Ryukyu Inu

The Ryukyu Inu (琉球犬, Ryūkyū-inu or Ryūkyū-ken, lit. Ryukyu dog) is a medium-sized breed of dog that originates from Okinawa, Japan. It is a rare dog and is slowly declining in numbers. There were as few as 400 Ryukyu Inu as of 2015.[1] Unlike dogs such as the Kai Ken, the Ryukyu Inu is not protected by the Nihon Ken Hozonkai, but instead is protected by the Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai.

Ryukyu Ken
Other namesRyukyu Dog, Ryukyu Inu, Okinawa Native Dog, Tora Inu
OriginOkinawa, Japan
Breed statusNot recognized as a breed by any major kennel club.
Traits
Height Dogs 46.3–49.6 centimetres (18.2–19.5 in)
Bitches 43.4–46.9 centimetres (17.1–18.5 in)
Coat short and long; single and double coated
Color red brindle (aka-tora), black brindle (kuro-tora), white brindle (shiro-tora), black (kuro), white (shiro), sesame (goma), ivory, liver and red (aka)
Dog (domestic dog)

History

The Ryukyu Inu originated in Okinawa. The breed was originally used to track and bay Ryukyu Wild Boar in Packs, and also rarely hunt birds.[2] Much of the Ryukyu Inu's history has been destroyed and misplaced, hence it's very sparse. The purebred Ryukyu Inu was thought to be extinct after World War II due to food shortages and crossbreeding with western dogs. In the early 1980s, Yoshio Aragaki the founder of the Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai, felt a strong urge to save the breed when he managed to find purebred Ryukyu Inu up in Yanbaru.

It is believed that the years of living in the rainforest is why the Ryukyu Inu has a dewclaw on the back of the foot. Because of this claw, they can climb trees. It has been speculated that this would have been evolutionarily favourable to them because of the high incidence of tsunami in Okinawa; they could climb trees quickly to evade the floods. However, this is unlikely to be true due to only a small percentage of Ryukyu Inu actually having working rear dewclaws. The preservation society sees the dewclaws as a throwback from hundreds of years ago when the dogs were genetically closer to wolves and that the claws are used more often to help with stopping when running.[3]

Appearance

The Ryukyu Inu is a medium-sized Okinawan dog breed. They are very similar to Kai Ken in appearance but are genetically closer to the Hokkaido. [4][5]

Breed standard

The Ryukyu Inu is not currently recognised by any Kennel Club, including the Japanese Kennel Club, however the Ryukyu Ken Hozonkai has issued this breed standard for the Ryukyu Inu. [6]

Temperament
Neither fearful nor aggressive, intelligent, alert, and quiet.

Head and skull
Broad head; the muzzle is straight and drawn somewhat longer. The stop is Shallow. Nose colour should always be black, with the exception of Liver colouration, which always has a brown nose.

Eyes
Clear, dark brown, the corner of the eye is not lifted. In Liver the eye is golden/yellow.

Ears
Pricked ears in a blunt triangle shape; dogs with ears that are dropped are undesirable.

Mouth
Scissor bite. Undershot, overshot, or missing teeth are major faults. Black/Blue Pigment on tongue desirable.

Neck
Moderately wide. Neither lean nor chunky.

Forequarters
Forelegs straight.

Body
Longer than high. The chest is well developed, wide and deep. Straight back.

Hindlimbs
Hindquarters straight and strong. Dewclaws at the back preferred.

Tail
The tail should ideally be in the shape of a blade, it can also be curled. Fault for a dropped tail.

Coat
Short coat. Both Single Coated and Double Coated varieties allowed; long coat is a fault.

Colour
There are four recognised colours for conformation, black brindle, red brindle, white brindle (both silver and cream brindle), red and liver. The brindle pattern has to be beautiful and clear. A small amount of white is permitted, but an excessive amount of white is a fault.

Height Dogs: 46.3 - 49.6cm
Bitches: 43.4 - 46.9cm

Colour and coat

The Ryukyu Inu comes in nine colours: five original colours and four newer recognised colours. The original colours are:

  • red (With and without a mask)
  • liver
  • white brindle
  • black brindle
  • red brindle

The newer official colours are:

  • black
  • white
  • ivory
  • sesame

Ryukyu Inu are short coated dogs that have both single coated and double coated variates. However, like Akita Inu, they do carry the long coat gene recessively.

Temperament

The Ryukyu Inu is described as a quiet dog that is capable of hunting in a group or on its own. They are agile, brave and not sensitive. They are natural hunters and have a high prey drive. Despite being a hunting dog, they are obedient, playful and good with children. They cannot be trusted around small animals, but are usually okay with cats if introduced to them early on. They can be escape artists and have amazing climbing abilities, especially those with working rear dewclaws, who can climb vertical trees. They are very smart so require a lot of mental stimulation as well as physical stimulation.

