On January 27, 2012 Kanzu earned his Master Agility Championship (MACH). There are few Rhodesian Ridgebacks who have earned this title. In order to earn a MACH, a dog must have advanced to the excellent class by achieving Novice, Open and Excellent B titles. He must then have 20 Double Qs and 750 points. A double Q is obtained when the dog has perfect runs and is under course time in the Jumpers and the Standard course on the same day. This is a “Double Q”. He must also have 750 points (a point is earned for each full second under course time).

Kanzu’s MACH journey began 13 months prior to his MACH with his trainer/handler Tracy Tennison of Citrus Hill Canine Center who earned more than 40 QQs and 540 points with Kanzu. He finished up his MACH with his special friend and handler Vicki LePenske and together they earned another 11 QQs and the final necessary 210 points.

Below are pictures of Kanzu’s agility feats as well as the videos of the run where he earned his title and his victory romp.

Video courtesy of Carie Krumme and Matt Geer

In 2011 Kanzu was ranked #2 in the national agility rankings for the Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of the US (RRCUS). There are several national agility ranking systems. The RRCUS system calculates points during the calendar year for all Ridgebacks who compete in agility from the onset of their participation in the sport.

Click here to see the 2011 RRCUS Top Twenty in Agility
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Canine athletes are just like human athletes. Often times they need help from a sports medicine specialist to heal injuries and optimize their performance. In Kanzu’s early, very energetic and intense lure coursing career he took several hard falls that left him with a chronic intermittent rear leg and back problem. It was rarely anything that anyone else could see and visits to many vets and traditional X-rays did not show any clear diagnosable problem. But as Kanzu continued in agility it was clear to those of us who knew him well that there was something not quite right. At the peak of his agility career it was frightening to not be able to locate the problem that came and went.

Finally we were referred to CARE, (California Animal Rehabilitation). Care is a very unique facility in Santa Monica, CA that combines veterinary medicine and physical therapy for a comprehensive approach to rehabilitation. Dr. Jessica Waldman, a veterinarian who specializes in Canine Rehab was immediately able to identify the problem using a detailed history, physical exam and videotaped gait analysis during walking, trotting and running. An individualized rehab program was developed complete with acupuncture, ultrasound and active and passive physical therapy. The physical therapists taught Linda how to do many of the exercises and stretches to accelerate Kanzu’s healing and provided incredibly valuable information for keeping Kanzu running at his optimal ability on an ongoing basis.

Kanzu loves his visits to CARE where he gets lots of attention, treats and massages, We are incredibly grateful to Dr. Waldman and her dedicated staff for how much they have helped Kanzu continue to do the things he loves.

Click here to visit CARE’s website
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

At the conclusion of the Western Washington Dog Shows near Seattle, Kanzu and Uncle Maxx accompanied by Linda and Aunt Jennifer made a very interesting drive in the unexpected heavy snows to pick up our Kanzu son, Kuyu. It was a very interesting two day adventure back to CA with our precious cargo. Kuyu was a fabulous traveler who had already had lots of experience in vehicles. He arrived home on January 24th at 10 weeks of age. He has fit in wonderfully with his dad. Ema is still getting use to him and is most definitely taking on the role of “the fun police”. But Kanzu appears to think that having a puppy around is a great idea. They are spending much time playing ‘keep-away’ and ‘tug-a-war’. It doesn’t seem that long ago that Kanzu was the puppy and I was having to take the role of playing all of these games with him. Now he is the greatest baby sitter and is wonderful at playing with Kuyu and not only keeping him busy but also teaching him some manners.

Kuyu also got to meet many of his Tigris relatives, his Grandma Kaysi and great Aunt Hermani and his aunt Kioni. Most recently he visited his Uncle Peyton and housemate Kali where he spent some time chasing them and playing tug-a-war with Kali. But his most favorite thing so far was his first day out at straight racing. He got to ‘chase the bunny’ for the very first time (at least for a few yards). The cutest part was when he caught the lure ( which was bigger than him) and he then so very, very proudly carried it all the way back to the start line. Looks like he has a definite coursing/racing career ahead of him!

