Ridgebacks are large dogs that were originally bred in Africa and in the beginning they were used for, among other things, hunting lions!!! So, um, I guess they would do fine as guard dogs, too.
Despite his fierce bloodline, Jake is really a sweet, gentle dog, and quite shy, even. My dad spent an extended amount of time with him and had nothing but glowing things to say about good ole' Jakey-dog. Even so, I probably wouldn't want to encounter him in a middle of a dark alley somewhere. Yours truly is not a fighting dog, and would probably get very intimidated being next to him.
