Cynara Ridgebacks is a small Oklahoma kennel founded in 2001 and
originally dedicated to owning and showing the most beautiful Rhodesian
Ridgebacks we could buy. As our experience with this fantastic breed grew
so did our determination to help improve the breed by breeding healthy and
intelligent Ridgebacks who meet the standard for conformation and
temperament. Our dogs are highly valued by their owners for their
individual personalities, intelligence, looks and athletic healthy bodies.
Cynara Ridgebacks are multi-purpose dogs who can show in the morning, lure
course in the afternoon, play with the family for a few hours in the evening and
then crash on the couch until morning. Cynara Ridgebacks is an American Kennel Club
(AKC) Breeder of Merit as of 2011.
NEWS:
Katie x Akala puppy born Dec. 2, 2011.
DOB: September 21, 2001
Pedigree
OFA page
Sire: CH Wyndrunhr Red Hot Chili, ROM
Dam: CH Zareba Tosca Puccini Cayenne, SC, HIC
Hunter has one of the most beautiful heads I've seen on a RR.
As a puppy his eyes were so beautiful people joked he was wearing mascara.
Hunter easily
finished his confirmation championship in December 2003 and promptly retired to chase
squirrels, lay in the warm sun and to be adored. His temperament is mellow
and laid back except when chasing
the ATV around the property. Then he amps up and thinks he is super dog
who can eat rubber tires. What a goof ball!!
|
HUNTER'S HEALTH TESTS - CHIC #23641 |
|
Test type |
Date |
Results |
|
Cardiac - Heart |
2004 |
Normal by
cardiologist |
|
CERF (Eyes) |
2002, 2003 & 2010 |
Clear 2002 & 2003. Vision normal with age related nuclear sclerosis
2010. |
|
Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) |
2008 |
Clear/Normal - No genes for
DM |
|
Elbows x-ray |
2005 |
Normal - no
dysplasia |
|
Hips x-ray |
2005 |
Excellent - no
dysplasia |
|
Thyroid |
2005 |
Compensative autoimmune
thyroiditis. High (114) TGAA level. |
Our original goal was for him to win a coursing Field Championship but he
usually outsmarts the lure course designers and runs to where the "bunny" is
going to be instead of obediently following behind. Judges don't seem to
appreciate this talent and seldom reward Hunters' problem solving abilities.
Hunter suffers from food and skin allergies and has thyroid disease so he
was neutered and never bred. Hunter was our first Ridgeback to earn AKC
Championship, Junior and Senior Courser titles and a Canine Good Citizen
certificate.
On October 29, 2009, shortly after turning 8 years old, Hunter visited the vet to have a couple of new lumps
checked out. The lab results confirmed our initial suspicion that the
tumors
were mast cell cancer. We explored various treatment methods including
surgery and neoplasene but ultimately decided against invasive or harsh
treatment. We have made some changes to his diet and now mainly feed low-carb
Evo. Hunter feels good most days, loves to play and go for rides in the
car. We visited the vet in early May 2010 for a check-up. The tumors
haven't grown any, at least on the outside, and the vet was pleased with his
overall health.
DOB: June 1, 2003 Pedigree OFA page
Sire: CH Mkuzi Ake Ajabu, SC
Dam: DC County Line's Lady Godiva, SC, CGC, TDIAOV,
HIC
Chisum has a fabulous pedigree full of show, lure coursing and obedience
champions. His personality and type are totally different than my other
Ridgebacks. Cautious, watchful and slow to warm up to strangers makes him the
perfect guard dog but not necessarily the type of dogs for families who
frequently entertain.
|
CHISUM'S HEALTH TESTS - CHIC #23640 |
|
Test type |
Date |
Results |
|
Cardiac - Heart |
2004 |
Normal by
cardiologist |
|
CERF (Eyes) |
2005 & 2010 |
Clear |
|
Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) |
2008 |
At Risk - Has both genes for
DM which means it is possible for him to be affected. |
|
Elbows x-ray |
2005 |
Normal - no
dysplasia |
|
Hips x-ray |
2005 |
Excellent - no
dysplasia |
|
Thyroid |
2004 |
Normal function |
In his prime he was 30" height at the shoulder and a solid 105
pounds. Chisum is our largest Ridgeback and
considerable over the preferred standard but he is very impressive. When Chisum
barks the windows rattle and visitors freeze in their tracks. However,
this intimidating Ridgeback is a huge "mama's boy". I seldom can leave the room
for more than a minute or two before Chisum comes looking for me.
He earned 7 points toward his show championship but wasn't
interested in performing in the show ring so we retired him. Chisum easily completed Beginner, Novice &
Trial Procedure obedience classes. We knew he might be talented in obedience
when he won Novice First Prize by completing his graduation test with a score of
196 out of 200. For fun and because it is a worthy program we took and
passed the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) test. It was a close call when his
protective instincts kicked in during the part of the test where a male jogger
ran directly toward us but training kept him under control.
