The Thai Ridgeback or Thai Lang-An is an ancient dog breed from Thailand, which belongs to a hound group of primitive dogs known as the Primitive Types – Hunting Dogs. He is the one of three types of Ridgeback dogs – the other two are the Phu Quoc Ridgeback and the Rhodesian Ridgeback. This is a medium-sized dog, ideal for hunting and guarding. It possesses a strong prey drive, which makes him particularly dangerous for all smaller animals, including cats. In their native country, Thai Lang-An is often used to hunt Cobras, which can inhabit suburban homes. Also, Ridgebacks are good carting dogs. These dogs rarely bark. Their lifespan is up from 13 to 16 years. Main characteristics of Thai Ridgeback breed are intelligence, alertness, independence, courage, stubbornness, agility, strength, and free will.
Chestnut Thai Ridgeback
These dogs can be excellent companions. They often get attached to their owners and their human families, which is the reason they can be very protective. This makes them particularly dangerous for strangers. So, in order to make them friendly towards your guests, you’ll have to go through socialization training. However, they’re not so easy to train, and that’s why we suggest you start with the training sessions as soon as you bring your dog home. We can say that grown up dogs are child friendly, while the puppies can be annoying for toddlers, especially since they can be very noisy. Thai Ridgeback breed is known to be dog aggressive, so better keep your dog on a leash while in walk. They are very active and agile dogs, they can jump very high and climb over walls easily, which makes them great escape artists. That’s why you’ll have to exercise your Ridgeback a lot – take him for a walk ordinarily or play some physically intensive games with him.
Since this dog breed was originated on an island, there were no interpopulation crosses until the very recent past. This is the reason they’re considered very healthy dogs with only a few inherent health issues – dermoid sinus being the one they’re most prone to. However, if you wanna buy this dog, but you’re living in the northern hemisphere, where the winters and autumns are particularly cold, we suggest you keep your dog indoors during these cold months. They’re simply not used to cold weather because Thai Ridgeback breed was developed in Southeast Asia, where the warm climate is typical. After the first interpopulation crosses, the breed became prone to hip dysplasia. So, be sure to examine your dog from time to time on any signs of these diseases to avoid any unpleasant situations. Now, let’s take a closer look at the physical characteristics of this dog.
Contents
All About Physical Characteristics Of Thai Ridgeback Breed
The Thai Lang-An has a muscular, compact body, with strong hips and “deep” chest reaching his elbows. His skin is thin and fine, closely attached to his body. The thin and spiky tail is almost straight, like a sword, carried upward atop his strong and straight back. The front legs are straight and lean, while the hind legs are strong and long. Thai Ridgeback dogs originating from northern Thailand can have dewclaws on their hind legs. The neck is flat, strong, and rounded. Extra rolls of skin can form on lower neck while the dog is alert. His head is wedge shaped, with strong and broad scissor jaw, and prick, large ears of triangular shape. Typical for all Ridgebacks are almond shaped, dark brown eyes, but some of them also have amber eyes. The nose is mainly black.
The majority of the Thai Ridgebacks have tongues spotted with black pigmentation, but some of them also have entirely black or blue tongues. This dog has a smooth coat with the very short, strong and shiny hair. That’s why they don’t need a lot of grooming. All Ridgebacks have a specific distinction in comparison to other dogs – a ridge of hair along its back that is running in the opposite direction from the hair on the rest of its body. The Thai Ridgeback breed comes in four colors only – red, blue, black and yellow. The chestnut color can be a variant of yellow, while the grey color is an approved variant of blue. It is more than evident that Thai Lang-An is a graceful dog breed of great strength and incredible movement ability.
Thai Ridgeback Size And Weight:
Male
– Height between 22 and 24 inches (56–61 cm)
– Weight between 40 and 60 pounds (18-27 kg)
Female
– Height between 20 and 22 inches (51–56 cm)
– Weight between 35 and 55 pounds (16-25 kg)
There’s nothing wrong with my back, it’s just a ridge :)
Ridgeback’s Ridge
Like I wrote above, the common thing for all Ridgebacks, and the reason they have such name, is a specific ridge which forms in their coat along the back. So, what exactly is that ridge? It is a part of the coat over dog’s back, between his withers and hips, where the hair grows in the opposite direction to the rest of the dog’s coat. This unusual growth creates certain circular shapes and whirls in fur, which forms ridge patterns. Thai Ridgeback breed, like all other types of Ridgeback dogs, has eight different ridge patterns – leaf, needle, saddle back, bowling pin, violin, feather, arrow, and lute. Although Thai Lang-An puppies are often born ridgless, they develop this ridge during the early months of their lives. Take note here that the most praised Ridgebacks are those with the broader ridges. So, we can freely say that this is a sort of their trademark.
Perfect Hunting Dog
The Thai Ridgeback breed is known for its strong prey drive. That’s why these dogs are perfect for hunting if trained appropriately. Their muscular and smooth body, strong jaws, agility, excellent senses, and incredible tracking abilities, are the main reasons this dog is such a good hunter’s companion. During history, these dogs are often being used in the hunt on boars, but they can also be used, with equal success, in the hunt on all kinds of animals. On top of that, they’re good pest exterminators, which they proved multiple times during their long history. They are particularly successful against rats and snakes.
Although we can all agree that snakes are not pests, they can cause a lot of trouble in Thailand villages, Cobras especially! These snakes are very aggressive and poisonous and they like to sneak into houses there, which can be a serious threat for the inhabitants. The Ridgeback’s ability to hunt them down is another reason he’s so much loved and respected in his native country. So, when we take a look at all of its qualities, it is quite obvious why Thai Ridgeback breed is becoming more and more popular in other parts of the world. It is easy to maintain, it is loyal, protective, gracious, and powerful. Simply said, it is a wonderful dog with so many virtues, who will make you and your family proud.
41
