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Rhodesian Ridgebacks Sydney NSW Australia

Ridgebacks are clean dogs that are not noisy or quarrelsome and have a strong desire to please their master. Well socialised and handled they can make wonderful protective companions as pets in modern society. Being members of the Hound family they are usually laid back and non demanding but have reserves of energy & stamina if called upon. They make a great indoor or outdoor companion because their short coat is not prone to messy shedding and they are particularly low in odor. More

Developed in Africa as a dog to protect the family and to track Lions, they are renowned for being proud & protective. Gentle with children and other pets, the Ridgeback was specifically bred to be non aggressive so that it would track the Lions and bail them up until the hunter arrived. They were bred not to attack the lion so as to avoid serious or fatal injury to such a valuable companion and hunting dog. In Africa the ridgeback performed the joint roles of family protector, companion & tracking dog. More

The Ridgeback is strong and muscular. His handsome head is flat with a broad skull & deep, powerful muzzle. The eyes are round and amber to dark brown. The coat is short and dense with the characteristic ridge where the hair grows in opposite direction from the coat along the backbone. Two crowns or swirls are formed at the start of the ridge just behind the shoulder. Color of coat is from light to red wheaten with small amounts of white being permissible on the chest and toes. Average size is between 24 and 27 inches in height at the withers and 30 to 42Kg in weight. Bitches are a little smaller and lighter than Dogs. More.

3 on Beach
Danny, Sinbad and Titan having a great time on the beach near Bega while on the
NSW South Eastern Show Circuit. See Picture enlarged

Family
Quality correctly socialised Ridgebacks make loving protective
yet non-aggressive family pets.

Rhodesian Ridgebacks Sydney NSW Australia
Sandy and Kimba's litter peeking out from their whelping box

We are Wayne and John the owners of the kennel prefix HodariRafiki. We are both dedicated to the breeding and showing of quality Rhodesian Ridgebacks in Australia. We are located in Blaxland within the Lower Blue Mountains just on the edge of the Sydney metropolitan area . We currently have 7 Rhodesians and they are our companions first and foremost. They spend most of their time inside with us. Most weekends our Ridgebacks can be seen in the Show Ring at Erskine Park, Castle Hill or one country town or another

Our purpose for breeding dogs is purely in an attempt to make improvements to the quality of our bloodline and the breed as a whole. Our aim is to produce handsome dogs which are consistent in quality, sound in structure and of great temperament suited to modern family life. The aim of our breeding program is to select dogs of outstanding quality which are kept as our companions, exhibited in the show ring and become part of our future breeding program. Because we cannot keep all of the puppies some are offered to lovely homes as companion pet animals. I must point out that we are particularly selective of the homes our puppies go to

We believe that a breeder who brings a dog into the world should stand by it and be there for it for it's whole life. If the owner it goes to is unable to continue to provide a loving home we are willing to step in and rescue the situation. In fact now days require an undertaking from our puppy owners that if their new dog is to be surrendered or passed on to others that we have first option to facilitate re housing. It should never be a concern for the owner or the dog what will become of it at any stage of its life.

The Rhodesian Ridgeback's origins are from an African hunting dog which was used to track big game animals such as Lions and Cheetahs. From early in its origins the Ridgeback has been renowned for its loyalty, mild temperament, yet bravery when bailing up ferocious predators.

The origins of the foundation dogs is believed to trace back to Ethiopia or the Southern Sedan. There is a drawing in an Egyptian tomb (4,000BC) that shows a Hound with drooped ears and what appears to be a ridge on its back. It seems that this was most likely the ancestor of the dog that was domesticated by the Hottentot tribe of Africa.

There are ridged dog breeds in Thailand, Cambodia and other asian areas. It is impossible to tell if the ridged breeds moved from the East to Africa or the other way around. Perhaps they developed totally independently.

The foundation stock of the Rhodesian Ridgeback was developed by the first white settlers in South Africa to fill their specific needs for a serviceable hunting dog in the wild. The Dutch, German, and Huguenots who migrated to South Africa in the 16th and 17th centuries brought with them Danes, Mastiffs, Greyhounds, Salukis, Bloodhounds, and other breeds.

For more than 100 years after 1707, European immigration was closed. Consequently, the importation of additional dogs of these or other breeds 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 rigour 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 dog of the Hottentot tribes, a distinct breed of the South African veld. The dog the created by this selective process has come to be known as the Rhodesian Ridgeback.

The breed standard was originally created in Rhodesia, a British Colony in central South Africa comprising present day Zambia & Zimbabwe, in 1850 and approved by the American Kennel Club in 1956. The wild dogs of the Hottentots is extinct today but the Rhodesian Ridgeback, and the characteristic ridge, thrives.

Ridgebacks can make a good family pet and companion. They are amazingly loyal and usually protective. Correctly socialised as puppies they are very trustworthy and have mild temperament. Over the last hundred years or so they have been selectively bred to care for and protect the homesteader and children in the African wild. And during hunting they must be brave yet non aggressive so that they do not go in to attack and get injured by the lion. In addition to the non aggressive nature of the Hottentot hunting dog further selective breeding has been done to highlight the non aggressive nature of the breed.

This selective breeding has resulted in a dog that usually does not bark. Certainly a good Ridgeback never barks at the usual (such as neabours coming home etc). Most Ridgebacks however will bark at the treatening or unusual. Ridgebacks normally never use more force than is required to get the job done.

Ridgebacks cannot really be described as either energetic or lazy - they are a bit of both. If you want to just laze around and watch TV all day they are happy to just do just that with you. On the other hand if you want to go for a run, a walk or an exploration up a creek-bed then they are delighted to go too. The ridgeback does not demand lots of exercise (or need it particularly) but is a very willing participant if it's what you want to do.

Correctly socialised Ridgebacks are great with children. They seem to know that the little one is more fragile than the adults and are often proportionately more gentle.

Ridgebacks like comfort. If there is three places of varying softness located at random in the room where you are you will usually find the Ridgeback on the softest place even if you move them around to try to trick it.

Ridgebacks are a very clean animal compared to many breeds and have little odor. Our Ridgebacks sometimes wash themselves similar to a cat and live indoors. We shower them in summer every second week or so but this is not really required if your not showing them. They are willing to please and learn good manners fairly quickly. However they have a mind of their own and often are a little reluctant to do something just because you ask. If you insist (in a respectful but forecful way) then they comply. It has been said that a Ridgeback always aims to please..... Itself mostly. Having said that, our two Ridgebacks are the most loyal well mannered dogs we have had out of several other large dog breeds.

				(c) 2000 - 2007 HodariRafiki Rhodesian Ridgebacks - Sydney Australia
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HOME

News - Our Rhodesian dogs - Puppies daddy Kimba - Puppy progress page
Puppy homepages - Bodzio - Simba - Lola - Bwana - Karson - Nala - Marina, Titan & Sinbad
Why Ridgebacks - History of the Ridgeback - The breed standard - Caring for your puppy
Ridgeback discussion forum - Feedback form - Contact us - Links - Site Map