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I own a ridgeback and she is probably the sweetest dog ever. Her name is Nutmeg and she is known for sleeping on beds when no one is looking, petting cats, eating cat food and even at times singing when i'm practicing my violin. :) She is a very unique dog for a couple other reasons as well... she doesn't like water and sometimes even I forget she's a dog because she has such a human like personality. If you ever meet her you'll know what  I'm talking about. :)

 

 Rhodesian Ridgebacks are different in comparison to other dogs because of the strip down their back where the hair grows in the opposite direction as the rest of their coat. What baffles me about these loving dogs is their background. They are known as African Lion dogs because of their ability to harass lions and keep them at bay while awaiting their master to make the kill. I could never see Nutmeg doing this for 3 reasons. 1) she doesn't "await" for anyone! 2) she pets the cats 3) the only thing she would ever hunt would be the lizards in the back yard.. which she never catches.

 

 
 

 

This is Nutmeg lounging on my bed.. :P
 

Rhodesian Ridgebacks are the worlds foremost PIZZA hunting dogs. They can with amazing grace and speed, track and hunt pizza off a dining room table! When you witness their abilities first hand it's easy to see why Lions are intimidated:) Of course if they ever actually catch a lion they would pat him into submission.

Great photos! I'm so glad you posted this! I've had just a couple experiences with Ridgebacks, and they were negative, and to my shame, I've become a dog bigot! 

I used to live in a neighborhood (actually it was an industrial park that became an artpark) where dogs routinely ran off-leash and visited each other on a daily basis; we all knew each other's dog by name and were happy to dole out treats to visiting neighbor dogs. One of my neighbors had to hang a sign from his dog's collar that read "Please don't tempt me with treats, as I have no willpower. I've gained 10 pounds so far this year, and my doctor and my human have put me on a strict diet."

But one resident couple had two Ridgebacks who were agressive, possessive and overly protective of their owners. When they'd walk their dogs in the evening (on-leash, with choke chain collars), they warned people to stay back. We did, happily. The other dogs did as well.

When I took my dog to basic obedience class last fall (she flunked out) we were each instructed to research our own dog's breed (in Peach's case, breeds) and the others in the class. My research on Ridgebacks said they were aloof and could be agressive, possessive...all the things my old neighbor dogs were. And the one in the class certainly was!

What's ironic about all this is when I'm out with my American Bulldog, people ask if she's a Pit Bull, and others just scatter when they see her coming! Besides her chewing, the biggest problems with have with Peach is her jumping on people and licking their faces in greeting, and her insistence on sitting in our laps!

PS: where do you find clothes for a large-breed dog? I can only find yapper-dog sizes.

Koala, your ridgeback is so sweet. But I can definitely see her stalking pizza. I used to have a ridgeback in my neighborhood that gave us all a lot of trouble. It had a shoe fetish and would steal shoes from everyone's porches. When one of my shoes would go missing, I would go back to her place and sort through the pile to find mine. She was kept in an electric fence and we couldn't figure out how she got out. But one day I was walking by and I saw her lay down in the middle of the fence. She didn't flinch and seemed like she almost enjoyed it. I could hear a faint buzzing sound so I assumed it was giving her some voltage. It's funny how each dog has their own personality.

Writer Lady, my step mom and I am always trying to find clothes for our puppy, but for some reason they just don't make clothes for large dogs. She once found a pink winter vest for her that looked like it would fit, but it was just too small. Looks like people with large puppies are just going to have to make clothes for them.

Thanks Mike! I have always loved dogs. They really do have great personalities! I used to have a Westie Sir Dunkin McDuff who had the funniest personality ever!... I guess he had to with a name like that!  He would park at dogs non-stop and then when the dog barked back he would start to wimper.  Poor lil' guy. I'm really glad non of them have a shoe fetish and I'm also really glad they don't enjoy getting shocked... that's so WEIRD!

She really is a cutie pie! I think I'm getting over my Ridgeback bigotry just from all the pictures. Do you ever take her to any off-leash parks for an all-out romp?

Lol that dog in the hood does NOT look happy about it. It's very strange. My beagle LOVES being dressed up. She's the perfect dog for my sister because she can dress her up in the most ridiculous costumes and the dog will prance around the house showing off her peoples clothes. She was about the right size to wear my sister's dress up costumes. I think the best was the little snow white costume that fit her perfectly.

She especially loves beads. She perks up and gets really happy when you put beads around her neck. I came home one day and she was just moping around looking miserable. Then I realized that my dad had taken her beads off. I put them back on and she was happy again.

Unfortunately, Nutmeg isn't the kind to stay by you when not on the leash. But she's usually pretty good about not tugging on the leash, although sometimes she forgets you're attached to the other side when she sees a lizard. :P

The other week my friend and I put her in the car and took her to the Indian mounds. She had gas and was a little difficult at times went it came to getting her in the car, but as far as the walk went she was a perfect angel. I really should take her on more outings like that. She loves exploring new places. :D 

Nutmeg used to have a twin sister named Ginger, who passed away a little while ago. One Christmas we dressed them up as Reindeer and put little light up head bands on their heads.. they hated it... we took them to a dog park and it was so hard to get them to keep the head bands on even for a picture. But they were SO adorable.. sometimes I wish our pets were more like your beagle, Mike. I would love to put beads on Nutmeg without her taking them right off. :D

 
 Here are some more pictures. :)

 

You're lucky you can even walk your dog on a leash. My old dog used to take us for walks. You know those cartoons where the dog drags a little kid by the leash all over the place? That actually happened to ME. I got some pretty bad scrapes and cuts from getting dragged across someone's lawn. Thankfully I had the good sense to let go before I was dragged across a driveway. Walking a dog assumes a certain size ratio. When the dog is bigger and stronger than you, he takes you on a walk.  

      I didn't have the good sense to let go. My 140 lb chocolate lab actually DID drag me across the driveway--by his tail! It was the only thing I could grab when he broke out of the house one rainy night. A dog's tail is supposed to be fairly sensitive, but that didn't stop him from dragging me 15 ft. on my stomach at full running speed. I had to let go shortly after he pulled me across a wet tarp, and then he ran off into the darkness. When my dad, my brother, and I caught him, it took all three of us to hold him down. Then we had to pick him up and carry him about a quarter mile back home.

Yeah I finally learned to catch him. I had to run up beside him, and hurl all my weight into a tackle with all my momentum. Even then if I landed on top of him he would run off with me on his back. So I would have to flip over him, grab onto his back and roll him up on top of me on the ground. So I had this 140 lb dog on top of my chest with both of us on our backs and his legs helplessly kicking up in the air. When people saw me catch him they almost always burst out laughing.

That sounds like something you could film and then put on youtube. I never had to do any of that with my dogs, but one time I did chase after them in a car, then run through the woods and drag them one by one into the car. What was great about it was that they were really happy about the whole situation. Like a game to see who can keep out of her grasp the longest. driving back to the house they would just stick their heads out of the windows, panting with huge accomplished grins on their faces. such is life.