Basenjis and Anesthesia

"About to take my B to get her teeth cleaned and a little nervous about her going to sleep for it - should I worry...?"

So queried one of our adopters recently on BRAT's Facebook page. 

To ease her mind, I sent her to the doggie dental page on BRAT's website, http://www.basenjirescue.org/Chey_Miller/Dental/dental.html. I actually wrote that page because I had been in the same quandary when Ruby had to have her teeth cleaned for the first time. My vet was a great guy -- he allowed me to come into the surgery to watch and photograph the procedure. One of the important points made was that Basenjis should be treated with the same anesthetic protocol as Greyhounds, because of the similar way they metabolize drugs.

My webpage was written in 2005. When another Facebook reader replied that medical warnings issued for sighthounds are intended for dogs of "Greyhound-type descent", not necessarily for Basenjis, I decided to ask around, just in case the guidelines had changed.

Well, in a way, yes, they have. Some vets felt they were being bashed for not using the 'Sighthound Protocol', when in fact, it's not so much breed that must be taken into consideration as it is the fat-to muscle ratio of the individual dog. Sighthounds, as a rule, are lean and fast, with more muscle than fat.  Although the Basenji is not a Greyhound, Whippet, or Saluki, it does, naturally, have less fat than, say, a Laborador Retriever or a German Shepherd.  And, it has been documented that 'sighthound breeds' are more sensitive to some of the ultra short-acting thiobarbiturate induction drugs. 

Most deaths secondary to anesthesia that occur in sighthounds can be attributed to older generation drugs and anesthetic agents, particularly thiopental, pentobarbital, and halothane. These are all fat-soluble drugs, which is to say they are preferentially absorbed by fat. As the drugs are absorbed by fat, the concentration in the brain and bloodstream is decreased and eventually eliminated. However, because sighthounds have so little fat, the concentrations remain high in blood and brain tissue, which results in deep sedation and prolonged recovery.

Fortunately, there are a number of safe, short-acting drugs, incuding Propofol, or a combination of diazepam and ketamine; and the newest inhalant anesthetics, Isoflurane and Sevoflurane are also quickly eliminated from the lungs.

So, the simple answer to the question of whether to use a sighthound anesthesia protocol for your Basenji is yes - but if your Basenji is on the chunky side, he or she will most likely do just fine on the anesthesia protocol your vet normally uses and has the most experience with.

Equally important is that you always opt for pre-surgical blood work to identify any underlying issues with kidneys or liver that could compromise your Basenji's surgical outcome. Don't gamble with his life by skimping on cost!

Sooner or later, your Basenji probably will require professional dental care. In the meantime, watch the  'junk food', get into the habit of brushing your Basenji's teeth regularly (with specially formulated dog toothpaste, not Colgate or Crest!), and remember that anesthesia safety is all about fat-to-muscle ratio.

Does your Basenji look like sweet little 'plus size' Nicky? Your vet's 'regular' anesthesia of choice is mostly likely a safe one.  Incidentally, Nicky, owned and loved by Anne and Don MacMillan, is 16 years old and still 'bouncy'!

(photo by Donald MacMillan)

On the other hand, if your Basenji is built more like somewhat thinner Ruby, be sure to ask your vet to use the 'sighthound anesthesia protocol'. 

What’s in a Name?

We adopted Baki in January of 2005 from Helping Hands Rescue in Gainesville, Florida.  They had named him Baki, a word that means balance in Swahili (or so they told us).  He was such a good boy that they thought that name worked well.   We are not big on changing our rescues’ names.  Too lazy I guess.  So his name has remained Baki, and he is still our most mentally balanced basenji.

 

Several years ago we were at an off leash dog park in Gainesville with our three basenjis and our two greyhounds.  My husband was talking to a nice young couple with their approximately 7 year old daughter and two beagle puppies.  The little girl was enamored of the greyhounds, as they were just the right height, and she loved the basenjis and their tails.  “So cute,” she said.  My husband explained to the little girl’s father that basenjis are African dogs and that they don’t bark.  The little girl asked what each dog’s name was and my husband told her.  We were leashing them up to head home and the little girl came over to me and said, “I know this one’s name,” pointing to one of the greyhounds.  “Lady” she said.  I told her she was absolutely right.  Then she pointed to Baki and with a very, very excited look on her face, she said, “Oh, I get it.  He doesn’t bark so you named him Barki!”  To this day we mostly call him Barki, Mr. Barker, or just plain Barker ,and he answers to those names every bit as well as he does Baki!

