Getting Teste(s)~

It's been awhile since I've written anything for the blog. It's not that we've been busy with sarna, although I have equated our current difficulties with our neighbors as being worse than mange (but that's another story, another blog). Thank the insect gods, the mites are gone. It took weeks of daily laundry, weekly injections, and frequent puppy washings, but we are rid of them. Finally.

The pups are growing rapidly and are really looking more like dogs than puppies. How fast they grow! In fact, we are now looking into the whole spay/neuter thing. I have read that Basejis have special needs in that regard. Like Greyhounds, Basenjis have a high muscle to fat ratio and can be over sedated quite easily, sometimes resulting in the death of the dog. They also need their reproductive organs intact for long bone development (no, not that long bone!). So I have been doing a fair amount of research.

During my Internet searches, I ran across some interesting information. The person querying the particular dog blog I was reading, said: We are ready to neuter our young male Basenj and are looking into Neuticles. I was mesmerized. Neuticles? It couldn't be, could it?

I hit the link immediately, and, yes, it could be. It is! Testicular implants that, according to www.neuticles.com, "over 250,000 caring pet owners worldwide have selected… as a safe, practical, and inexpensive option when neutering." Clearly this had to have happened before the current economic downturn. The Web site goes on to say, "Neuticles allows your pet to retain his natural look, self esteem, and aids in the trauma associated with neutering." I don't think I'm alone here when I say there is more anthropomorphizing going on here than is good for any one person.

You should check it out. There are various models for your dog. You could, I suppose, give your miniature Schnauzer a set of cajones to offset that Little Man Syndrome he's always had. Why not give him a larger more impressive pair, say those fit for a St. Bernard or an Irish Wolfhound? It's really up to you. With any major credit card, you can purchase them online using their handy chart as a guide. The original Neuticles are "crafted from FDA medically-approved polypropylene. Not plastic but resembles plastic in firmness." Now this would make me feel better about my dog: putting polypropylene in my pup.

One of the many reasons we are having our dogs neutered, aside from the fact that we are not breeders and don't want to bring more unwanted dogs into the world, is that Chacho has a typical male (dog) attitude. He is headstrong and only stays home when he wants to stay home. I have done operant training with a clicker and threats, but we are now working with an electronic boundary to keep him safe and off the street. The Neuticles sites says:

With Neuticles®-
  It's like nothing ever changed...

Nothing has changed!? This is not what we want. We want it to be very different than before. So, we will not be buying any plastic bollocks for Chacho. I don't think he will notice, frankly… but maybe he will stay out of the street.

Here are some newer photos of them 

  

Bibi is very unusual for a Basenji. The only thing she loves more than water is mud. I call her my Bog Dawg.

 

  

And, Chacho is a very handsome little man.