The Rip Van Wrinkler,
Volume XIV, Issue 4, November 2010

Page 16 <previous page< < next page>


M Tracking

Feedback. . .

Our Facebook page


Nora Hess

July 20th, 2010

Dear Susan,

I received a check from the RVW Treasurer to help with the

field fees for the Glenville site -- thank you so much for your generosity!  Your donation will help tremendously as our little club continues to try to get off the ground.

Thank you again…………………….……….DENISE COMO


July 28th, 2010

Hi Susan!

Still reading and love it!

Oh My God, I cried my eyes out last night reading about Ruby and Chauncey having to be put down.  I'm going to be completely inconsolable when the time comes for Cody and Karly.  They are my first dogs and I cried myself to sleep last night just thinking about it.  Cody has really begun to show his age, even though he is not quite 12 years old.  All those years of jumping 20 inches in agility has definitely caught up with him.  Karly has slowed down as well, and after our morning run they pretty much just sleep the rest of the day.  I know I will someday get another Basenji puppy or two, but just don't want to take away from my first babies retirement years.

Thanks for all you do with your B's!...............DEBORAH JOSLIN


August 1st, 2010

Hi Susan, 

Another fabulous job on the Wrinkler!!..........DONNA HESS


September, 2010

Update on Florida rescues

Debbi Johnson:

It has been a long time since the last update. Only two of the young pups who would like to stick together are still looking for their forever home. The rest of the pups are spread all over the country in 17 states  from California to Massachusetts to Florida. Four moms are in other foster homes, getting more attention than they were here. One adult male and one adult female are enjoying the good life in their forever homes. The remaining ten adults (three of which are just about a year old) are still with me. They have been having a really good time while waiting for me to prepare them for the next phase of their lives. I am starting to get caught up on a few things, so it must be time to spread myself a bit thin again - it's time to get them ready to move on!

These guys never cease to amaze me. I decided that it was time for them to sit for their meals. In just a couple of days, the six I started first were reliably sitting for meals. The other four are also sitting at this time, but are still a bit intimidated, giving me looks as if to say "I don't know why I'm doing this, but I see everyone else does it..." Hogan, the growler turned man's best friend, actually sits on command for strangers - and doesn't necessarily require a treat! Of course, rewards are always preferred. After planning to start one at a time on the leash,

I have started their leash education for the whole group. It involves several steps of desensitizing that flows naturally with mealtime. Several are progressing very quickly and will be ready to go on more adventures soon. Hogan has turned into a wonderful boy who is the first to try everything. He sets a great example for the rest of the pack, and seems to be accepting new things more quickly every day.

I have started to update their webpage on the BRAT site. All of the  pack will be posted on this page, though those that are fostered in different states may be posted in their foster home state as well. 

There are certain characteristics that are very common in the pack, so anyone interested in a basenji from the Wimauma Pack should read the generic posting at the BRAT site.

I will be adding individual details for each basenji to the website, so check back frequently for updates. They are a very active, healthy, strong and lively group that is having a fantastic time chasing squirrels and rats while learning the basics of life with humans. They are a very impressionable group that will require very understanding owners to make sure that they reach their full potential.

Recently, Hillsborough requested a photo shoot of our Wimauma basenjis for their new annual calendar. It was a last-minute-notice reunion of five of the pups from the first batch of nine young pups born in the field along with the two runts of Keondra's litter. It was strange to see all my babies so grown up! Most left here when they were just three to four months old. As expected, they were super-sized basenjis - their moms were the bigger moms. All of the adult breeding age males were large as well. Survival of the fittest has developed the super race.

The last three moms that whelped were all "normal-sized" basenji females. While there were a few litter runts, the updates are coming in that indicate these three litters do not intend on being outdone by the first group - they are on track to be at least as super. They are gorgeous kids. We are working on setting up a collection of pictures of everyone. It occurred to me after seeing the first group that I should expect the young pups to mature bigger than the adults. The pups have benefitted from deworming and excellent nutrition, something the adults didn't get when they were growing up. Has anyone noticed how teenage kids seem to be bigger than their parents?

With so many wonderful basenjis in my life, the odds are that something unfortunate will happen to at least one. I was quite heartbroken when I learned that our first baby to leave the nest, Tank, lost his very brief battle after surgery to correct a very rare intestinal condition, an intussusception, more prone to occur in puppies or children than adults of either species. Vets can only say that it was not genetic and there was no apparent cause. Tank, the winking basenji, was a wonderful boy with a personality that would win over even the coldest of hearts. Right from the start, he stuck out in the crowd. He was the first of the Wimauma pups to get named in our home and the first to win over my husband, Chris. He literally leapt into the arms and heart of his adopter and his family. He has left a very big hole in his world and is dearly missed.

