. Abelard-Schuman.
Coe, Jon and Susan, 1975. Curly Tales and Other Basenji Nonsense. Self-published.
Hamon, Jane, 2006. Pip. Trafford Publishing. A young boy and his basenji during the Trail of Tears.
Hingley, Michael, 1997. Reigning Cats and Dogs: History Redrawn. Howell Book House.
Kennedy, Pamela, 2005. Rou's Tips for Basenjis. Self-published.
Korolev, Nick, 2000. Kifri, The Dog that Chose to Live with Man. Xlibris Corp.
Putman, Lisa, 2013. Bad Basenji. New Classic Publications.
Slater, Cynthia, 2008. Qtutu Follows Through: Tales of an African Basenji. Authorhouse.
Starbuck, Veronica Anne, 2000. Heart of the Savannah. Windigo Harbor Media. Sequel: Autumn Magic.
Street, James, 1954. Goodbye, My Lady. J. B. Lippincott Co. The classic basenji story, later made into a film.
Vavra, Robert, 1958. Canis Basenji. BCOA.
Woodard, Marcia, 2010. Collected Kona: Brief Takes on a Basenji. Tiny Tiny Press.
Wylie, Jill, 1979. Call of the Marsh: Life with a Basenji. Books of Rhodesia.
Part 2: Brief basenji appearances
Anthony, Piers, 1987. Shade of the Tree. Tor.
Cavanna, Betty, 1952. Pick of the Litter: Betty Cavanna's Favorite Dog Stories. Westminster Press.
Cleveland, Simon, 2004. The Basenji Revelation. Lulu Press.
Cockburn, Patricia, 1985. Figure of Eight. Chatto & Windus.
Darling, Tara, and Darling, Kathy, 1995. In Praise of Dogs: A Photo Tribute. Howell Book House.
Ernshwiller, Carol, 2004. Carmen Dog. Small Beer Press.
Goudsouzian, Aram, 2004. Sidney Poitier: Man, Actor, Icon. UNC Press.
Han, Suyin, 1952. A Many Splendored Thing. Little, Brown.
Leeds, Joshua, and Wagner, Susan, 2008. Through a Dog's Ear. Sounds True. Cover features two basenjis.
Mehra, Jagdish, 1994. The Beat of a Different Drum: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman. Clarendon Press.
Rendell, Ruth, 1992. The Copper Peacock. Arrow.
Smith, Martin, 2007. Compass and Stars. Seabury Books.
References on feeding
The BCOA does not endorse any particular feeding system. Experienced breeders have suggested the references below for owners who want to read further.
Billinghurst, Dr. Ian, 1993. Give Your Dog a Bone. I. Billinghurst.
Brown, Steve, 2009. Unlocking the Ancestral Diet. Direct Book Service.
Case, Linda P., Daristotle, Leighann, Hayek, Michael G., and Raasch, Melody Foess, 2010. Canine and Feline Nutrition. Mosby.
Johnson, Susan K., 2001. Switching to Raw: A Fresh Food Diet for Dogs that Makes Sense. Birchrun Basics.
Lonsdale, Tom, 2001. Raw Meaty Bones. Dogwise Publishing.
MacDonald, Carina, 2003. Raw Dog Food: Make It Easy for You and Your Dog. Direct Book Service.
Schultze, Kymythy R., 1999. Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats: The Ultimate Diet. Hay House.
Raw feeding is an evolving field with a great deal of information online. Dr. Mercola's site is one long-standing source.
Training and behavior
The BCOA does not endorse any particular trainers or associations. The directories below have been suggested by basenji breeders to help owners find a qualified trainer or behavior consultant.
Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers. Certificants meet qualifications to sit for a written exam and re-certify every three years.
Karen Pryor Academy. A six-month online and hands-on program.
Association of Professional Dog Trainers. Professional members must have a recognized certification.
International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants.
Animal Behavior Society. Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists hold a masters or doctorate plus supervised experience.
Research and reference
A starting bibliography of peer-reviewed veterinary research that involves the basenji breed. Most of these papers appear in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association and can be retrieved through PubMed by author and year.
Ewing, G. O., Schalm, O. W., and Smith, R. S. Hematologic values of normal Basenji dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1972 Dec 15; 161(12): 1661-4.
Breitschwerdt, E. B., Ochoa, R., and Waltman, C. Multiple endocrine abnormalities in Basenji dogs with renal tubular dysfunction. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1983 Jun 15; 182(12): 1348-53.
Easley, J. R., and Breitschwerdt, E. B. Glucosuria associated with renal tubular dysfunction in three Basenji dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1976 May 15; 168(10): 938-43.
Roberts, S. R., and Bistner, S. I. Persistent pupillary membrane in Basenji dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1968 Sep 1; 153(5): 533-42.
Tasker, J. B., Severin, G. A., Young, S., and Gillette, E. L. Familial anemia in the Basenji dog. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1969 Jan 15; 154(2): 158-65.
Breitschwerdt, E. B., Waltman, C., Hagstad, H. V., Ochoa, R., McClure, J., and Barta, O. Clinical and epidemiologic characterization of a diarrheal syndrome in Basenji dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1982 Apr 15; 180(8): 914-20.
Ewing, G. O. Familial nonspherocytic hemolytic anemia of Basenji dogs. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1969 Mar 1; 154(5): 503-7.
Noonan, C. H., and Kay, J. M. Prevalence and geographic distribution of Fanconi syndrome in Basenjis in the United States. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1990 Aug 1; 197(3): 345-9.
Rudd, R. G., Whitehair, J. G., and Leipold, H. W. Spindle cell sarcoma in the kidney of a dog. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1991 Mar 15; 198(6): 1023-4.
For current basenji health research and testing protocols, see the Basenji Health page and the Basenji Health Endowment.
Is a book missing? Let the BCOA know so this list can be updated.
For Owners
Welcome to the world of basenjis. The material below is the BCOA's home-study program for new and prospective owners. It starts with what basenjis are really like, how to find one, and how to raise a puppy that grows up to be a good companion.
On this page: Is a basenji right for me? · The Owner's Handbook · The Coloring Book · Breed history · Recommended reading