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ABOUT
RIDGEBACKS
JUBA LEE RIDGEBACKS! |
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In November 1955 the American Kennel
Club admitted the Rhodesian Ridgeback to its Stud
Book as the 112th breed to be accorded AKC
registration facilities. The Rhodesian Ridgeback is
shown in the Hound Group (Group 2). Since this
recognition of the Rhodesian Ridgeback by the
American Kennel Club, intense and greater interest
has developed in the breed in this country.
The Rhodesian Ridgeback is a native of South Africa.
The breed's long history dates back to early in the
16th century when the first European men explored
the interior on the Cape of Good Hope and found with
the Hottentot tribes a domesticated dog with the
hair on his spine being turned forward. This is the
condition which we now refer to as the "ridge." The
only other known dog which has the peculiarity of
such a ridge is found on the island of Phu Quoc in
the Gulf of Siam. It has never been definitely
determined whether the peculiarity of this ridge
originated in South Africa or on the island of Phu
Quoc, but the evidence available seems to indicate
that it originated in South Africa and that
specimens of dogs with ridges were transported from
South Africa to the island of Phu Quoc.
It is not known where the Hottentots first obtained
these dogs. It is common knowledge that the
Hottentot had pronounced Asiatic features and that
his ancestors probably hailed from the East. If this
is so, it may be assumed that the ridged dog
accompanied him on his peregrination until he
finally reached Africa.
Hunter, Guard and Companion
The foundation stock of the Rhodesian Ridgeback was
developed by the first European settlers in South
Africa to fill their specific needs for a
serviceable hunting dog in the wilds. The Dutch,
Germans and Huguenots who migrated to South Africa
in the 16th and 17th centuries brought with them
Danes, Mastiffs, Greyhounds, Salukis, Bloodhounds
and other breeds. However, for more than 100 years
from 1707, European immigration was closed;
consequently, the importation of additional dogs of
these or other breeds was not possible. Good hunting
dogs, therefore, became hard to come by and their
value was high. The settlers needed a dog that could
flush a few partridge, pull down a wounded stag, or
guard the farm from marauding animals and prowlers
at night. They also needed a dog that could
withstand the rigors of the African bush, hold up
under drastic changes in temperature, from the heat
of the day to nights below freezing, and go a full
24 hours or more without water if need be. They
required a short-haired dog that would not be eaten
alive by ticks. In addition, the settler needed a
companion that would stay by him while he slept in
the bush and that would be devoted to his wife and
children. Out of necessity, therefore, these
settlers developed, by selective breeding between
dogs which they had brought with them from home
countries and the half-wild ridged dog of the
Hottentot tribes, a distinct breed of the African
veldt, which has come to be known as the Rhodesian
Ridgeback. The Hottentot dogs played the most
important part in the development and ultimate
characteristics of the new breed. Throughout all of
the interbreeding and crossbreeding between these
native dogs and those of the settlers, the ridge of
the Hottentot dog was respected and retained. In due
course, the Hottentot dog established the foundation
stock of our present day Rhodesian Ridgeback.
There is no doubt the Rhodesians (now people of the
country known as Zimbabwe) have developed the breed
as we know it today from the original stock. In the
year 1875, the intrepid missionary, Rev. Charles
Helm, undertook a journey from his home in
Swellendam in the Cape Province of South Africa to
Rhodesia. He was accompanied by two of these dogs.
While the Rev. Helm was in Rhodesia (Zimbabwe)
Cornelius von Rooyen, the big-game hunter and early
authority on the South African wildlife, borrowed
the two dogs to take along on a hunt. Von Rooyen
soon concluded that they possessed excellent
instinctive hunting qualities and thereupon
pioneered the breeding of a pack of the species as
hunters of big game for his own use. They have since
been bred on an extensive scale in Rhodesia and were
given the name of that country.
In 1922 the first Ridgeback Club was founded at a
show in Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia, and a standard
of points for the breed was set, which differs
little from the prevailing standard today. In 1924
the Ridgeback was also recognized by the South
African Kennel Union as a distinct breed and the
organization recognized its first registered dog.