Despite being bred, raised and used as a hunting dog for many years they have been described by the Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai as ideal for Therapy Dog work because of their calm, placid temperament when trained correctly, however due to their high Prey Drive they are not suitable for Disability Assistance work.

Lines

There are two distinct lines of Ryukyu Inu, the Yanbaru and the Yaeyama. Whilst they are the same breed of dog, there are subtle difference between the two lines. Ryukyu from the Yaeyama lines are often a lot bigger. For example, males from Yaeyama lines are often on average 49.6cm at the withers, whereas males from Yanbaru lines are on average 46.3cm. The Yaeyama line dogs also tend to have longer bodies and deeper chests than Yanbaru.

The Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai has issued a statement that advises people to not breed Yabaru Line dogs with Yaeyama Line dogs at the current time as a preservation strategy.

Ryukyu Inu Preservation Society

The Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai (Lit. Ryukyu Inu Preservation Society) is a breed club for the Ryukyu Inu. It was founded on April 1, 1990 by Yoshio Aragaki, and is the only Ryukyu Inu breed club and the only establishment that recognises the Ryukyu Inu thus far. The society has become inactive online in recent years, however the club itself still active in and around Okinawa.

As of 1993, 3 years after the club's formation, there were 134 Ryukyu Inu registered. [7] As a preservation and genetic diversity strategy the Club currently has Open Studbooks and registers dogs on merit is they meet the breed standard.

Health

The Ryukyu Inu, like all Japanese dog breeds, are considered to be relatively healthy dogs overall with not many health issues. The health conditions for Ryukyu Inu aren't well documented due to the culture of breeding dogs in Japan and Okinawa. Western Breeders of Ryukyu Inu are urged to test for hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, Patella luxation, glaucoma, Collie eye anomaly (CEA)[8] and hypothyroidism.

Inbreeding

One of the biggest health issues in Ryukyu Inu is inbreeding. These dogs have already survived one near-extinction, and all current Ryukyu Ken are descendants of the small pack from the 1980s. At their peak, Ryukyu Inu had around 1,500+ individuals in 2005, but this dropped to only 400 in 2015. Because of this second drop in population, finding two nearly completely unrelated individuals is very difficult, and as such their inbreeding is likely very high. To combat this, the Ryukyu Inu Hozonkai have begun Registering Dogs "On Merit" if they meet the breed standard and still continue to do this.

Notable Ryukyu

Kai (海) is a very well known Ryukyu Ken in Okinawa who lives in Okinawa World.[9] On 2 February 2019 Kai retired from being in the public eye because of turning 16 and going to be living in a quiet part of the workshop. He is being replaced by a female Ryukyu called Sora.[10]

Ume (ウメ) was a very light red brindle, almost fawn coloured Ryukyu, that lived at the Okinawa Children's Zoo and Museum. Ume passed away on 29 August 2018 at the age of 13. Okinawa Zoo announced her death on 1 September on Facebook.[11]

Hana (ハナ) is a Black Brindle Ryukyu Inu that lives in Okinawa Children's Zoo and Museum.

References
  1. "Ryukyu Inu - The Nihon Ken Forum (日本犬コミュニティ-)".
  2. ""琉球犬"について: 生きた文化遺産"琉球犬"ブログ". okinawa-dog.seesaa.net. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  3. ""琉球犬"の遺伝学的特徴について: 生きた文化遺産"琉球犬"ブログ". okinawa-dog.seesaa.net. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  4. ""琉球犬"の血液検査からみた特徴～その５: 生きた文化遺産"琉球犬"ブログ". 21 April 2011. Archived from the original on 21 April 2011. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  5. Tanabe Y (January 2007). "Phylogenetic studies of dogs with emphasis on Japanese and Asian breeds". Proceedings of the Japan Academy. Series B, Physical and Biological Sciences. 82 (10): 375–87. Bibcode:2006PJAB...82..375T. doi:10.2183/pjab.82.375. PMC 4338834. PMID 25792769.
  6. http://okinawa-dog.seesaa.net/article/12349006.html
  7. http://okinawa-dog.seesaa.net/article/12903440.html
  8. Mizukami K, Yabuki A, Endoh D, Chang HS, Lee KW, Nakayama M, Kushida K, Kohyama M, Lee JI, Yamato O (August 2014). "Investigation of parallel and simultaneous selection for collie eye anomaly and ivermectin toxicosis". The Veterinary Record. 175 (7): 174. doi:10.1136/vr.102015. PMID 24939474.
  9. "琉球犬・海くん".
  10. "おきなわワールドの看板犬、海くんが引退 琉球犬 16歳の誕生日に | 沖縄タイムス＋プラス ニュース". 沖縄タイムス＋プラス. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  11. お知らせ (31 August 2018). "琉球犬「ウメ」が永眠致しました。 | 動物園 | お知らせ | 沖縄こどもの国". お知らせ (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 May 2019.
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