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q&A
ANN MEYER SiMBALi
Silhouette, balance of front and rear angles, length of neck, head proportions, size. The correct silhouette! Most people think ridge, but there are ridgeless RRs and you can recognize them by their shape. 2. What shortcomings are you most willing to forgive? What faults do you find hard to overlook? I love a low hock and a moderate rear, but I can toler- ate more bend of stifle. I cannot forgive being too big or weedy. Our standard has a nice range of size and the larg- er the dog, the less agile they are. Quick and agile should be the hallmarks of our breed as they needed those two things to survive a hunt. Any dog or bitch outside an inch over standard would be hard for me to forgive. 3. How has the breed changed since you became involved with it? Do you see any trends you think are moving the breed in the wrong direction? Any traits becoming exaggerated? When I first came into the breed, one part of the stan- dard said “stripped of all ballast”, meaning you expected to see a hard muscled dog, without excess fat or being smooth and soft. That’s hard to find these days as being smooth and elegant seems to have become the norm. As with most breeds, the trend towards the generic mov- ing dog, excessive side go also afflicts RRs. Going along with that is the overdone rear, straighter upper arm and shorter neck. 4. Do you feel the Ridgeback should have a racier more sighthound like build or a more solid Mastiff- like build? Neither! RRs should not be bulky, that would limit their agility. Greyhoundy with flatter ribs, narrow bodies is also incorrect. It may make a faster dog in the coursing field, but RRs need more stability in close quarters and that is a dog with a lower center of gravity and wider body than most sighthounds. 5. Do you see Ridgebacks as sighthounds, big game hunters, or utilitarian farm dogs? All of the above to be a Ridgeback. They will use their noses until they spot game, then it’s all sight. They should not be pegged as one or the other. In fact, when I first got into RRs, I was told they are the Hound with the Working dog mind. Each one is different and can have various traits, some more than others. My first bitch was great at pointing birds and I have one now that loves hunting birds. The rest of the pack are squirrel and rabbit oriented and could care less about birds. 6. Is there anything Ridgeback handlers do you wish they would not? The constant stuffing of bait in the mouth! You open the mouth and you can’t see the teeth for all the bait.
We purchased property in the country so my daughter could have her horse. I had always had Dachshunds, but we decided we needed a larger breed. We found the Rhodesian Ridgeback in a dog book and after reading the descrip- tion decided this was going to be the dog for us. This was in 1986 before the
convenience of the internet. Answering a newspaper ad we chose our pup on the way to a horse show. My son chose one and my daughter another. My son said, “Okay you can pick that one, but I get to name it.” Of course, we did not know that this was not the way to select a puppy. However, we were very lucky and TC, my son’s initials, came into our lives. Purebred dogs had always fascinated me and the show world from stories told to me about my grandfather’s dogs. I had shown my Dachshund many years before at Detroit KC. As an enthusiastic newcomer, I was most disappointed by the lack of hospitality of the other exhibitors. This is something that has not changed. I then found an obedience class and enjoyed the camara- derie and the encouragement of the obedience crowd. I finished a CD on that Dachshund in 3 shows. With a fast-forward to 1986 I decided I would again try obedi- ence. This time the people were as welcoming and they were also conformation people. They encouraged me to show TC in the upcoming local shows and helped both of us prepare. That was in May, 1987 and by April, 1988 TC was Ch. P.A.T.H.way’s (our first initials) Simbali TC and I was hooked. From this first Ridgeback came my ken- nel name. July, 1988 was my first owner/handled group placement. TC went on to do very well with Mr. Jeffrey Brucker winning the group at Westchester KC and rank- ing in the Top 20. What next? Along came 2 more males, both owner/handler finished, a co-ownership of the 1991 National Specialty winner and my foundation bitch from the specialty winner. Along the way there have been a number of owner/handled champions, a RWD at the 2002 National as well as a Top 20 dog, AKC Ch. Can. Ch. Sim- bali’s The Outlander, ROM and a National Specialty WB. Both the RWD and the WB were sired by The Outlander. It has been a wonderful journey with breeding, showing, stewarding, and judging as a natural progression. I was approved to judge Ridgebacks in 2010 and since then have added Whippets which I have had since 1989 and also Junior Showmanship. I am now ready to apply for more Hound breeds. This would have been done sooner except 2014 was spent spearheading a fight to repeal poorly written and punitive legislation in Lee County, FL. I formed a group, Lee Alliance for Responsi- ble Dog & Cat Owners, set up a steering committee, and formed an email list to keep interested parties informed. This battle took 10 months, but I’m happy to report we were successful in repealing the harmful animal ordi-
Plus many are hiding poor temperaments—a big no-no in our breed. I insist they stop baiting on the individual exam. 7. Name a dog not current- ly being shown that exem- plifies your ideal type. Ch Amakhosi Aussie Gold
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