Basenji

Hound Breeds Afghan Hound Basenji Basset Fauve de Bretagne Basset Griffon Vendeen,Grand Basset Griffon Vendeen, Petit Basset Hound Beagle Bloodhound Borzoi Dachshund, Miniature Long Hair Dachshund, Miniature Wire Hair Dachshund, Miniature Smooth Hair Dachshund, Standard Long Hair Dachshund, Standard Wire Hair Dachshund, Standard Smooth Hair Deerhound Elkhound Finnish Spitz Foxhound Grand Bleu de Gascogne Greyhound Hamiltonstovare Ibizan Hound Irish Wofhound Norwegian Lundehund Otterhound Pharaoh Hound Rhodesian Ridgeback Saluki Segugio Italiano Sloughi Whippet

The Basenji is a striking smart medium-sized dog with his distinctive tightly curled tail lying over his back and the clearly defined solid colours with white.  He is known as the barkless dog and instead makes a curious yodelling noise. With his pricked ears and alert and inquiring expression the Basenji looks very intelligent and curious.  He is believed to have been the Palace dog of the Pharaohs and distinctly similar dogs are depicted in Ancient Egyptian tombs.  There are bas-relief likenesses of him from 4000BC  and there is a bronze statue of a man and a dog extremely like the modern Basenji, including the wrinkled forehead,  at the Metropolitan Museum in New York dated at 300BC.

Basenji were seen in Central Africa in the 17th century and were recently used there in packs to drive game into nets; they also earned their keep by killing vermin and hunting game. 

The first breeding pair of Basenjis, Bongo and Bokoto of Blean,  were imported into Britain in 1936 and generated considerable interest; there had been earlier imports, but they had no natural immunity to distemper, then a widespread killer of dogs, and all died. Before settling on Basenji as the breed name they were variously called Lagos Bush Dogs and Congo Terriers.

His great virtue as a housedog is the cat-like approach to cleanliness; the Basenji washes his feet and is virtually odourless.  In addition to their cat-like attention to hygiene they can also be very agile climbers, and certainly some find a chain-link fence more like a ladder than a security measure!

Although he is aloof with strangers his lack of a bark limits his effectiveness as a guard dog.  However, the yodelling can be quite a penetrating sound.  As with most hounds he saves his shows of affection for his own family.  

The Kennel Club requires that breeding stock is examined under the BVA/KC Scheme.

The Basenji's coat is easily cared for; a bristle brush to remove dust and dead coat and a chamois leather to bring up the shine.  Chalk on the white areas is very effective, though it must be brushed out thoroughly.  Also, as with most breeds, a little boiled linseed oil in the feed daily brings out a real shine. 

To read the Kennel Club Breed Standard for the Basenji, click here.

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Breed Clubs

• BASENJI CLUB OF GREAT BRITAIN Mrs J M Savage 01362 821445 
• BASENJI OWNERS & BREEDERS ASSOC Mrs C Wright 0181 460 4732 
• NORTHERN BASENJI SOCIETY Mr L Siddall 01422 844393 

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Basenji Rescue

Contact a Breed Club. They should all be able to give you information about hounds requiring homes and procedures for re-homing; if you are in the unfortunate position of having to re-home your own hound, please go through breed rescue. They will not be judgmental and are best able to find the right permanent home for your hound.

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Basenji Puppies and Breeders

Puppies and dog breeders have moved to our newly re-designed Puppyfinder website where we have full page advertisements for puppies and the opportunity for breeders to have their own profile pages and blog. No designer breeds or puppy farmers, just breeders who care about their dogs as much as you do.

Adding Your Kennel

Ethical breeders are invited to register their kennel on Puppyfinder for just £10 pa, including litter listing, litters planned and stud dog.