2. The 2000 litter registration statistics had not been published at the time this essay was written. The number of Rhodesian Ridgeback litters registered in 1998 and 1999 were 579 and 539, respectively. For purposes of this essay, it is assumed that the number of RR litters registered in 2000 was 560. At the very least, the 246 'maiden' bitches who appear in the 2000 stud book were responsible for 44% of the total 560 litters. On the high end, if every single one of the 146 dogs whose names appear in the 2000 stud book was bred to a mate already in the stud book, this would comprise an additional 27% of the total 560 litters. However, it is likely that some of the dogs and bitches who appear in the 2000 stud book were bred to each other. The names in the stud book for last year probably represent approximately 60% of the total litters registered.