ThaiDog.com

Testimonials

Jack,

I know I’ve taken some time to write this, but I wanted to really get to know Cira (my blue female TRD) before making a full endorsement although I’ve been leaning this way from day one. She is truly an amazing puppy and I believe Thai Ridgebacks to be a fantastic breed. That’s not to say there haven’t been some trials (and I’m sure more to come), but overall she is absolutely incredible. We have worked very hard at socialization since I got her. The first weekend here (she was right at 12 weeks), we traveled 6 hours for an outdoor wedding and reception. She slept the entire way (each way) during the drive and over the course of the weekend was introduced to about 100 people and 10 other dogs. I believe this really helped set the tone for her personality.

She is very outgoing when it comes to meeting other people and animals. As long as there is no perceived aggression towards her, she has been very friendly to everyone she meets. She will always approach a new dog cautiously, but after a short smell, will either try to play with them or go on about her business. She is completely friendly to people when we are out as long as I am nearby. At home she is a little more guarded (which I consider a good thing), but will warm up to most anyone pretty quickly.

I am still amazed at how rapidly we were able to housebreak her. At first she had an issue with peeing from excitement whenever something / someone new happened and first thing in the morning. We kept her crate close to the back door and would rush her out in the mornings and not speak or play with her until she went “pee-pee” in the yard. This helped immensely for the morning accidents and continually introducing her to more people, places, animals, and situations has gotten her beyond the excitement peeing. I know that I have been very lucky in the poop department. She has not yet had a single poop accident in the house. She is very reluctant to go in the presence of others and prefers this one corner of the back yard to go (lucky for me).

Despite some temptations for household destruction, she has been pretty good in this department. We keep the obvious collection of things out of her reach, but there will always be plenty for her to improvise with if she so desired. We had an issue with her eating drywall in this one spot in the kitchen for about a week. I ended up putting a clear acrylic sheet along this section of wall and 24” tall to keep her out. However, at this point, I am almost more worried that there was something in the wall that she was trying to get to rather than just simple play because she has not tried it anywhere else in the house (which offers ample other opportunities). I have gotten to the point of trusting her in the kitchen out of crate when I am away and at night and this seems to work well so far. I also work very hard to exercise her sufficiently so she is more apt to sleep during the alone hours.

Her energy is absolutely amazing. At 4 months I took her for her first run with me (a park that has a 5 mile loop in it) and was just interested in seeing how far she would like to go before stopping. The first time out we made it about 2.5 miles before she showed any signs of slowing. We stopped for about 10 minutes for a rest and some water and then were back at it for the remainder of the run. The second time out we completed the loop and she was pulling on me to go faster during the last half mile (which has been the case since). I usually walk her for about 30-45 minutes in the morning every day and again most evenings as well as take her on a couple of 3 to 5 mile runs a week. My yard is fenced and I give her semi-free choice of being in or out when I am home. We also try to get her to the dog park or bring friends over at least one day a week to play with other dogs for an hour or so.

She is proving to be extremely intelligent, but still quite independent minded. She has good
comprehension of the basic obedience moves (sit, come, stay, etc.), but we are still working on
obeying with distractions present (namely birds and squirrels). We recently started bedience
training and the instructor believes she will be a good candidate for agility classes when she matures some more. Cira is picking up the techniques from class without any problems.

She is growing very quickly. At five months, she is already 35 lbs. and about 19 inches at the withers. She is extremely lean and surprisingly strong given her weight. There is absolutely no question as to the quality and beauty of the dog. I have been stopped by numerous breeders and show dog owners (not to mention countless other people) to comment on her remarkable appearance and find out more about her. Even on our shorter walks around my neighborhood, I’m still stopped at least 50% of the time by someone asking what type of dog she is or commenting on her coat or distinctive appearance.

Thank you for introducing me to such an incredible breed. You were immensely helpful at providing useful answers to all of my questions during the buying process. I must admit that I was very reluctant to trust someone I found over the internet and pay money to before receiving the puppy, but I will absolutely use you again when (not if) I get another. The initial references you provided and our phone conversations were very helpful in making me comfortable trusting your operation and the dog you delivered proved the outstanding quality of your work. I believe this to be a perfect breed for anyone looking for an intelligent, athletic, protective dog that has the time and energy to develop their characteristics into great companion. Please don’t hesitate to use this letter or contact me for future references. I am happy to assist in any way I can.

Best regards,

Adam Bane - Atlanta, GA

****************************************************************

Thai Ridgeback Puppies