Hello from Ohio!

[Tenderfoot]

Name:  Angela and suspected RR, Buddy

Residence:  Hocking Hills area of southeastern Ohio

Married/Single:  Married

Children:   2 Adult

Occupation:  Disabled

Hobbies:  Learning more about Ridgies, reading, crocheting, scrapbooking, candle & soap making and NASCAR.

Years in Ridgebacks:  Almost 6.

Dogs owned:  1

Other dogs/pets and/or previous pets:  Also owned by 2 kitties.

Affiliations:  None

About Me:  Let's see, what can I say  here.  I'm 45 and have two grown children, a boy and a girl.  They just turned 24 & 27 earlier this month.  They lack 3 days of being exactly 3 years apart.  My hubby and I are coming up on our 24th anniversary this July and in September will be together 29 years.  Buddy came to us as a high school graduation gift for my son from my daughter.  He had wanted to get a beagle or beagle mix and she went to our local shelter where one of the workers told her that Buddy was a beagle mix.  The card on his cage said he was Beagle, German Shepard, Rottweiler mix.  I, along with our vet, are hard pressed to see any likness to any of those breeds.  I'm attaching a couple of photos so you can take a look.  What do you think?  When son and I took him to his obedience class, before we even got into the building, we were stopped by 3 different people asking if he was a RR.  Until that point, I'd never heard of the breed.  Even the lady teaching the class asked us.  Once the class was over, she showed us a book with photo's of the RR and I was surprised to see how much he looked just like the one in the book.  The next day, I did an image search on google and found a photo I could have sworn someone had taken in my own bathroom.  The dog had just had a bath and was still sitting in the bathtub, even the shower surround looked just like mine.  So ever since, we've suspected that Buddy is mainly RR with maybe a little something else mixed in.  He, however, is ridgeless.  Our son no longer lives at home and he debated on if he should take Buddy with him or not.  Where he lives doesn't allow dogs, but he was going to see if he could pay extra and bring him with him if he got the okay, but then decided since Buddy is my constant companion, not to seperate us, so he let me adopt him.  I am now in the process of trying to convince hubby that Buddy wants to adopt another RR so he'll have a playmate since our kitty now has a playmate.  :0)

How long have you owned dogs?  Pretty much most of my life.

Have you ever shown in Conformation?  No

Performance Events?  No.
 
Other?  No

Have you bred dogs?  No

Your knowledge with regard to dogs?  I was able to teach Buddy basic commands such as sit, down, shake (shakes his body), paw (shakes your hand), high 5's, give kisses, and we're still working on stay (he's stubborn with that one since he wants to be where you are, lol) with both verbal and non-verbal (hand) commands before his first obedience class.

 

[Ari_RR]

Hi, Angela, welcome!
Whether Buddy has an RR in him or not - he is a very handsome boy!

Just a word of caution on getting a playmate for him, though.. When we get a second dog, we get it mostly for ourselves, not for our first dog. And it's far not always certain that 2 dogs can peacefully coexist and share things, especially share the owners. From 1st dog perspective this may be similar to husband bringing home a second wife because the first one seems to be fun...  And since she enjoys talking with her friends on the phone, surely they will get along well! 

So, just keep this in mind when convincing your hubby - it may require quite a bit of work and focused effort to train 2 dogs to coexist, and to manage environment for them.  Don't make this decision lightly, just based on "let's have a playmate for Buddy" reasoning.

Enjoy the forum!

[caro]

He does look a little like an RR, but the ears are wrong.  Whatever, he is a sweet looking dog and obviously you have bonded with him.  Eugene has given you some good advice about bringing another dog in.  You may well have to deal with the jealousy factor.  I would definitely look at a bitch as opposed to another male as Buddy is more likely to accept her.  But even then jealousy is going to be something you need to watch for.  Right now Buddy thinks you are his property and he may not take too kindly to another that will involve you dividing your attention between him and the newcomer.  A puppy might be a possibility, but that might be a bit much for you if you are disabled.  If you think Buddy may be bored, why not see if you can find an agility class or obedience class where he needs to use his brain, or you could try tracking.
Caroline

[Tenderfoot]

Thank you for the welcome and the suggestions on bringing in another dog/puppy.  If we do decide to, it will be a female because I think he would get along better with a female vs a male and hopefully wouldn't have any territorial disputes.  I'd like to avoid that.  We would also introduce any dog before we bring them into the home to make sure they get along first.  Buddy does well with both of my daughters female dogs, but then, he spent several weeks with them when she first adopted him so he knows them.  Other dogs he's been around, he's played well with.  The neighbors little dashhounds, he'll lay down on the ground and let them romp all over him and chew on his tail and ears.  They treat him like he's their giant chew toy and he seems to not mind at all.   

I'm pretty sure that Buddy is a RR mix, but with what, I have no idea.  I'm going to check with our vet about a DNA test the next time we're in, after he has his next thryoid test done.  He does have a low thryoid and is a bit overweight, so we're working on losing some weight and bringing the thryroid levels back within normal range. 

Buddy has this quirk that I find amusing sometimes.  He absolutely refuses to go outside when it's raining.  If I go outside first, he'll follow me out, but if I open the door and he sees rain and I don't go out first, down on his hind-end he goes and he won't budge.  It's like he doesn't want to get his paws wet.  lol  But if I run water in the bathtub, in he goes.  He loves bath time.  I haven't been able to figure that one out.    He also loves the snow, although we haven't had much of it this year.  And digging.  We have ground moles and he'll get his snout to the ground and there go the paws, digging as fast as he can.  I'm waiting for the day when he unexpectedly comes up with one and the look he'll have on his face.  I always have my camera nearby, just in case. 

Here's another photo of Buddy on his 2nd birthday.  Have a wonderful day!

Angela

[Ari_RR]

He absolutely refuses to go outside when it's raining.

In this case - he is a RR, no DNA check needed 

[caro]

Eugene got there first!    I was going to say he has to at least be part RR if he hates the rain, though I haven't had a Ridgeback that actually enjoyed the bath, most just put up with it.
Caroline