Merry Christmas 2013

To our basenji friends far and near, the ones we’ve met in person and the ones we know online, to those who find forever homes
for basenjis in need, and those who adopt basenjis and give them a second chance
for love and a family, to all of you
we send our very best wishes for a
Merry Christmas and a wonderful new year.

(Click on the link below for our photo card.)

Merry Christmas 2013

Christmas Decorating

Years ago when all we had was greyhounds, our Christmas tree had beautiful ornaments on it.  Some would spin, some would sparkle, all would be pretty.  We had shimmery garland on the tree that shone like diamonds when the lights were lit.  In those days we had a little magnetic skating rink, you’ve seen them.  The people of the town would skate around in circles and figure 8s and the little trees would dot the bank around the pond.  In those days we wrapped gifts and carefully put them under the tree where they would stay undisturbed for the week or so before being unwrapped.  We had a precious little nativity scene complete with the barn and straw which my mother-in-law had carefully made and placed the baby, the wise men, the kings, the sheep, and especially the straw.

Well, guess what?  We still have greyhounds but have added 3 basenjis to the mix.  No ornaments, only silk poinsettias.  No garland.  No skating rink as all the towns people lost their arms and magnets and the trees where destroyed by some natural disaster known as hurricane basenji.  And certainly no nicely wrapped packages under the tree until we are only minutes from ripping the paper off ourselves.  The nativity scene was just too full of tasty straw to be left alone so it is carefully packed and safely stored in the attic until we move into a house where we can place it up very very high.

So Christmas decorating has changed but because we love our little furry family we are very much ok with the changes.

Judy Murray

December Birthdays

December is birthday month in our house.  This year Shaka turn eight on December 13, and Audrey turns six on December 15.

It has been a good year with both being healthy and getting a clean bill of health from the vet on December 5 for their semi-annual physical.

After two and a half years of Audrey having hotspots and issues with her coat, it is finally just about perfect.  A great way to end the year.

Head Licking

I don't think it's unusual that my basenjis like to lick heads; from what I hear it's a pretty normal basenji "quirk."  I always thought it was because most peoples' foreheads are slightly salty, so that's what draws the dog to lick. But if that's true, then why is my basenji Biko obsessed with licking our new baby's head??? Take a look:

As you can see, the baby isn't too happy when Biko licks his head, so I try not to let it happen, but sometimes it's hard not to because it's just too funny!  Maybe the dog is trying to "groom" the baby as would a mother dog with its young?  I don't know, but I think we're going to have to teach Biko that the baby isn't a puppy :-) 

We Celebrate Tuesdays

 

We celebrate Tuesdays. We celebrate quiet miracles of normalcy because they are the moments of joy we build our lives on. Not fireworks, not New Year’s Eve, not grand glittering events, but the small smiles, the sighs of contentment. We celebrate tail wags, snuggles, baroos, and “talking” from our babies. We savor the sight of them lying in the sun, or sprawling in the grass. We caress soft ears and rub endearingly freckled tummies. We bury our faces in their sweet fur. We live our lives in small fleeting seconds of joy.

We celebrate Tuesdays and evenings when the sky is so clear we can see stars everywhere. We rejoice in perfect vibrant leaves falling in our backyard as the Munchkins jubilantly assist in raking multi-colored mountains. We celebrate the owl who visits our pine trees. We applaud the ordinary, which isn’t; we marvel at the normal, and we count our blessings during our usual evenings snuggled together.

Our Munchkins are now seniors with health issues, and we tweak their routines a bit, change their diets, make no plans to travel.  Their walks are shorter and they let us know when they’re ready to go home. We try to make changes almost before they are needed to make life easier for the Munchkins.

 Although she still leaps and twirls when her food is about to be served, Dasa gets tired and sometimes has difficulty jumping onto the people bed with its high mattress. We added  small carpeted pet stairs by the sofa and bed.  She looks askance at these new things. It takes Dasa a while to get used to anything new, so the stairs are there waiting, giving her suspicions time to fade. Gradually, our little Doodle will realize these new obstacles a) will not eat her and b) might be handy to have around.

