Attention Whippet Owners

[Daphne]

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Hi, I'm a new member here and not even a dog owner - yet. Apart from having a couple of dogs as a child, I'm not an experienced owner, but would like to have a dog now, just as a pet. I've always loved whippets and am thinking of getting one, but obviously want to find out as much about them as possible beforehand. I'd prefer to get a dog/bitch that's around 4 or 5 months old rather than from the usual 8/9 weeks, if possible.

I live in a suburban town with a few parks nearby - the nearest one to the house is not so typical of a public park, but is more used as playing fields for local football teams. I have a smallish enclosed back garden. I work full-time and my child is at school, but we have an au-pair who is around during the day except for when she collects my daughter from school when she could be out of the house for 2-3 hours.

I would be able to give the dog a short walk in the morning, approx 15-20 min and a longer one in the evening, hopefully letting it run free on the playing fields when (and if !) it's been trained to come back to me (and obviously not while there's a football match on !) In addition to this, my au-pair would give it a walk in the middle of the day (she's o.k. about this, by the way).

What I'd really like to ask of other whippet owners is, what would the general exercise requirements be for a whippet at various ages, i.e. how much would it need in it's first year and how much would it need to be increased as it got older ?

I'd really appreciate any useful information that anyone feels like passing on, be it about exercise requirements or any other helpful tips.

Thanks in advance,

Daphne.

 

[sherry]

So you want one whippet eh? word of warning here THEY ARE ADDICTIVE!!!! Not many people own just ONE whippy :lol: About the excersize personally I find whipps like a routine so whatever you do just stick to that and you should be fine. Ie 20 mins walk in the morning short walk at lunchtime and a longer one at night sounds great to me. Im sure if you did this every day your whipp would love it.. Are you planning on racing, showing or just keeping as a pet? Reason I ask is maybe if you were racing the excersize would vary a little. Il bet you now you end up with more than one. :lol: We started with one and have now got four love them all. Hope thats been of some help.

 

[Esthermax]

Hi Daphne, we got our first whippet 1 year ago, we now own 3!!! what can i say, i wouldnt be without them, they are by far the best breed of dog me, hubby & kids have ever owned :wub:

 

[Daphne]

Thanks Sherry and Esthermax for your replies. I'm sure I will want to own more than 1, but I think that lack of space could be an issue there.

What I was really unsure of with regards the exercise is how often it would need a free, off the lead, run. Obviously this can only happen when it's fully trained (and of course I'm hoping I'll be up to that).

Thanks again.

 

[Carol Jepson]

Welcome Daphne to K9! I agree with you Sherry & Cheryl, they are totally addictive :wub: . We have 2 at the moment and are hoping to get a third in the not too distant future - as for walking, hubby takes them about 7 ish in the morning for a quick walk, I then take them for a 4 mile walk at lunch ( reason being we race ours) and then hubby again takes them again at 8ish at night. I think the amount of walking that you do will be fine if you are having the whippet as a pet. I'd suggest using a crate for your new pup if you were to leave it for 2-3 hours at a time until it is older enough not to destroy the house while you are out. (w00t)

Oh forgot to mention our 3 month old pup goes for 3 short 10 min walks a day but will increase when he gets to about 6-7 months of age - then he'll walk about 2 miles a day as he starts training for racing.

Carol

 

[sherry]

Daphne each whippet is different for letting off the lead. One of mine never gets off due to the fact she runs away she 8 now. Have another old one nearly 9 rarely let him off. Have 2 racers one aged 3 who I like to free run about twice a week and a 15 month old who only gets off when he races due to the fact he runs back to the van. So I wouldnt worry about free running some people have them off all the time but its just your own preference.Good idea Carol Jepson said to keep them in a crate when your not in. All of ours now are kept in crates when we are not in and they also sleep in there infact my oldest rarely comes out of his. Lies there all day with the door wide open, well it is next to a radiator. :lol: They can be destructive and are definitly thieves so a crate is a great idea.

 

[sherry]

:lol: p.s lack of space isnt an issue with whipps I live in a small 2 bedroomed midlink with a small back garden. I have two large whippets 43lb and 50lb but I can asure u they dont take up much space well apart from the sofa which I can never get on now my old whipps are 30lb and 23lb.

 

[emw]

We just got our second whippet (but we waited 6 years since getting the first which sounds like it's some sort of record!! ). Dermot (whippet 1) seems very happy with whatever exercise he gets. We walk him twice a day normally, but some days they're just short walks on the lead, and other days they're long runs off the lead - he likes to have a really good run at least once every few days but doesn't need it everyday.

When we got him we lived in a flat and didn't even have a garden - so we did lots of recall on a flexilead before letting him off the lead for the first time. He's generally excellent at coming back when he's called but he's not 100% reliable - you get used to watching out for the things he might run after and calling him back before he sees them!!

And like Sherry says - they really don't take up much space because they spend so much time asleep!!

 

[Lydia]

Getting an older pup (5 -6) months would require different recall training to a new pup ( 8 - 9 ) weeks old.