 
CLick here to see a gallery of photos for Kuyu’s play date

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kanzu sired a litter of 11 puppies, (8 boys and 3girls ) whelped on November 7, 2011. On New Year’s Day Lisa (one of Kanzu’s breeders/co-owners) and I flew up to Oregon to meet the puppies and to be present at the formal litter evaluation performed Pat Hastings. We were incredibly proud that 10 of the 11 puppies were judged to have ‘show quality structure’. We expect 8 of the 11 puppies to be going to show homes mostly in the Oregon area. Kaia, (Yellow Girl) will be staying with Julie and Sheri and momma Kayta. Pick boy, Spyro, (Lime Green Boy) is joining our pack and will be co-owned by Mike and Lisa Patterson who will show him and by Julie and Sheri Eschilling.
 
His new name is Kikuyu (Kuyu for short). The Kikuyu are the largest ethnic group in Kenya and the selection of an ethnic group for a name is the continuation of my long history with the breed in honor of my previous Ridgebacks; Bushman, Zulu and Bantu. Kuyu’s registered name will be Bakari Tigris African Legacy. The definition of ‘legacy’ is something inherited from a predecessor; a heritage. As his name suggests, we see in Kuyu the legacy of his Great Grandpa Kobe and his father Kanzu, Tigris African Treasure.
 
In addition to being structurally the ‘pick male’, Kuyu’s temperament is awesome. He is mellow and sweet but very silly, friendly and confident. He has an exceptionally strong prey drive and we expect him to be quite the lure courser like both of his parents. No matter what happens with showing or coursing, he is a heart winner. He has his mother’s endearing head-tilt and his father’s huge ears and dark soulful eyes and the combination results in looks that makes even the toughest heart melt.

Spyro (Now Kikuyu) Evaluation

The Kanzu x Kayta ‘Dragon Litter’ turned 8 weeks old on Monday January 2nd. All 11 puppies, Momma Kayta, Human Moms, Julie and Sheri and Kanzu’s Moms Linda and Lisa all piled into the car and headed off for an official litter evaluation. We were incredibly fortunate to be able to have the litter evaluated by Pat Hastings, a well-known author, lecturer, breeder and AKC judge. Ms. Hastings has developed a respected method for evaluating the strengths of puppy structure to help determine the most suitable lifestyle for each puppy and which puppies belong in a breeding program. The evaluation was highly educational. Ms Hastings informed us that on average a well-bred litter will have approximately 50% of the puppies rated with ‘show quality structure’. We were all delighted when Ms. Hastings concluded her evaluation of the Kanzu x Kayta litter and judged 10 of the 11 puppies as having ‘show quality structure’. For more information regarding Pat Hastings, her philosophy and publications visit:
http://www.dogfolk.com/

 
 
 
The photo below shows the evaluation pictures of Elliot, Falcor, Gaia, Kaia, and Ladon:

 
 
 
The photo below shows the evaluation pictures of Mushu, Norbert, Rinjin, Saphira and Yoshi

 
 

After earning his AKC championship in January 2009 Kanzu took a break from the conformation ring to concentrate on performance championships in lure coursing and agility.

In May 2010 the AKC initiated the new Grand Champion title (GCH). Shortly after the new program began, Kanzu returned to the conformation ring with a goal of earning his GCH. During a trip to Alaska and his first weekend of showing, handled by his friend Curtis Freeling, he took Best of Breed (BOB) and a 3 point major one day and Best Opposite Sex (BOS) two days. With this first weekend back in the ring he earned 1 of 3 majors and 9 of the 25 points needed for his GCH. In his second weekend of showing during a trip to Montana showing again with Curtis, Kanzu took BOB earning his second major and select dog the following two days bringing his total GCH points to 15 of the 25 points needed.

In 2012 Kanzu earned his GCH in back-to-back majors handled by his breeder and co-owner Mike Patterson. At the Sammamish Kennel Club show in Puyallup Washington on Saturday January 14, Kanzu won BOS and a 5 point major. On Sunday January 15, at the Puyallup Valley Dog Fanciers Show under Judge Sharon Sakson, he won BOB and another 5 point major finishing up the points and necessary majors for his GCH.

The win on Sunday under Judge Sakson was made even more special as it was preceded by Grandpa Kobe son Maxx (Van D Piers Simply To The Maxx CD RA NAJ) taking Winners Dog and his second major, also handled by Mike. It was a very special day for Tigris Rhodesian Ridgebacks http://www.tigrisridgebacks.com/home.cfm with Winners Dog being a Kobe son, BOB a Kobe grandson and BOS was a Kobe daughter.

For more about Kobe Click here