We decided to try Rally Obedience and took several
weeks of classes to learn the rules and practice. The Rally Novice test is done
with the dog on a leash. A perfect score is 100. To pass requires at least a 70
score. When a dog passes three different courses or legs he earns the title.
Many owners, including me, choose to work toward the next level which is a Rally
Advanced (RA) title. The scary part about earning the RA title is the dog must
perform
off leash. Chisum easily earned Rally Novice
(RN) and Rally Advanced (RA) titles. Our first RA leg was ran on 11/3/06. Chisum was simply awesome and scored a 93. His 2nd leg
was earned with a 96 on the following day. The 3rd leg and the title was earned
with a score of 94. If this sounds easy, think again. Hounds and obedience
don't always mix well.
GCH Jendaya's Mint Julep of
Cynara, CD, RE, OA, NAJ, Nat'l JHA, Int'l JHA, HIC, CGC VC ROM (Katie)
DOB: July 3, 2005
Pedigree OFA page
Sire: Alchemy Oridgenal OneMoreTime, CDX RN AX SC MXJ HIC TT VCX
ROM
(Falco)
Dam: Am/Can. CH Jendaya's Akiki of Tumomak, SC HIC TT (Gemma)
Katie is Cynara Ridgeback's foundation bitch. She was our first Ridgeback to combine strong agility, lure
coursing, obedience and conformation bloodlines. Katie is the dam
of Cynara's A, B & D litters. Katie is a versatile
athlete and an excellent dam. She earned a Versatility Certificate
for winning titles in three different venues -- conformation, obedience
and agility. She is the 5th generation in her family to win a
VC. It is a amazing accomplishment.
One of the highest honors awarded by the Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of
the U.S. is a Register of Merit (ROM). It is given to bitches for
producing 5 show champion offspring. Katie earned her ROM from only 2
litters and three days before her 6th birthday. There are over 10
generations of ROM dog/bitches on her sire's side of the family. As of
12/8/11 Katie has produced 7 champions.
|
KATIE'S HEALTH TESTS - CHIC #41315 |
|
Test type |
Date |
Results |
|
Cardiac - Heart |
2007 |
Normal on echocardiogram |
|
CERF (Eyes) |
2006, 2007 & 2009 |
Clear, normal eyes |
|
Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) |
2008 |
Clear/Normal - No genes for
DM |
|
Elbows x-ray |
2007 |
Normal - no
dysplasia |
|
Hips x-ray |
2007 |
Excellent - no
dysplasia |
|
Thyroid |
2006 & 2009 |
Normal function |
Katie earned her conformation championship with a roar by winning a
4-point major (her 3rd major) to finish with 17 points. Most hounds are not known for their skills in obedience
but thanks to strong obedience bloodlines Katie has the genes to want to
please. She passed her Canine Good Citizen test and
earned three Rally titles and
then qualified for a Herding Instinct certificate by herding goats.
In January 2010 Katie started working toward her Companion Dog (CD) title. We NQ'd (not qualified) our first two tries
in January. We passed and earned 2 of the 3 required legs on
Feb. 20 & 21, 2010. She came into season so we took off the
month of March. Our next attempt came on April 24. We NQ'd
which was totally my fault for giving both a verbal command and a hand
signal. The next day I was nervous but Katie did very well.
She passed and earned her CD title. It only took 6 trials. A
50% pass rate is excellent.
The AKC started a new title program on 5/12/2010 called a Grand
Championship. It takes 25 points with 3 majors plus other criteria for the GCH.
Katie hasn't been in the show ring since before she had her first litter
of puppies in Jan. 2008 but we believe she is up for the challenge.
Show judges seem to pick males Ridgebacks 85-90% of the time for Best of
Breed over the bitches so it will take much longer for a bitch to earn a
Grand Championship title. Katie's first show going for the GCH was 5/15/10. As
of 8/25//10 Katie has earned 11 points -- unfortunately 1 point at a
time. This all changed when we finally entered a cluster of shows
where majors were available. Starting on 8/26/10 in Topeka, KS
Katie went on a huge winning streak. Thursday BOS for a 3 point
major, Friday BOS 3 pt major, Sat. BOS 4 point major & Sun. BOS for a 3
pt major. In only 4
shows she won more points as she earned in 10 shows. Amazing.
On October 1, 2010 Katie won Best of Breed to earn the last point for
her GCH title. She is the first Oklahoma Ridgeback to earn a GCH,
VC and a ROM.
To prove Katie is an awesome foundation bitch, she was entered in her
first agility trail at age 5 years and 8 months. She ran three
qualifying runs in her first weekend and 5 qualifying runs in her 2nd
weekend of trials where she earned two agility titles -- Novice Agility
Standard and Novice Agility Jumpers. I haven't found anything this
dog can't do.