Mine do free run a lot,but that is because that suits me.All dogs are different about how good they are at coming back,of my 6 whips, 4 as pups/adults were excellent.The other 2 were horrendous.

They aren't any more,but it took a bit of mental effort on my part to sort it out.

Why do you want an older pup ?

5 - 6 months is when they are teething,followed by teenage hooliganism soon after ?

If you want a pet,I would suggest a dog over a bitch with Whippy's every time IMO.The girls are like woman,independant,seem to get into trouble more often,will sometimes ignore you 'cos they know best.

Dogs on the other hand are just like men,they need to be told what to do,how to do it, when to do it etc.and are very affectionate.

Lyd

 

[JackieT]

I'm not sure that leaving a 6 month pup all day on it's own is a good idea. It's an awfully long time & the pup is sure to get bored & get up to mischeif.

Also, you say you'd let it run free on the local football fields - you may find, as I did, that dogs are not at all welcome where people play footy. It's the usual story, a few owners who don't pick up after their dogs spoil it for everyone.

So sorry to be negative, but I'd say wait until you can give a dog more time.

Just my opinion,

Jackie

 

[Kirawan]

Hallo Daphne

Welcome ! - I think it is a really responsible attitude of yours - to sound out people's opinions as to whether you and a whippet would suit one another - well done.

Reading the mails from last to first - I see that Jackie says the little person would be left alone all day - that is not how I read it - you (Daphne) specifically say that the au pair would be there during the day and is happy to look after the whippet too, and walk him/her. That is good.

With regard to the age - I wonder why you have decided 5 - 6 months particularly - is this because you assume it will already be house trained, or partially trained or what. I would have thought 3 months would be ideal and then the pup will learn "your" ways - not someone elses. The other thing is of course - if you find one at 5/6 months - my cynical mind would wonder why it was not already homed??

Excercise..... whippets are born to run - personally I hate the idea of running dogs never going off lead. There is always the exception to the rule (some prove themselves just too naughty to be allowed the freedom) but it makes me very sad when I hear that they can never run free.

Your local park might have to do for the majority of the time, but hopefully you might be able to go out in the car further afield at weekends and have a "blow out" then.

Boy/girl - they do say that if you are going to have a singleton, it is kinder to have a boy because a girl would be more likely to miss canine companionship. I think it is entirely a personal thing. I have always had boys from choice, but during my lifetime of dogs have had 2 bitches which were rescues and one which was a gift.

They have actually been much more biddable, but it could be because they came to me as adults and did not feel the same level of security as the boys who had always been here since puppyhood.

You asked about specific exercise requirements for whippets - they are very easy little dogs - obviously too much exercise at a young age is a bad thing - bones need to be formed before over exertion. In the pedigree racing world - whippets are not allowed to race competetivly until they are a year old and that makes total sense to me.

It is the same for coursing.

However, they all need to let of steam so to speak -

You say that you have only had a dog as a child - may I suggest that you go to your local pet store and try to track down a book on whippets - there are several worth lookinga t (you may even be able to get them on line - it is worth a try) -

Try this link - they all seem to be mentioned.

http://bookstore.dogbreed.biz/subject_whippet.htm

May I suggest that you phone some breeders/owners of whippets and go to meet them - see if you really do like whippets (in person)

When/if you make the final decision that this is the breed for you - I would also advise meeting the Sire and Dam if at all possible.

I wish you the very best of luck in your quest.

 

[Carol Jepson]

Majority of the time our whippets are lead walked, obviously Soli the pup isn't allowed of the lead yet to free run as he is too young. Barney does though run a couple of times a week as we have a lure machine, so he does get to free run and he thoroughly enjoys this, because as we load the car up and drive to the spot were we set the machine up he's howling with excitement!! and we do every now and again if we take all the dogs together we will let each dog run freely, but in turns they never run together, this is purely so there are no accidents. Our whippets are very healthy and happy and I don't think they come to any harm being walked on a lead - if we are unsure of anything we do ask advice from people who we race with and the breeder of our pup.

 

[Daphne]

Thank you everyone for your advice - I am taking it all on board.

Kirawan, you asked why I wanted to get a 5/6 month old. Yes, it is because I'm assuming it will be mostly house trained. Maybe that's being a bit naive. The reason I favoured a house trained pup is because I'm at work during the day, and didn't think I could really leave the au pair to cope with all of that. I know there'll be plenty of other problems to cope with, but I think that asking her to clean up wees and poops all day would be a bit much.

Having said that, I realise now that getting a dog that has already developed certain behaviour patterns could be more of a problem.

With regards the local park, plenty of people take their dogs to it for a run around and there doesn't seem to be a problem. There's a large amount of clear grass area for dogs to run on, but it's not completely enclosed so obviously, as I said earlier, I could only let it off the lead if I'm confident it will come back to me.

I have looked at some books already, but thought that posting on here and 'speaking' to whippet owners would be the best way to find out all the pros and cons. I live in Dublin and will be going to the annual dog show next weekend to have a look at some (went there last year too).

