Rhodesian Ridgeback
By Ann Chamberlain Ms. Chamberlain has bred Rhodesian Ridgeback since 1965. While in Rhodesia she hunted a lion with two Rhodesian Ridgebacks--albeit of dubious parentage. She is a dog behaviorist, lectures on responsible dog ownership and researching your pet before you buy. Currently she is writing a book on the breed due to be published in England.

Rhodesian Ridgebacks were first bred in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe. Rhodesian Ridgebacks were originally described and standardized by a group of seven farmer-hunters in Bulawayo, Rhodesia in 1932. The Rhodesian Ridgeback was developed from the universal dog of the Hottentot, a ridged dog that was not afraid of the big cats and would drive them from the kraals (villages) at night, would course and pull down small to medium antelope, would flush birds and small game, would tackle bush pigs, would herd the cattle, and guard the home. Lion hunting, per se, was a activity carried out by white farmers and hunters, and lion "hunts" were usually in pursuit of a nuisance lion that was stealing cattle. People did not take these dogs out to "hunt lion" on a regular basis. This aspect of their hunting ability is grossly overstated! The dogs did drive large game and are, in fact, capable of pulling down zebra and eland. The dogs were hunted in twos and threes, three being optimum. More got in each other's way. For lions, twenty or so terrier types were used as lion bait, so the Rhodesian Ridgebacks did not get hurt. Even so, young and inexperienced dogs were often killed. The dogs never, ever, actually killed a lion. They would track and bring to bay, so the hunter could shoot the lion. Unfortunately, too many people think Rhodesian Ridgebacks actually killed lions, even AKC judges!!

Ridged dogs are known as far back as 3000 BC in Egypt. They came into southern Africa with the Hottentots, who were in turn "supplanted by the Bantu, starting as early as 400 AD."

The Boers used Hottentots for farm workers, so the dogs came to the farms with the natives. The dogs were cross bred with mastiff, greyhound crosses, and "probably" Spanish pointer. The foundation dogs of the breed we know today were brought "to Hope Fountain Mission by Rev. Charles Helm. This mission was located on the old Hunter's Road near Bulawayo, at the headwaters of the Umzigwana River. A white hunter," Cornelius von Rooyen, recognized the great attributes of these dogs and further developed the breed from two bitches that Helm had brought up from South Africa. "The first dogs of Helm's were not ridged, but when crossed with Von Rooyen's dogs, the ridge appeared." Later the British farmers around Bulawayo took an interest, and the Rhodesian Ridgeback of today was standardized.

Rhodesian Ridgebacks are "formidable protectors", requiring no training in this aspect! Dr. Stanley Coren places them in "protective" group instead of "independent". It is a toss-up, but most owners complain about the independence as a problem, rather than over-protectiveness. I would emphasize the independence. They are "excellent companions" only when trained. Otherwise, they are a liability, especially with toddlers. Fences are mandatory! The single leading cause of death in Rhodesian Ridgebacks is compressive automobilitis - a very fatal disease! When a ridgeback is the the chase mode, all else is forgotten, including that fast car coming down the street.

Although the origin of the Labrador Retriever has not been conclusively established, research indicates that the breed was a cross between the Newfoundland and the St. John's Dog, the latter being smaller, easier to manage and with great scenting power. The earliest records date back to 1839 in England.

Labrador Retrievers are famous for their scent discrimination and because of this ability they are used world wide by police departments for drug dogs, fugitive search and search and rescue. They have been used in many capacities by the Military and they are greatly favored as hunting dogs.

They are extremely intelligent and very good natured, because of this they are used as guide dogs for the blind, aids for the hearing impaired, helpers for the wheelchair bound and as therapy dogs for the emotionally disturbed. They are devoted family dogs and children are their specialty.

My Labradors are my friends and constant companions. When I reach for the leash they are ready to work, in agility, obedience and the field, and they are so much fun to work with. In my opinion they have no equal. Try one - you'll have a friend for life!

When getting to know the breed you'll find Staffordshire Bull Terriers have a different character than most people think. They are extremely loving to all people inside and outside the home. This makes the dog not a good watchdog at all; they just like people too much to bite them. There is one problem though you need to consider before buying a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, they can get aggressive towards other dogs at 2 or 3 years of age. Most of the time this doesn't happen if the pup has bees socialized at an early age and kept from aggressive dogs. My experience is most Staffordshire Bull Terriers keep to themselves but if another dog initiates a fight they will respond, and if this happens a couple of times they could start to like fighting. This is not a good thing because a Staffordshire Bull Terriers will afflict a lot of damage to the other dog and will get the blame every time and you'll have to pay the veterinary bills.

For a Staffordshire Bull Terriers in my opinion the best place would be a warm home with children where they can get the attention they need. When buying a pup always look for a pedigree breeder whom you trust.

