Hi ClanWorgen, thanks very much for taking the trouble to reply. We don't have any other dogs; we do have a 6 year old Birman cat and our understanding is that it will likely assert its authority over the RR puppy at an early stage. Longer term we have spoken to a number of RR owners and breeders who have seen an RR co-exist with a cat so we hope this will be fine!There may not be any RR owners frequenting this forum, but the question you're asking is not necessarily breed specific. Deciding on a male or female mostly depends on the current dogs in your household, it is usually a good idea not to get two dogs of the same gender if you can help it. RR do tend to lean on the aggressive side of the spectrum which means SSA in males may be an issue.
Do you have any current dogs?
Hi there, I haven't posted here in years, but your post showed up in my mailbox and I thought I'd chime in. I have two ridgebacks, a male and female. I also have two kids and, like you, live in a large city (NYC) with access to parks and a small yard. These are my first ridgebacks, so my experience is limited to them. My male is by far an easier dog. He's not very high energy, extremely affectionate, and very tolerant of the kids. My female is high strung, has an extremely high prey drive and will growl at the kids if they annoy her. She is very attached to us, but is much more independent, and not all that concerned about pleasing us. She can also be aggressive with other large dogs and is not that great in small dog runs. She's fine in large off leash parks as long as she can have her space and likes to play with smaller dogs. She's also great with puppies. She absolutely could not live with cats, but then she didn't grow up with any, I know our breeder has cats and about ten ridgebacks and they all get along fine. She was very high energy as a puppy, now at nearly five, she's much calmer, though still wants to play and run. Both of them sleep on the couch most of the time, though she is our watchdog and likes to bark at all the delivery people. My boy doesn't even get up when people come by. Again, this is just my dogs, but from knowing several ridgebacks from the dog park, I'd say boys are generally more easy going. If I had to pick just one, I'd get a male, but I love having one of each. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer if I can.
Hi Elwlyn,Hi there, I haven't posted here in years, but your post showed up in my mailbox and I thought I'd chime in. I have two ridgebacks, a male and female. I also have two kids and, like you, live in a large city (NYC) with access to parks and a small yard. These are my first ridgebacks, so my experience is limited to them. My male is by far an easier dog. He's not very high energy, extremely affectionate, and very tolerant of the kids. My female is high strung, has an extremely high prey drive and will growl at the kids if they annoy her. She is very attached to us, but is much more independent, and not all that concerned about pleasing us. She can also be aggressive with other large dogs and is not that great in small dog runs. She's fine in large off leash parks as long as she can have her space and likes to play with smaller dogs. She's also great with puppies. She absolutely could not live with cats, but then she didn't grow up with any, I know our breeder has cats and about ten ridgebacks and they all get along fine. She was very high energy as a puppy, now at nearly five, she's much calmer, though still wants to play and run. Both of them sleep on the couch most of the time, though she is our watchdog and likes to bark at all the delivery people. My boy doesn't even get up when people come by. Again, this is just my dogs, but from knowing several ridgebacks from the dog park, I'd say boys are generally more easy going. If I had to pick just one, I'd get a male, but I love having one of each. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer if I can.
We got our female first as a puppy (10 weeks). Our male was returned to the breeder nearly a year later by another family. They had a new baby and no longer had time for him. He was almost 4 when we got him. He is actually my girl's uncle, her mother's brother, so the two dogs did not grow up together. He gets along with everyone, is really easy-going and now at almost 8, really lazy. I actually have a hard time getting him out in the winter, he goes into hibernation and refuses to go out if it's raining or snowing outside. Both dogs will have a burst of energy, usually after dinner, when they run and play for 5-10 minutes with each other or with the kids, then it's back on the couch. He's been pretty much like that since we got him, maybe a little bit more energetic, but not much. The only thing I find challenging with him is that he's extremely food motivated, which is great for training, but not so great for his diet or our kitchen cabinets - he destroyed even the upper ones and can open all the doors and reach pretty much anything that I can reach. We did have to rush him to an emergency vet once after he helped himself to a couple of bags of chocolate. Scat mats have been an absolute necessity to keep him away from food. He's a pretty extreme case though, even our dog walker who has a ridgeback himself and boarded our dogs once said he never saw just a food obsessed dog.Hi Elwlyn,
Thanks so much for taking the time to write about your RR experiences (this goes for everyone who has contributed to this thread, much appreciated). Very interesting. We are at the moment inclining towards getting a male (just the one for now!) for the reasons you mention - the breeder is also recommending this for our situation. Your experiences seem to back this up. Out of curiosity are your two dogs siblings and did you get them at the same time, or was it one then the other? Do they get on well with the kids? Finally, how much walking/running does your RR male require daily, do you find? Thanks again and hope all is well Stateside, despite all the current global challenges!
One more thing I wanted to add, if you're on Facebook at all, I'd recommend joining the RR specific groups. Tons of breed specific information there and many really helpful RR owners who'd be happy to help and share their experience.We got our female first as a puppy (10 weeks). Our male was returned to the breeder nearly a year later by another family. They had a new baby and no longer had time for him. He was almost 4 when we got him. He is actually my girl's uncle, her mother's brother, so the two dogs did not grow up together. He gets along with everyone, is really easy-going and now at almost 8, really lazy. I actually have a hard time getting him out in the winter, he goes into hibernation and refuses to go out if it's raining or snowing outside. Both dogs will have a burst of energy, usually after dinner, when they run and play for 5-10 minutes with each other or with the kids, then it's back on the couch. He's been pretty much like that since we got him, maybe a little bit more energetic, but not much. The only thing I find challenging with him is that he's extremely food motivated, which is great for training, but not so great for his diet or our kitchen cabinets - he destroyed even the upper ones and can open all the doors and reach pretty much anything that I can reach. We did have to rush him to an emergency vet once after he helped himself to a couple of bags of chocolate. Scat mats have been an absolute necessity to keep him away from food. He's a pretty extreme case though, even our dog walker who has a ridgeback himself and boarded our dogs once said he never saw just a food obsessed dog.
