They can run up to speeds of about 33 to 35 miles an hour in a short burst. But yes, they
absolutely look amazing when they're stretched out. Really going full throttle. You just
stand there and you think that's beautiful. They're very loving. They can be mad as hatters,
but they're so easy to keep. So healthy. They are one of the few breeds who have not got
any real health problems. I've had whippets about 40 years and I wouldn't swap them for
anything. I've only ever been without one for about two weeks. And I just so so missed
it that I ended up going and getting another one. The whippet is a racing dog originally,
and resembles a small Greyhound. But they are actually an extremely loyal and affectionate
family pet. Whippets are sight hounds - so their idea of distance is completely different
to yours. Two fields away is fine by a whippet. So the training - you really want to be thinking
about recall, re-call and then even more recall. Sight hounds mean they hunt through their
eyes. They'll catch sight of what could technically be prey - in days gone by was a rabbit or
a hare, and they will stand it - well I call it stand it - they will watch it then they'll
go. Straightaway after the prey. But it's a thing that you train for. If you're going
to let your Whippet off, you've got to make sure it's a secure place that they can't get
out of. It will run across roads if you're not careful. The safest way is not to let
it off lead unless you can rent a paddock or rent a space in which you can let it off
safely. One other thing with whippets - I've seen whippets on retractable leads. And they
go from 0 to very very fast, very quickly.And if it's on a rectractable lead and it's on
its collar, it can do some serious damage to its neck. So you may be thinking to use
a harness. But you still need to think about caution because it's still going to accelerate
very quickly and even on a harness it can injure itself. So care always with that recall.
They don't need an enormous amount of exercise. It's quite a myth that because it's a hound
and a running dog as people would know them as, they need to have a lot of exercise. I
take mine out for about half an hour every day and that seems to do the trick. They're
well happy, they're healthy and fit. Obviously they do like to free run - and once they're
past the puppy stage, free-running is fine - but up to about 6 months, controlled exercise
more than free-running. If you give them too much exercise too soon, it does affect their
growth. They can become very very leggy or they can get too much muscle and it constricts
the bone growth as well. It is a very very popular breed, basically because they fit
to any family or domestic situation. Whippets are lovely little dogs. Sometimes they can
be a little bit on the shy side, if we got a shy one in, we would look to re-home it
in a quiter household that wasn't too busy for the dog to cope with. They need medium
exercise levels. They enjoy a good walk but are also quite happy to be a bit of a couch
potato - and snooze a lot of they day. So they can make great friends and companions.
They live happily with loads and loads of other breeds. I've got two other breeds - and
they happily live with eachother. The other thing of course is that they are brilliant
with children. Grooming is very easy - infact you can almost say it's non-existent in a
way. They've got such a short, silky coat. As long as you brush them own, dry them off
when they've been for a run and occasionally give them a bath when they've got really dirty,
that's as much as you need. Mine get a duster every day and one brush every week just to
keep the coat nice. If you're thinking of getting one I would advise that you go to
a reputable breeder and you know you'll be getting a good, healthy puppy. Health issues
are mainly when they get to the end of their life which is no different from any other
breed or human. Occasionally they'll have a little heart murmur but that's age as opposed
to a critical medical condition. In all the years I've had whippets, I've never had a
health issuse. So from that point of view it is wise to have them insured just in case
- but I would say that you wouldn't probably ever use the insurance.\par
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