KENAI
Rhodesian Ridgeback

The breeds · sighthound · sighthound

AKC Hound · UKC Sighthound & Pariah · FCI standard 146

Rhodesian Ridgeback.

FCI 146 utilization: still used to hunt game in many parts of the world, but especially prized as a watch dog and family pet; FCI classes it Group 6 scenthounds and related breeds, Section 3 related breeds, without working trial. UKC: the original function was to hunt in packs of two or three, tracking game, especially lion, and keeping it at bay until the hunters arrived. RKC: developed as a scent hound in South Africa to track a variety of game; in Rhodesia used largely for tracking lions, fast on the scent, courageous in holding the lions at bay until the hunters arrived. AKC breed page: made famous for tracking and baying, never killing, lions..

Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.

12YRMedian lifespan11.9 to 12.2, measured on real dogs.
0INHeightdogs null, bitches null. An ideal from the standard, not a range.
70–85LBWeight, all linesbreed dogs 80 to 85 lb; breed bitches 70 lb (70 to 70.5).
2.5+ HRSExercise, every dayMore than 2 hours per day (RKC). RKC size band: large; large house, large garden. RRCUS: Ridgebacks need plenty of exercise and a fenced yard; at play they are very energetic.. The constraint most homes get wrong.

The body

What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.

Height at the shoulder

dogs 24.8 to 27.2 in · bitches 24 to 26 in

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 2025

Standards agree (FCI 61 cm = 24.0 in, 66 cm = 26.0 in). Conversion cm / 2.54.

Weight

dogs 80 to 85 lb · bitches 70 lb (70 to 70.5)

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 2025

AKC and UKC both print 70 lb. FCI 32 kg = 70.5 lb. Conversion kg x 2.2046.

Coat

Short, dense, sleek and glossy, never woolly or silky (AKC, UKC, FCI). Color: light wheaten to red wheaten; a little white on chest and toes is allowed; dark muzzle and ears acceptable; excessive black hairs highly undesirable (UKC, FCI). Solid black, and black and tan or brown and tan in brown/liver nosed dogs, disqualify (AKC). The ridge is the breed's hallmark: hair growing against the coat down the back, with two identical crowns (whorls); ridgelessness disqualifies (AKC, UKC, FCI).

Breed clubUnited Kennel Club, 2014

AKC, UKC and FCI 146 agree. AKC standard (April 2025 revision) adds the masked or clear-face allowance and the colour disqualifications.

Shedding

Shedding 3 of 5 (AKC breed page trait score)

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.

Heat tolerance

4 of 5 · Short and dense, sleek and glossy coat, never woolly nor silky (AKC, UKC, FCI). RRCUS: short coat, 'great for hot climates'.

DerivedAKC breed standard, 2025

Derived from the coat (short dense = 4). The RRCUS line is the club's own statement and agrees. The scale is coat-only; no measured data.

How long they live, and what they cost

Measured on real dogs, with the sample and the spread. Never a guess.

Median lifespan

12 years (11.9 to 12.2)

MeasuredMcMillan KM, 2024

UK pet dogs, a large sample (2,108 dogs), hence the narrow interval. Teng 2022 (VetCompass) does not include the Ridgeback. The AKC, RKC and RRCUS lines are shown beside the study and not used to set low/high.

The dog at home

What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.

Exercise need

More than 2 hours per day (RKC). RKC size band: large; large house, large garden. RRCUS: Ridgebacks need plenty of exercise and a fenced yard; at play they are very energetic.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC band 'More than 2 hours per day' = 150 min by the ruled mapping. AKC energy 3 of 5 and mental stimulation 4 of 5 (AKC bands); both appear in the energy row.

Energy

AKC rates energy level 3 of 5, mental stimulation needs 4 of 5, trainability 4 of 5 (AKC's own bands). RKC puts exercise at more than 2 hours a day. RRCUS: not a Labrador in a short coat; hunting dogs with high prey drive, independent, can be oblivious to being called and need a lot of positive motivation, stubborn and hard-headed to train in traditional obedience. UKC and FCI: dignified, intelligent, aloof with strangers, never shy or aggressive.

Breed clubAKC

AKC bands rate trainability higher than the club does in words; both stand. The RRCUS text is the club's public-education page.

Grooming load

2 of 5 · Once a week (RKC; coat length short, sheds). AKC coat grooming frequency 2 of 5, shedding 3 of 5, drooling 2 of 5 (AKC bands). RRCUS: short coat, doesn't shed much, practically odor free.

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC band 'Once a week' = 2 on the 1-5 scale. RKC says the breed sheds; RRCUS says it does not shed much; AKC rates shedding 3 of 5. All shown.

The work

What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.

Role

FCI 146 utilization: still used to hunt game in many parts of the world, but especially prized as a watch dog and family pet; FCI classes it Group 6 scenthounds and related breeds, Section 3 related breeds, without working trial. UKC: the original function was to hunt in packs of two or three, tracking game, especially lion, and keeping it at bay until the hunters arrived. RKC: developed as a scent hound in South Africa to track a variety of game; in Rhodesia used largely for tracking lions, fast on the scent, courageous in holding the lions at bay until the hunters arrived. AKC breed page: made famous for tracking and baying, never killing, lions.

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale, 2025

FCI utilization line, UKC and FCI history, RKC history, AKC page. FCI files the breed with the scenthounds and related breeds; the AKC standard describes 'great coursing ability and endurance' at the chase, so the breed straddles scent and sight.