She is a very sweet Ridgeback
that gets along with all of the dogs in her pack, male and female.
When strange dogs come into the yard she gets protective and tries to
sound like a junk yard dog. Size wise -- Katie is perfectly within the Ridgeback standard at 25"
height. Females are supposed to be 24-26" tall at the withers (top of
shoulder) Judges eyes are fooled by oversize dogs because they look impressive
but those dogs are seldom able to seriously compete in agility or lure
coursing for very
long.
Health Notes: Katie has passed all of her health screening. Her
eyes have been tested for cataracts & other eye diseases three times and her thyroid tested
twice. Katie has only had two minor allergic
reactions. One came right after the first litter started on puppy
formula and then it happened again with the second litter.
Obviously something in the formula doesn't mix well with Katie's system
but after two Benedryl, the hives quickly go down and she is fine.
DOB:
January 23, 2008
Pedigree
OFA page
Sire: BIF DC Tandiwe's Intrigue'N Mission, MC,
CGC (Apollo)
Dam: CH Jendaya's Mint Julep of Cynara, RE, CGC (Katie)
Trouble is pick of the litter from Cynara's first litter. She is active, spirited, fearless and has lovely conformation. We
started puppy classes at about 12 weeks old after the 2nd set of
vaccinations. Our goals are socialization, obedience and learning to
show in the conformation ring.
|
TROUBLE'S HEALTH TESTS |
|
Test type |
Date |
Results |
|
Cardiac - Heart |
2009 |
Normal by
cardiologist |
|
CERF (Eyes) |
2008, 2009 & 2011 |
Clear |
|
Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) |
2008 |
Clear/Normal - No genes for
DM |
|
Elbows x-ray |
2010 |
Normal - no
dysplasia |
|
Hips x-ray |
2010 |
Good - no
dysplasia |
|
Thyroid |
2010 |
Normal function |
Her first show was a fun match held when she was 4 3/4 months old.
While riding to the show she chewed up part of the zipper on the soft crate,
however she won Best Puppy in Match so all was forgiven. Trouble
earned her AKC show championship on Feb. 7, 2010.
Trouble
was named Trouble because she seems to attract trouble.
She was bitten on the shoulder by a copperhead snake at 5 months old.
The bite was very painful but all of the loose puppy skin allowed the swelling to spread out without causing
excessive pressure or damage. At 6 months, we noticed that her
microchip had migrated from its original location down to about the
middle of her left shoulder blade. Her favorite bad habit is
chewing up ink pens. If we aren't watching her, she will even jump
up on the dining room table and grab a pen and jump back down. She
is a huge counter surfer and loves to play tug games and chase
squirrels.
Trouble has been learning Rally Obedience skills. Her first
Rally Novice trial was at the 2009 Ridgeback Nationals held in May,
2009. The pressure was intense to earn a passing score. I
needn't have worried. We scored 84 out of 100 for our first leg of
3. Our next trials were on June 27 & 28, 2009 in Oklahoma City,
OK. Trouble did very well, scoring 92 and 91 and easily earned her
Rally Novice (RN) title. In April 2010 Trouble earned the 3
qualifying legs to get her Rally Advanced title.

DOB: Novermber 25, 2010 (a Thanksgiving puppy)
Pedigree
Sire: MBIF DC Intrigue's Apollo Sun by Jager, MC
LCX RN BN FCh CGC TDI TT ET (Titan)
Dam: GCh Intrigue's Madeira Trojan Moon, RN SC FCh HIC (Calypso)
|
SHILOH'S HEALTH TESTS |
|
Test type |
Date |
Results |
|
Cardiac - Heart |
Upcoming 2012 |
|
|
CERF (Eyes) |
7/2/11 |
Normal - Clear |
|
Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) |
N/A |
Clear/Normal by
birth - No genes for DM |
|
Elbows x-ray |
Upcoming Dec. 2012 |
|
|
Hips x-ray |
Upcoming Dec. 2012 |
|
|
Thyroid |
Upcoming 2012 |
|
Shiloh is our latest Ridgeback. Her mom is Katie's aunt and her
dad is Trouble's 1/2 brother so she related to my favorite girls.
Shiloh is beautiful, fearless, energetic and very healthy.
She is passed her AKC Puppy Stars class and a beginner's
tracking class. In early July 2011 Shiloh entered the Rally ring
for the first time and scored a 93 to earn Leg 1 of 3. She earned
her RN title in 4 tries.
At the 2011 RRCUS Nat'l Shiloh was the youngest dog entered in Rally
Novice B but managed to win 4th place. She also passed her CGC
test at the Nat'l. Shiloh's breeder, Susan Morrill showed her in
Puppy Sweeps and in the 9-12 month class where she won 2nd
place.
|