~ Judy Murray

 

Mr. Barker not barking

 

June surprises

Well June brought pleasant surprises for Nina, my BRAT, and Seamus, my senior B. Nina turned 5 and we celebrated by taking a trip to the vet, which was a HUGE surprise for me because although she lets me do NOTHING to her at home, I feared the worst at the vet.  But she was an angel!!! Vax, ear check, and a nail trim, and she behaved herself all the way through!!! I was shocked. Being a vet tech myself, I was a bit embarrassed that Nina won't let me do these things myself, but the vet said that Nina just "has my number." I guess so!

 

Next, off to the dog park we went for their first time. Seamus hasn't been around other dogs except mine since his puppyhood, and he's 10 now, so I was a but unsure about how he'd react. But they both loved it!!  I think they like the under-25lb side better (my dogs are a big bunch, weighing in at 24 and 28 lbs respectively).  Altogether, it was a great day, and what pleasant surprises for the month of June :)

 

 

 

-Mandy Hazen

The Royals and Their Servants

I thought, like the royalty they are, Ivan and Dasa would not soil their little white paws with common coinage. Food, chewies, and toys materialize because they wish it. Do Queen Elizabeth  and Prince Philip carry cash? Do they have to dash out to get provisions when the palace snack supply runs low? Of course not. They have servants to pay the pizza delivery guy or take the DiGiorno’s out of the oven. They have servants to take care of all the dreary common details and cheerfully provide their every want and need. A cushy pillow or three? At once. More soft blankets and warm sweaters? As you wish. I had no idea Ivan and Dasa were aware money existed.

How little I know. On a recent visit, my sister Susan dropped her little clutch on the kitchen table so she could properly greet Ivan and Dasa. I saw this out of the corner of my eye, but my warning stalled somewhere in the neural process. We walked into the next room to get a book she wanted to borrow. This took seconds, seconds, yet when we turned around Ivan was jubilantly clutching a twenty and the purse was under the table. I traded for a treat, and Susan said, "Poor Ivan. Mom needs to give you more allowance."

Like royalty, they are never at fault and the servants take the blame.

Safe Gardening with the Munchkins

We do not use pesticide or herbicide in our back yard. Pesticide is bad for the Munchkins, but herbicide is really bad because they walk through it, lick their paws, etc. We look for safe alternatives when confronted with back yard woes.

In any event, we are not slaves to our lawn, and we certainly don't lose sleep over lawn care. I mow the lawn, but I don't polish the grass the way our retired next door neighbor does. (I suspect we are a secret sorrow for him.) As long as there’s grass for the munchkins to frolic, roll, or sprawl in, we aren't concerned with how it looks.

The occasional weed or dandelion is either pulled, ignored, or killed with vinegar. Vinegar kills grass too, so I usually pull up the dandelion, which breaks off at the root and then I pour a bit of vinegar directly onto the root. It dies. A simple and satisfying solution.

To keep small dogs from digging in damp dirt or uprooting plants that have offended them in some way, I pour copious amounts of black pepper over the tempting areas.

To prevent mystery creatures from eating our tomatoes, I paint the bottoms of ripe tomatoes with hot sauce. I don't concern myself with green tomatoes, these beasties don’t bother to climb over the back fence and snack on my tomatoes until they're nearly ready to pick. I paint only the bottoms of the tomatoes and don’t get any hot sauce on the tomato plant itself because it will burn the leaves and turn them brown.

Snail bait is toxic to dogs, so we've found a very effective solution: Beer. We dig small holes near the basil and put little cups in them so the tops are flush with the ground. Then we fill the cups with cheap beer. (Truly, get the cheapest stuff you can find. Save the craft beer for more sophisticated palates.) Snails crawl into the beer and die happy.

