We are all aware of how formidable a lion’s wrath is and that only those skillful hunters can painstakingly elude or defeat it. Both humans and animals fear the anger of this creature but there is one breed of dog that just doesn’t back down even when the king of the jungle makes everyone shiver with its earth-shaking roar. The Rhodesian Ridgeback is this courageous breed of dog and its prowess is well-resounded all over the world that it is also called the African Lion Hound or the Lion Dog.

This breed, in all its handsomeness and masculinity, is a native of South Africa where lions are a common sight. Originally, some native tribes of this country owned a ridgebacked breed of dog used as hunting aids and household companions. The Boer farmers, another tribe, realized the potential of this breed and so they bred it with the Khoikhoi dog, Mastiff and Deerhound to produce the modern day Rhodesian Ridgeback.

In 1877, a Reverend Helm brought two of these new breed to Bulawayo, Rhodesia- today’s Zimbabwe, and it was there that more people discovered this dog’s ferocity towards lions and excellent hunting skills. In 1922, the first standard of the Rhodesian Ridgeback was created and the breed was remarked as a game hunting breed. There had been a debated conundrum regarding this dog’s classification in terms of hunting as it is both excellent in hunting big games as the ferocious and large as a lion and hunting small games as tiny as a squirrel.

The ridgeback name serves appropriate for this dog for indeed it possesses a distinct ridge-looking growth of hair on its back. This clump of hair grows symmetrical along its back with an opposite growth direction with the dog’s overall coat. This breed appears in either red wheaten or light wheaten colored coat.

In hunting, this dog is courageous and fearless but inside the home, it is placid, gentle and docile. It is naturally good to people, playful and patient with children and protective of its owner. It is wary of strangers although this can serve as an advantage when it comes to its watchdog duty because it tends to be vigilant and watchful.

Its excellent and natural hunting ability is paired with good intelligence, independence and sharpness and the result may be some difficult training sessions at some point. Handling this situation effectively needs the owner to be firm, consistent and patient as this breed tends to be stubborn also. At first this breed may seem indifferent towards strangers but proper socialization will cure this dilemma.

It is also a suitable dog for apartment living so long as it is provided with an everyday lengthy and fast-paced walking or jogging. Inside the house they are relatively dormant but once outside they tend to be energetic and eager huge pets. Their exercise needs to be done in an open space such as large backyards or parks.

Knowing the harsh conditions of Africa, we can easily understand why this dog can stand unforgiving situations at times. In fact, this dog can withstand flaring hot days and damp and cold nights. It can also go on for 24 hours and more without food and water.