Axel is not the perfect dog and he is not the alpha male of the litter. He lives in the house with me not out in a kennel or pen in the back yard. I don't think I could handle an alpha male from this litter. I would consider Axel to be about the maximum livable working line male for the house. You can often read about high drive or energy dogs full of fire and spice, this is what I mean by maximum livable. Behavior that may be cute or funny in some other breeds is a disaster in a German Shepherd or at least this one. So, like it or not we got into training from the first day. I always use as much positive and praise as possible, sometimes praise didn't work and some firmness was required. By firmness I don't mean beat up on the little guy but take the scruff of his neck and give him a good shake until he realized I wasn't playing with him, followed by praise. It didn't take too many times but it happened occasionally for destructive chewing in the house, etc. As a puppy he went through bratty periods that were a total pain. Then he reached his teenager period, it got worse. Fortunately he never displayed dominance or aggression towards me. There were times when I seriously considered an outside kennel.

The brattiness and teenager periods passed and with patience, training and consistency I ended up with a German Shepherd in all the descriptions; high intelligence, faithfulness and loyalty. There is a second part to this not everyone will like or want; courage, fighting drive and hardness. I think this is where a professional working breeder is so important, they breed for temperament. Not color or the latest shape in top-lines. Trainability isn't a term I have seen too often but that and a willingness to perform are the part of the working line dogs that made me continue to research the breed very carefully.

On the negatives, they have hair. I brush daily and it still gets all over. For an outside dog this won't matter much but for one inside it can be a factor. Health is another major concern. Some breeders have advertised bad hips in the 2 to 3 percent range. This may be possible but from what I have read, I think 9 to 13 percent is more accurate for bad hips. No matter what the bloodlines and parental history bad hips can still happen. Axel fortunately has good hips and elbows. Double hip replacement surgery is expensive and is a very big deal.

This may be positive or negative, but when you go out for a walk people see you walking with a police dog. Unnecessary displays of aggression toward people or their pets on the street will be dealt with differently than an aggressive cocker spaniel and are unacceptable. However I wonder if a victim of a home invasion has ever had a working line Leerburg male German Shepherd inside at the time.

Around 20-22 kilograms is about average weight. Really great dog, but not for the feint hearted. Very loyal and faithful. Good guard and watch dogs. Highly intelligent (and there's their fault). Need a very firm hand to maintain control. Easy to train but get bored easily. Need a lot of exercise (being a cattle dog this should be quite evident). Go all day (probably got this from a double breeding in their history with Dingoes)

A particular and famous Australian gardening TV programme "Burke's Backyard", recently did a feature on the nastiest dogs around. While the German Shepherd got it for most people bitten in Australia, a seasonally adjusted figure of people bitten vs. amount of breed registered put the Blue Heeler at number 1 for Australia's most dangerous dog.

The other fact regarding this dog, as per newsletters from dog's homes (animal shelters) etc. is that the Heeler is Australia's most dumped dog.

The first 12 months with a heeler are bloody difficult. They will try the patience of a saint. Destructive if left for short periods (they get bored easily). They make attempts at dominance from around 6 months. But if you make it through the first year (a lot of people don't) you end up with a wonderful, loving, faithful, smart and protective dog.

We are now on our second, he's 16 months old and wonderful, but even seasoned veterans that we are with this dog, we only just made it through his first year.

Australian Shepherds
By Laura Lynn Tanner, Agile Aussies
Australian Shepherds are intensely devoted, protective, intelligent and active dogs. They do best in homes where they have a job. The job can be any thing from herding, agility, flyball, obedience or just guarding the kids.

We are blessed to have three Aussies in our family. Jake, the cow dog, goes to the farm every day with my husband. His job is to supervise all farm activities. From sun up to sun down he rides on the four wheeler, herds the cows, and guards every one including the kids when they are fishing in a near by pond. He is very protective and takes his watch dog and farm dog duties seriously.

Annie is my Agility dog. We learned the sport together, finished our MX and went to the AKC National Championships this year. She is always ready to work and very eager to please. The words "good dog" fit Annie to a T.

Magic is my eleven-year-old daughter's Aussie. They are a great team and compete, successfully, against adults in Agility. They are constant companions and playmates.

Our Aussie girls play dog soccer, hide and seek and keep-away with kids and adults and some times it's hard to tell the adults from the kids!

Is an Aussie the right dog for you? They need room to play and exercise, shed hair moderately and can be over protective of their people and property. They do not do well chained up or left in a kennel. They can become aggressive and destructive if they are confined for long periods. They have strong herding instincts and will herd every thing and every body to the extreme but this can be controlled with exercise and activities such as agility.

If you can live with this high drive and love of life then get an Aussie, you will have a loving, loyal and devoted friend!