This year our back yard has more unwanted guests—snails. We went out to admire our newly planted basil, and to our horror discovered huge holes in the leaves. Further investigation revealed snails to be the culprits.

Two Small Dogs are only exposed to a potential snack of basil flavored snails marinated in beer. Fortunately, Ivan and Dasa do not slurp up this mixture. Every couple of days, we empty the cups behind the back fence and fill them with more beer. And so it goes. The basil seems to be recovering, and we’re making the world safe for the Munchkins, one drunken snail at a time.

Running with Basenjis

Many people have asked me how I trained my basenjis to run with me.  I always respond that it's not so much that they dogs are "trained," as it is that we've learned what to expect from one another while we run.  On a walk, the dogs are absolutely incorrigible -- they constantly cross my path to sniff a mailbox or a tree, they pull this way and that, they go faster or slower (or stop like a ton of bricks) depending on where their little noses lead them.  But on a run this just wouldn't work, because I'd constantly be tripping over them, yanking them forward, or yanking my arm off when they decide to go a different direction than me.  So to make running with basenjis possible, my dogs and I have taught each other a few things:

1. When we're running, we're not allowed to stop unless it's at one of our regular potty points.  I know which trees and corners my dogs absolutely cannot resist, so I just give in and plan to stop for 10-30 seconds at those points to allow them to sniff and pee.
2. When we're running, I always keep one eye on the dogs and one eye out for potential dogs/cats/rabbits/squirrels/kids on skateboards.  If it looks like they're getting distracted by a scent or if I see something coming up that I know they're going to chase, I tell them "this way!" while simultaneously bracing for it just in case they don't listen.  Most of the time they do, but sometimes a squirrel is just too tempting to pass up :-)
3. When we're running, the dogs can either run ahead of me or to the side of me, but they are not allowed to cross my path.  If it looks like they're veering too close to center (or if I see something to my right that I know is going to draw them), I take a few stomping footsteps with my left foot and tell them "Left!" to remind them to stay on their own side.  A few times I have accidentally stepped on little paws and/or tripped over the dogs altogether when I wasn't paying attention, but it's actually been a good lesson because the dogs have learned to stay on their own side when we're going fast. 
4. No matter what, we avoid sewers and manhole covers like the plague.  Sewers are obviously off-limits for dogs because we don't want any little paws getting stuck in the grate, but for some reason my dogs are also terrified of closed manhole covers, and if I'm not paying attention they will suddenly bolt across my path to avoid one.  Better to just keep an eye out for them and steer clear in the first place! 

While I know that most of these tactics are probably not in the Caesar Milan handbook for how to properly walk your dog, I've found that most basenjis are just never going to be able to follow "typical" doggie obedience behaviors.  But I also know that a tired basenji is a good basenji, and since both the dogs and I like to run, I figured that it makes sense to do it together.  By trial and error we have figured out how to make that work, and so every day the dogs wait anxiously for me to come home from work so we can embark on our daily 3-mile jog around the neighborhood! 

Convention from Basenjis' Viewpoint

We humans spend months planning the BRAT convention attempting to present programs that are interesting and educational for the stationmasters and adopters.  All attendees spend much of two days sitting in meeting rooms set up seminar style soaking up as much information as possible.  At our sides or sharing our chairs our basenjis wait for the meeting to be over so they can have some "real fun". 

This year Rick has planned events to get the basenjis out and moving.  Lure coursing and agility will be set up at a safely fenced park.  For those looking for activities requiring less energy, there is a fenced courtyard at the hotel where we can sit and visit.  A nearby dog park will be available to those whose basenjis want a place to run and play. Also available are some tours of local wineries where the b's are welcome.

I have to wonder what the basenjis think when surrounded by their own kind and being the stars of the event?  The following is a collection of pictures from past conventions.

 Wow, lots of friends to play with.

Oh, look!  Here come some more!

 

 

I am tired mom.  Please rock me to sleep.

 

How much longer is this person going to talk?

 Um, mom, I need to go outside.

 

Can I just sit out the next session?