Only two dogs were registered with the SAKU in that
year, followed by four in 1925, and not less than
eleven in 1926. Today, the Rhodesian Ridgeback is
one of the most popular dogs in South Africa.
Breed Recognized by AKC
It is not known definitely when the Rhodesian
Ridgeback was first brought into the United States.
A few were imported prior to 1940, possibly as early
as 1912. However, after World War II (between 1946
and 1955 -- when the breed was recognized by AKC),
quite a large number of Rhodesian Ridgebacks were
imported, not only into the United States, but also
into England and Canada.
Their hunting characteristics have also proved to be
useful in hunting native game in other parts of the
world. Intelligent and ever alert, their heads are
held high with pride and, with a set of feet that
will carry them over any sort of country, they are
the only breed of dog in the world that can keep a
lion at bay for the hunter to kill....and live! The
Rhodesian Ridgeback has also been used very
successfully for hunting bobcat, mountain lion,
bear, coyote, deer, wild boar and raccoon in the
United States, Canada and Mexico. There have also
been reports of Rhodesian Ridgebacks having been
trained to point upland game and retrieve game and
fowl.
Breed Characteristics
The Rhodesian Ridgeback has the advantage of having
keen sight, and a good nose for scent. Due to the
wide-open terrain of the southern African veldt,
coupled with the habits of the game to be hunted and
the techniques required to hunt such game in that
terrain, the Ridgeback was developed as a silent
trailer, characteristic of its sighthound ancestry.
When the terrain becomes more varied, where baying
is desirable to keep track of the hunting pack (such
as in areas of the United States where these dogs
have been used), supplementation with baying hounds
(more typical of scent hounds) has been done.
Possessing many of the characteristics generally
associated with hounds, the Ridgeback has a quiet,
gentle temperament, rarely barking. While able to
enjoy lazing around in a patch of sun, or in front
of a winter fireplace, a Ridgeback can be instantly
alert if a stranger should appear or he is in
pursuit of legitimate prey. Where he gave the
impression of a big, lazy, slow-moving animal, the
Ridgeback can be a threatening presence as a
watchdog. Developed not only to hunt, but also as a
family protector, his affectionate disposition makes
him a trustworthy companion for a small child. He is
easily trained, being, more than many hounds, of
above-average tractability. However, because of this
intelligence, an untrained Ridgeback can become a
terrible nuisance! Trained, he is a pleasure as a
companion, a hunting partner, or as a show dog or
obedience competitor. Because of his innate
abilities to protect his family, a Ridgeback should
not be trained as a guard dog but rather the natural
protective qualities should be supplemented with
elementary obedience training for control.
U.S. Clubs Forms
In 1948 a group of enthusiastic Rhodesian Ridgeback
owners in the United States organized the Rhodesian
Ridgeback Club of America, for the primary purpose
of accumulating the data and preparing the documents
and pedigrees of dogs in the United States as
required to obtain recognition of the breed by the
American Kennel Club. Their activities were rewarded
in 1955 when AKC conferred official recognition upon
the breed.
After this recognition, which made possible the
showing of Rhodesian Ridgebacks in shows for
championship points, there was organized by owners
and breeders throughout the U.S., the Rhodesian
Ridgeback Club of the United States, for the purpose
of sponsoring AKC-sanctioned matches and licensed
shows. Both of these organizations were actively
engaged in promoting the breed through national
advertising.
Many Rhodesian Ridgeback owners and breeders were
members of and supported both of these clubs. In
order to combine the activities of the two clubs,
they were, on March 6, 1959, combined into one
organization under the name of the Rhodesian
Ridgeback Club of the United States. The program of
the combined clubs incorporated the promotion of the
breed with publicizing and popularizing of the breed
in the U.S., and forming a close association with
the breed clubs in South Africa, Zimbabwe
(Rhodesia), England and Canada. On April 10, 1968,
the Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of the United States
was incorporated in the state of Texas. Finally, on
March 9, 1971, the American Kennel Club formally
admitted the Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of the United
States, Inc. as a member club.
RRCUS 1987
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