These wonderful basenjis bring us so much joy, pleasure and entertainment. Make sure you take the time to enjoy your pack now.

August 4th, 2010

Hi Susan,

Love the Wrinkler as always!  Too many sad stories... made me weepy, hugged the doggles tighter.  They looked at me like I was crazy.

I thought I'd share this with you.  I'm not sure if I have told you of Newton's fondness of our television.  He is especially fond of the flat screen.  He's also always tried to chase the cursor across the desktop when we're using our computers (so we end up with wet streaks across the screen and a dog head in the way while trying to work!).  Anyway, as for TV-- he loves animation.  He's super fond of South Park and Family Guy-- it's partly the voices, but he will sit at attention and WATCH most of the episode, his attention only leaving when a commercial break starts.  (Of course he also like Animal Planet and watches a lot of the action shots there, as well as listening to various animal noises).

 
Soooo, the other night, he got the trifecta.  We were watching the news, which was running the end of a segment that happened to be shot in a neighborhood-- he heard a dog bark, looked up at the TV.  At that moment they went into their "come visit our website" segment, where they show screen shots and actually had a giant arrow cursor moving across the screen and clicking on things.  That was it... he jumped down from the couch and tried to figure out where that darned arrow went... all I could do was grab the iPhone, which is not great in low light... but...

Soooooo special.  XY you know. …………....ASHLEY PISTORIO


September 8th, 2010

Thank you, Susan!  Keep up the good work on the Wrinkler.  I get a kick out of your publication.  :-)…………DONNA MINER


July 20th, 2010

Very nice pics! Looks like a fun time had by all. I like the Montana jersey…………………………………..DAN SAILOR

{Photos from the July 11th Rip Van Wrinkle Basenji Club Match & the NOTRA (oval racing) meet in Glenville, NY.}     http://www.flickr.com/photos/sueapu/


September 9th, 2010

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

Yesterday, an oncologist at the UC Davis Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital saw Lily because we wanted a second opinion regarding the sarcoma she had removed two months ago, and during our conversation we learned something very interesting that I wanted to share with you all. 

If your dog is having multiple lumps removed for biopsy, it is VERY IMPORTANT that the vet uses a new scalpel for each excision as cancer cells can transfer --- cross-contamination, if you will.  We were fortunate that it is our vet's standard practice to use a new kit for each separate excision, but I understand that not all vets are as conscientious.  So, please check with your veterinarian if there is ever a need to have more than one lump removed at the same time (Lily had four).  There is no way of knowing beforehand if one of those lumps is cancerous, as it was in Lily's case.

Don't forget to regularly check your b-babies for lumps, and have them evaluated by your vet! This ends my public service announcement for today.

………………….…………….............………. RHODA JOHNSON-BYRNE


September 20th, 2010

Hi Susan,

I have been meaning to write about Nora for a few weeks now. It has been four years since she came here, and four years since you and I met at the Somerset Hills rally trial.

When I got Nora, the weeks and months after she arrived were a sheer nightmare. You were so helpful at teaching me about Basenji's. That knowledge coupled with the help of some good dog training friends, she gradually came under control.

I wrote to you earlier this year about how she decided she did not need her crate at night anymore. This summer I decided to push it, and slowly and gradually left her out of her daytime crate when I went out to do errands. In just a few weeks she was weaned off her crate!! She has been free for almost two months now. The only glitch, if you want to call it that, is she must be with her buddy Gunner, but that is a workable issue.

And as good as she has been the last year or two, being out of the crate has made her bloom even more. She has not destroyed anything in weeks. Yes, she still steals things...that is the Basenji way, after all....but now she pauses in front of one of us to make sure we see she has something, so we can "pay" her for it! <<VBG>> She has become even more loving and affectionate, and very much the oversized lap dog. She is more at ease in strange situations, because she knows she can trust me. She comes when I call her!! The FIRST time!!!

Nora's stubborn toughness made her difficult to deal with when she got here, but now I see how it was an asset for her. If she had not been so tough, she never would have survived her rough start in life, and I have come to admire her for that.

May she continue to grow and blossom even more!!.....DONNA HESS

<previous page< < next page>