Origin:

The Thai-Ridgeback is one of four native breeds in Thailand. Other breeds are the Thailand Dog, the Bang-Kaew Dog and the hairless Boran Dog. In the Para mountains in Thailand, in the state Uthai-Tanee, cave printings have been found in a cave called Tum-Pra-Toon and have been saved for over 3000 years. The drawings show pictures of dogs that look a lot like the Thai-Ridgeback as we know them today.

Some people have been studying the history of the Dingo and how this dog has developed throughout the years. Because of archeological findings and diggings men have come to the conclusion that the evolution of the Dingo must have started in Asia. The first Dingo-like fossiles were found in Ban Chiang in North-East Thailand. Later there were also some found in Vietnam. After examining the skeletons thoroughly, man saw that these fossiles seem to have different DNA samples. Namely those of the Azian wolf (Canine Lupis Pallipes), Arabic wolf (Canine lupis Araba) and DNA of the still living dingo that we still find in Australia and Thailand

Because of the cave drawings man has been able to write down the history of mankind and how they used to live together with the wolf/Dingo in those days. We can see clearly the big changes between mankind and wolves about how they lived together.The drawings tell us how the people used the wolf/Dingo more and more for the daily duties, such as hunting, guarding and watching the cattle. The archeologists even think that the people in those days even have been trying to breed selectively within different breeds to create the perfect domestic dog. With old fossiles we can see this very well and we can say that the revolution for being a domestic dog has started. We can also see some things like this within our Thai-ridgeback breed as we know them today.

Unfortunately we cannot say in which period the development from wolf to Thai-ridgeback has started. That is because we cannot trace the exact place of descendant. Just because this dog is not only seen in Thailand, but also in Vietnam(on the island Phu Quoc),Cambodja (Kamphuchea) and Indonesia. In Vietnam people know a dog called Phu Quoc Dog. This dog has a big resemblance to the Thai Ridgeback that was first seen on the island Phu Quoc. The Phu Quoc dog is seen with and without a ridge and looks quite different in height, broadness and fur. The only things that show any resemblance are the head with the pointy ears, nose and the tail that is carried upwards.

We probably may say the Thai-ridgeback has real wolf qualities..
We think that the Thai-Ridgeback finds it's roots in East-Thailand. The Thai-Ridgeback was used for hunting small animals in a rough and bushy environment. For decades it has been living solitary on the islands without any influences from abroad. This is why this breed has kept it's original qualities. Other dogs had no access to this region and that kept the Thai-Ridgback dog pure in its breed.

Work:

The Thai-Ridgeback was mainly kept as a hunting dog. It hunted for small animals like rabbits, but was sometimes used to hunt for bigger animals such as deer. People needed a dog that was quick and flexible in its movements. Eventough the Thai-Ridgeback has good eyes, it really follows its nose during a hunt. Besides its job as a hunting dog, it is also a great watchdog. It's job at defending the farm during the day is something it is born to do.

As we see with other working dogs, man was not able to recognize the Thai-Ridgeback as a breed. The dog was breeded for use and the way it looked had no meaning at all. During the sixties more and more people got interested in this breed. During these years we saw that this time dogshows were the first where Thai-ridgebacks were allowed to enter the show. In 1975 the Thai-Ridgeback finaly registered with the Dog Association of Thailand (DAT). Eventough to be registrated the breed was still not quite a dog to breed with. There was nearly no demand for this breed. It was also difficult to get the perfect match for breeding, because the islands on which the dogs live, are very difficult to reach. In the late eighties the breeding began to grow and the breed gained popularity. In 1993 the dog received recognition from the FCI.

Scientists in Thailand believe that the Thai Ridgeback is related to the Phu-Quoc dog from Vietnam and the Chineze Shar-Pei.

Netherlands:

In October of 1991 mister R. Mersmann, breeder of the Rhodesian Ridgebacks, flew to Vietnam. He had read in the Toepoels Encyclopedia that there was another breed of ridgeback that lived in Vietnam. Therefore he planned to go and try to search the Phu-Quoc dog. According to a friend there were also dogs like this seen in Thailand. Mister Mersmann decided to go and have a look at the breeds in each country.

At first he was very shocked by the way the dogs were kept in Thailand. That is because the people have other ways of keeping animals and think differently about things, which is part of their culture. He decided to buy the best puppy and take it back to The Netherlands. Thus Hintza, the blue male, came to live in europe. A few months later he imported another dog, the bitch called Kabusha. Hintza and kabusha formed the base of this breed in The Netherlands.

After recognision of the Thai Ridgeback by the FCI in 1993 the dogs could de registered by the Dutch kennelclub " Raad van Beheer". At this moment there are few Thai-Ridgeback breeders. There are about 80 Thai-Ridgeback dogs registered in The Netherlands. About half of which are also bred in The Netherlands. The quality of the breed is good and there are even requests from Thailand for Dutch Thai-Ridgeback dogs. We see that as a big compliment. There are some people who are trying their best to start an indepent club that is going to support the Thai-Ridgeback breed from all sides.

Some of this information is copywrited from: Onze Hond juni 2003 and The Dingo: in Australia and Asia van Laurie Corbett(cop.1995)