Ryukyu dog
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The Ryukyu Inu (琉球犬) is a medium sized breed of dog that originates from Okinawa, Japan. It is an Okinawan Natural Monument and is Okinawa's only pedigree dog breed. It is a rare dog and is slowly declining in Numbers. There are as few as 400 Ryukyu Inu as of 2015. Unlike dog such as the Kai Ken, the Ryukyu isn't protected by the Nihon Ken Hozonkai.
| Ryukyu Inu | |||||||||||||
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| Other names | Ryukyu Dog, Ryukyu Ken, Okinawa dog. | ||||||||||||
| Origin | Okinawa, Japan. | ||||||||||||
| Breed status | Not recognized as a breed by any major kennel club. | ||||||||||||
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| Dog (domestic dog) | |||||||||||||
Description
Appearance
The Ryukyu Ken is a Medium Sized Dog, it shares similarities with the Kai Ken, however, unlike the Kai Ken the Ryukyu is leaner and taller. Ryukyu are also unique in that they possess Rear Dewclaws, whilst it is unknown why they have rear dewclaws it is said the reason is so they can climb trees to evade Hurricanes and Typhoons.
The stop is shallow with pricked ears with wide spacing between the ears. The chest is thick, and white spot on Chest is common and allowed, White on the paws while undesirable, does happen often especially when there is a lot of white on the chest.
The tail can be either Sickle like the Kai Ken, Curled like an Akita or held over the back similar to a Papillon. Sickle Tails are more common than Curled or Held over.
Temperament
The Ryukyu Ken is described as a quiet dog that is capable of hunting in a group. They are agile, brave and not sensitive. They are natural hunters and have high prey drive.