I’ve been using treats and a clicker to coax her up the steps. I’m having some success with this, although she is still not sure this is a good idea.  Ivan leaps onto the bed, taking the fast track to the treats. Dasa follows the treats step by step, but she has the air of someone who is patiently humoring me, hoping I’ll tire of this new game. 

 

 

We celebrated little Doodle’s 14th birthday on November 22.  I believe 11/22/99 is among the luckiest of numbers, bringing most uncommonly good fortune and blessing us with Dasa. And yet, and yet, time runs merrily along, a river of days, hours, bright moments rushing past us. Time is a force stronger than gravity. The speed of sound, the speed of light, the speed of life. All those moments we try to savor flow through our fingers and somehow, we are miles and years from where we were such a short while ago.

We celebrate because the day comes, and always too soon, when ordinary, simple, usual, small joys and routines are replaced by heartache and oh how we wish for ordinary once again. So we hold our dear ones close, and we celebrate Tuesdays.

Cammie's Corner revolves to River's Run

It is with mixed emotions that I post this blog.  It has been quite awhile since there has been a post under the pen name of Cammie's Corner. Cammie was diagnosed with renal failure in late 2011.  After a lengthy year of many vet visits, Cammie was assisted across the rainbow bridge on April 17, 2013.

Cammie

Needless to say the first few days were quite difficult - no one to walk, no one to feed, no hearing of the paws prancing across the floor.  Thus, the search for another Basenji ensued.  Since there were no BRATs in the Southern Ohio area, we started searching shelters.  A basenji was found in a rescue organization in Detroit, Michigan.  I reached out to my known BRAT contact in Michigan via Facebook - Suzanne.  The rescue organization would not adopt outside of an hour radius of Detroit.  However............... Suzanne tells me about a foster Basenji she has had about a week.  After much discussion between Suzanne, Beth, and my husband, we officially adopted River 3 days later and picked him up on April 27th. 

River's ride home

Hence, the change from Cammie's Corner to River's Run. 

Now, for the fun part..... adjusting to a new forever home.  River came with lots of paperwork.  In reading through all of the paperwork, it was discovered River somehow had quite a run through BRAT.  He was brought into BRAT as a 6 month old puppy in his home state of Missouri.  He then proceeded to live in Virginia and Illinois.  In doing all the counting in his 6 yrs, we were his 6th family and his 3rd forever home.

Hence, River's Run through the adjustment period began once again.  River is hoping we will be able to share his adjustment over the coming months on the blog in order to help others understand how to address the challenges of adjusting to a forever home.  So until next time...please welcome River to the blog.

Dear BRAT volunteer,

 

2013 is rapidly coming to a close.  This has been an active year for BRAT and we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for being a part of it. 

Maybe you fostered one or more dogs during the year.  Perhaps you coordinated the placement of dogs or helped write up the descriptions of these dogs for the website.  You may have done home visits, assisted in transports, screened new applicants, checked shelters, or helped in any variety of activities.  It is the volunteers who make it possible for BRAT to help basenjis in need. 

BRAT recognizes that not every person who wants to help has the time to do so.  Some people with the time to actively participate still feel that they could do more.  BRAT appreciates every volunteer, no matter their level of participation.

If you haven't had the opportunity to get actively involved in BRAT yet, we encourage you to keep your eyes open for volunteer opportunities.  If your schedule is too busy for a high level of volunteer work, or if you feel that you want or are able to do more, please consider a donation to BRAT in your year-end giving.  We have many ways to donate; please visit our website to choose the one most convenient for you. http://www.basenjirescue.org/Donate.htm

A copy of our 2012 tax return may be viewed here: http://www.basenjirescue.org/990s/990s.htm

A full list of our recent donors (updated quarterly) can be seen here: http://basenjirescue.org/Donors.htm

Thank you for all you do for BRAT.  We are deeply grateful for your continued support.  We wish you a happy holiday season and a prosperous and healthy new year!

Sincerely, 

BRAT Board of Directors 

Liz Newton 

Debbi Johnson 

Jackie Kuhwarth 

Chey Miller 

Roberta Kosek