Primary game

Lion, tracked and held at bay (UKC, FCI 146: 'especially lion'; RKC; AKC page). Wikipedia adds boars and other big game, wild pigs and baboons; the dogs bay a lion by darting in and out with quick snaps until the hunter shoots.

Breed clubUnited Kennel Club, 2014

UKC and FCI history text. The Wikipedia quarry list is editorial.

Also used on

FCI 146: watch dog and family pet; game hunted 'in many parts of the world'. Wikipedia: cleared farmland of wild pigs and baboons. RRCUS performance events include lure coursing, scent work, tracking, racing, agility, obedience and an endurance trial.

Breed clubFederation Cynologique Internationale, 2025

FCI utilization line; RRCUS event list taken from its site menu (only the lure coursing page was read in full).

Search pattern

Pack work in twos or threes: the dogs track the game, then keep it at bay with great agility until the hunter arrives (UKC, FCI 146). RKC: fast on the scent. AKC page: tracking and baying the lion, never killing it. Working dogs are not to be penalized for scars or blemishes from hunting injuries (UKC). Wikipedia: baying a lion by darting in and out with quick snaps.

Breed clubUnited Kennel Club, 2014

UKC and FCI history text; the voice on the line (baying) comes from the AKC page.

Field trial standard

Lure coursing under AKC and ASFA (RRCUS). AKC: Junior Courser (JC), Qualified Courser (QC), Senior Courser (SC), Master Courser (MC), Field Champion (FC; 15 championship points including two majors), Lure Courser Excellent (LCX; 45 more points). ASFA: Field Champion (FCh; 100 points with firsts), Veteran Field Champion (VFCh), Lure Courser of Merit (LCM). Stakes: Open, Specials/Field Champion, Veteran (7 years and up), and Singles. ASFA recognized Ridgebacks provisionally Apr 27 1991 and fully Apr 24 1993; AKC accepted them for lure coursing Aug 10 1992. FCI 146: without working trial.

Breed clubRhodesian Ridgeback Club of the United States

RRCUS Lure Coursing page; the AKC and ASFA rule books were not read, so the point schedules are as the club summarizes them.

How common the problems are

Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.

Hip dysplasia

4.3% · 16,011 OFA hip evaluations, all data as served Oct 8 2026; 4.3% dysplastic (mild 2.6, moderate 1.5, severe 0.2); normal 95.2% (excellent 26.0, good 62.9, fair 6.3). OFA rank 189.

MeasuredOrthopedic Foundation for Animals

OFA's own current breed statistics. OFA submissions come from breeding stock and from owners who choose to submit, so the figure describes dogs whose owners submitted, not every dog of the breed. A large database (16,011 evaluations). Hou 2013 / Oberbauer 2017 not re-read for this entry.

Elbow dysplasia

6.6% · 10,227 OFA elbow evaluations, all data as served Oct 8 2026; 6.6% abnormal (grade I 5.9, grade II 0.6, grade III 0.1); normal 93.3%. OFA rank 66.

MeasuredOrthopedic Foundation for Animals

OFA's own current breed statistics, same breeding-stock skew as hips. Both OFA hips and elbows are on the AKC national-club test list.

Most common disorders

RRCUS Health Screenings: hypothyroidism caused by lymphocytic thyroiditis is 'the most common disease found in Rhodesian Ridgebacks' and very heritable; a small juvenile cataract occurs 'with some frequency'; deafness (autosomal recessive per the club) exists but is 'not a widespread problem'. Hip and elbow dysplasia are the other screened conditions.

Breed clubRhodesian Ridgeback Club of the United States

Club statement, not a prevalence study. No VetCompass or Kennel Club survey figure read.

What the studies found

Population-level findings, shown as a spread. Breed sets the odds; the parents set the dog.

Aggression, as studied

Duffy, Hsu and Serpell 2008, C-BARQ online sample (Rhodesian Ridgeback n 69): the paper uses the Ridgeback as the low end of owner-directed aggression among 33 breeds (a medium effect size, Cohen's d 0.60, against the Dachshund at the high end). Table 5, which prints stranger-, owner- and dog-directed means, covers only breeds in both of the paper's surveys and does not include the Ridgeback; the breed's means appear only in Fig. 3.

StudiedDuffy D.L., 2008

Recorded only what the paper prints in text. No Ridgeback mean is printed in Table 5, so none is carried (no stranger-directed or dog-directed figure). Questionnaire study of owners who chose to respond; population-level, never a prediction for one dog. Bite-count tables are deliberately not carried.

More

akc bands

AKC breed page trait scores (1-5): Energy Level 3; Mental Stimulation Needs 4; Trainability Level 4; Barking Level 2; Watchdog/Protective Nature 5; Good With Young Children 5; Openness To Strangers 3; Good With Other Dogs 3; Shedding Level 3; Coat Grooming Frequency 2; Drooling Level 2; Affectionate With Family 5; Playfulness Level 3; Adaptability Level 4.

Breed clubAKC

Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.

What to ask a breeder for

The health clearances the breed’s own club and registry name. Reference only: what to ask for, never a statement about any dog’s health.

No KENAI kennel lists the Rhodesian Ridgeback yet. If you breed them, list your kennel free: it shows on this page and in the hunting dog breed finder, under every handler whose answers land on the breed.

How to read this page

Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.

Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 11 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.

Also called
African Lion Hound, Lion Dog, Ridgeback

Every breed, read the same way.

The breed index grows as entries clear the standard. Gun dogs first.

All published breeds

Your rhodesian ridgeback, on the record.

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