The Rhodesian Ridgeback Hunting Trial System
- Regulations and Guidelines –
Section 1 Impetus
Section 1.1 Hunting History
The tradition of hunting over Rhodesian Ridgebacks has a history of approximately 130 years. And many hundred years before that, the Koi people (Hottentots) had made extensive use of their small, ridged hunting dog (the progenitors of the modern Rhodesian Ridgeback). It is safe to say that hunting over ridged dogs in Africa by both Native peoples and Settlers has a tradition going back at least 300 years. The breed came to into the public consciousness through its exploits as the best lion-hunting dog in Africa around the end of the 19th century. Despite the public's focus on its lion hunting prowess, the breed had proven its supreme usefulness as both farm dog and hunting dog on game of all shapes and sizes, and was in reality prized for its 'deal with anything' versatility. Around 1915 lion hunting began quickly diminishing in southern Africa. At the time, it was feared that as lion hunting diminished so too would the Rhodesian Ridgeback. Thanks to the efforts of a small group of fanciers, the Rhodesian Ridgeback was recognized as a formal breed in 1923, and the effort to preserve it as a breed began. The last recorded lion hunt over Rhodesian Ridgebacks in Africa took place in the 1960s. It was the end of one era, and the beginning of another. In the 1950's, many Rhodesian Ridgebacks were imported to the United States, which were used to hunt all manner of game. Unfortunately, records were not kept for the most part, and most of those hunters involved have died, so information is scarce and consists mostly of third-hand accounts. One of the few things that is known for certain is that those who used Ridgebacks in the U.S. on mountain lions in the 1950's and 60's agreed there was no better dog suited to hunting these big cats. Additionally, during this time Rhodesian Ridgebacks were proven as excellent general purpose hunting dogs and were used successfully in hunting bobcat, bear, fox, squirrel, upland game birds, rabbit, coyote, deer, wild boar and raccoon in the U.S. This is completely inline with the historical account, as evidenced by:
- The old official AKC breed history states the Ridgeback is "a dog that could track prey from game birds, to stags, to lions."
- The current official RRCUS breed history refers to "a dog that could flush a few partridge, pull down a wounded stag, or guard the farm."
However, after this first generation of U.S. Ridgeback hunters faded into history, for reasons not completely understood at this time, hunting over these dogs fell out of favor with Rhodesian Ridgeback conformation breeders in the Untied States, making it progressively more and more difficult for hunters to obtain quality specimens of the breed, and hunting over Rhodesian Ridgebacks in the U.S. is a tradition which has very quickly all but disappeared.
As an association of Rhodesian Ridgeback clubs we believe it to be in the best interest of the breed for the tradition of hunting over Rhodesian Ridgebacks to continue, and hope to reverse the current trend towards declining participation, so that we might educate those who would seek to carry on this Rhodesian Ridgeback hunting tradition in a way that is responsible, ethical, and positively promotes to breed, and most importantly, maintains the breed's abilities as an intelligent, functional, and versatile hunting companion.
Section 1.2 Breed Specificity
Rhodesian Ridgebacks are not the bird-hunting machines one will see in a pointer trial. They are not the bawling noses-on-legs that one will see in coon-dog races. Ridgebacks do not belong in retriever trials, or ratting trials. Our dogs could not compete with the specialists in those venues. Ridgebacks are every bit as good as these dogs, but their hunting style is totally different and those tests are designed to reward breeds with that particular specialized style. On medium and large game, most breeds used in the U.S. bawl or "strike" on the track and any system currently in place, typically rewards that style and would severely penalize the Rhodesian Ridgeback which by and large is a silent tracker.
Our breed is unique among others and to evaluate the breed in a manner consistent with its own unique hunting style, we need a breed-specific hunting trial. For the most part, Ridgebacks are generalists. That is to say, they are versatile. The Rhodesian Ridgeback Hunting Trial must recognize, embrace, and reward its generalist hunting companion versatility.