Thanks again for the advice - Any more will be gratefully received.

Daphne.

 

[sherry]

kirawan dont be too upset about whipps not getting off the lead. My two old ones dont bother now anyway but we did used to try letting the bitch off but she wud run away and we used to have to get into the car b4 she wud come back 2 us but she did used to race so got off then. The one that runs back to the van we do occasionally let him off down at the beach but have to park right next to it and I have to wait at the van 4 him inevitably running back to it. :lolHe does however let off steam every weekend when he goes racing. Daphne I hope u keep us all imformed if u do get a whippy how u r getting on etc.

 

[Daphne]

Forgot to mention - I don't intend to race or show him / her, I want one purely for a pet. I was assuming that they would have to have regular free runs just for their own benefit.

 

[aslan]

Although many people disagree - I personally don't think there are many differences at all between dogs and bitches as pets. My whippets are all affectionate, none moreso than the others except perhaps in different ways; they can all be disobedient when they want to be (like a child - "Yeah I'll be there in a MINUTE!"); and I don't find either sex to be more clean than the other in the house (some people say bitches are cleaner - I don't find that to be necessarily so).

I think they are all individuals and each will have its quirks and perks that don't necessarily pertain to it being male or female.

>>they do say that if you are going to have a singleton, it is kinder to have a boy because a girl would be more likely to miss canine companionship.

I haven't heard that one before, and I wonder what the reasoning would be for people to make that statement. :unsure:

As Kirawan says I believe it is just a personal preference, and I don't have one! I like dogs as much as I like bitches.

 

[Joanna]

Hi Daphne,

I have a whippet for a pet, he is 6 months old. I got him at 10 weeks, and the first month was hard. Training took a good 2-4 weeks, and that was with me being home all day, and on the case all of the time. It was worth it in that he was trained fairly quickly, and now, we don't have accidents. He did suffer with separation anxiety, and night times were a problem as he hated being crated. As soon as we took the cage away, he was fine. Our whip is rarely on his own, he just doesn't like to be left, though I can leave him for a couple of hours without a problem, I chose not to and he goes to work with hubby. As for walking, a couple of 20 minute free runs a day seems to be fine, and on the week-end, he may have a longer run or two. We do have a very large garden, and throwing a ball or a frisbee will tire him, and he does love a dig and mooch around. If you don't mind the mess, and the agro, your situation sounds fine, especially if some-one is home most of the day. I always say to people that you need to think about the equation of having a dog for at least 15 years, and how this will fit into your long term plans. I hope this helps, and just to say, I wouldn't be without my Archie now, he really is a member of the family.

Jo

 

[dessie]

The other thing is of course - if you find one at 5/6 months - my cynical mind would wonder why it was not already homed??
Excercise..... whippets are born to run - personally I hate the idea of running dogs never going off lead.  There is always the exception to the rule (some prove themselves just too naughty to be allowed the freedom) but it makes me very sad when I hear that they can never run free.

Kirawan - The comment in your first paragraph is certainly very cynical!!! As a person who breeds for show I certainly have 'run on' puppies until they are 6 months or so and then re-homed them if I do not feel they are up to show standard, because, as much as I would like to, I cannot keep all of them. I am sure other show people do the same thing and there is nothing sinister in their reasons for re-homing a dog that they have bred themselves.

I agree wholeheartedly with your second paragraph and also think it very sad that a running dog is not allowed to do just that every day. It intrigues me that a lot of people who do not let their dogs off also race them and I know they lead walk them miles but it still remains a mystery how you can get a dog galloping fit when they have only had lead exercise. Even racehorses do 'fast work' occasionally! Perhaps some or all of you racers can explain it!

 

[sherry]

As I said in my previous post two of my dogs are old now so even if I do let them off the lead they dont bother. Secondly my racers one of them gets free run twice a week the youngest occasinluy gets taken tio the beach but otherwise he gets a run on the track twice a week which keeps him race fit. Running on the beach or grass does not get them galloping fit as you put it. To actually get them race fit you have to race them believe me I am speaking from experience here. One of my racers has been off the track 4 6 months due to an injury he incurred by free running and no matter how many times he has been to the beach etc he wasntn actually race fit until he had been back on the track a half a dozen times even now he is not 100 per cent race fit. This is just my opinion ,some people who race their dogs never free run them when the racing season is going on. Some people I know do jog with their whips or bike work seems to work each to their own I say.

 

[Carol Jepson]

I agree with Sherry, as I mentioned before ours are lead walked but run to the lure twice a week then run every Sunday at the track. If I were to let Barney run with our springer, besides an accident eventually happening when Bracken runs into Barney, Barney doesn't pick up speed he justs gallops at the side of Bracken, by running him with the lure and at the track he's doing something he enjoys and this is how he picks up speed and keeps fit. Hubby did suggest at first to take Barney to the park - let me have a start and then let Barney chase me!! :rant: I made him get the lure, every racer will have different ideas on exercising their own dog our ways works for us.