I don't know the official term. Jenga's feet face outward instead of forward, seems to start at the pastern. When I gait him, his feet face forward and everything seems fine...and occasionally he does face forward, but 90% of the time he's east-west.

Is this a puppy thing that he'll grow out of? Bella grew out of it, but maybe that was unusual? Just wanted to see what people think.

Front or back legs?

Front feet, sorry, should have specified.

Some dogs do outgrow it as they fill in and their ribcages expand. Time will tell.

Assuming he outgrows it, is it still something to be avoided in a breeding program?

I don't remember the terms from my horse classes in college.

I did a quick search and found this diagram.

http://extension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/ansci/g02843.htm

I don’t know if the same terms apply to other animals.

In regards to your breeding question: My pups have weak something or others and their (front) pasterns are too close to the ground. My vet was very concerned about this, as was I, until I looked at the Pedigree database and saw this was a genetic flaw in the ilnes. Melano vom Cap Arkona, Nick vom Heiligenbsoch, Pike von der Schafbachmühle, Karlo vom Peko Haus, Arek vom Stoffelblick, Gildo vom Korbelbach..... all great dogs, all in my pups pedigree, all of their photos on pedigree database show this genetic flaw to some degree, some worse than others. Technically it should be avoided in a breeding program right? But in this case apparently the temprement those dogs are known to produce outweighed their decision to produce a dog with correct feet. I decided to keep my pups after seeing this was a genetic trait, I figure if some of those dogs can win world championships then maybe its not that big a deal I'm not sure I agree with breeding with a flaw like that, but some of the worlds greatest dogs come out of these lines, so what would have happened if they didn't breed them because of the feet I wonder?

Mike, I think your experience is one of the major differences between a working dog breeding program and a non-working dog breeding program. Not to say that the dog in question can't make a great "worker" as a SAR, herding, obedience or agility dog, but if I'm not mistaken, he's bred from show lines (just like my RR), where conformation and solid structure can make or break a bloodline. If he were my dog, I wouldn't breed him unless the fault corrected itself over time (which it might!), and even then, I'd only breed to a female that was known to not produce this abnormality, in an attempt to breed OUT that trait.

The little structural fault you noticed in your pup's pedigree obviously hasn't effected the working ability of any of the dogs in the program - which in your case is paramount, though sometime's it's hard to predict what *little defect* might turn into a serious ortho problem 10 generations down the line... for that reason, unless the dog is absolutely superior in all other ways (which it sounds like your pup's parents were ), IMO it's best to keep the conformational restrictions of breeding programs as tight as possible.

I'm not a breeder, but I know there are a lot of them making puppies out there...

~Natalya

Well, he's certainly not from "working lines"! I don't think there's as much as a divide in ridgebacks, though...in fact, I've never even heard of a working line ridgeback. My breeder predominantly competes in conformation and obedience. I must say, I didn't choose her for her dogs' conformation anyway - it was the temperaments that drew me to her and I haven't been disappointed!

I guess we'll just have to wait and see if it corrects itself. I won't be heartbroken if he's not breeding quality - it was never my intention to breed. And hey, if it keeps him from doing well in conformation, all the more motivation to do something new, like tracking!

Heather, my post was in no way a slam against Jenga!! I think he's a beautiful boy and will grow into a beautiful adult. Who am I to mark faults in other Ridgebacks anyway - mine is RIDGELESS!

Temperment and general health are the other two paramount factors in even a "show" dog breeding program, so if you found and chose a pup based primarily on temperment, you're already aware that cosmetic faults don't mean everything.

All that said, I personally think that if you decided to breed at all, it should be because your dog truly has something to contribute, and you should keep your standards high. But you already knew all that

~Natalya