Whippets are a very old sighthound breed, bred originally to hunt rabbits. They were considered "the poor man's hunting dog" because they were very easy to keep, low maintenance, and yet capable hunters. As the years progressed, Whippets were bred in more directions and their versatility grew. Now, similarly to Border Collies, you can find lines bred for conformation, for sports (mostly flyball and racing), and lines that preserve the breed's heritage of live coursing. Also similarly to Border Collies, these lines differ sometimes quite greatly although I wouldn't say quite to the extent that the Border Collie lines vary. They are a small/medium breed, ranging from as little as 20lbs which is more commonly seen in the European lines and as large as 50+lbs, though I've only seen that in the American dogs. My Whippets range on the smaller side, typically under 30lbs.
Whippets are a notoriously healthy breed, who's recommended health testing does not even include structural testing like hips and elbows, as they are not prone to such issues. Their most common health problems are of the eyes and heart. I find they also need very regular nail trims and dental care. While the recommended health testing for the breed is eyes, heart, and hearing, I test all dogs in my program to the following standard:
Full panel DNA
OFA hips
OFA elbows
OFA shoulders
OFA spine
OFA heart
OFA patella
OFA eyes
Temperamentally, Whippets can vary but largely they are go with the flow, don't overthink much, and are relatively simple to keep. They aren't predisposed to a lot of temperament issues but do commonly experience separation anxiety which can lead to trouble with crate training. They are usually good with people, kids, and other dogs, but can need a little extra guidance with small animals due to their naturally high prey drive. They can be dirty dogs and have some struggle with potty training. They can lack biddability and be hard to motivate and can require thoughtful training. While not usually barkers, they are often whiny. They can be cat like in their demeanors, love to curl up and nap, lay under blankets, and love food.
How we got into Whippets...
I think it's pretty unlikely I would have branched out from Border Collies as soon as we did for my personal dogs, so we have my partner to thank for this one!
As a dog trainer who owns Border Collies, you can experience some trivialization on your training abilities, because "Well, it's a Border Collie, so of course it can." Smartest dog breed and all that! While this has always been a little nagging sensation and not much else, we decided to make the leap and showcase our training abilities with a dog not known for biddability. I had always had an admiration for sighthounds and when researching what breeds of dog were known for being hard to train, many of them are listed! We picked out which one seemed to fit our lifestyle and goals best, which was the Whippet. The next hurdle we had to overcome was how difficult it was to find a Whippet breeder who would take the time to speak to us about their program and consider us for one of their puppies. Because we didn't have Whippet experience, this was a struggle! We were turned down and discouraged by several breeders before we finally found one who would sell us a puppy. The breeder we did end up finding had lovely dogs and was very small scale. They did not do any sort of puppy rearing protocols. This was reflected in some issues we had to overcome with our girl Lapis, including difficulties with potty training, crate training, and mild separation anxiety as a puppy. But beyond those challenges, we really fell in love with the breed and with sighthounds in general! My partner dove into the running dog and sighthound community and we both learned so much. Whippets are a notoriously healthy breed and very structurally sound. Unlike Border Collies, they rarely have temperament or behavioral issues aside from what could be called a lack of trainability and high prey drive. However, I feel that the training challenges have more to do with how people keep them and what their expectations for the dogs are.
What we want to achieve by breeding Whippets is to get this amazing breed into more people's homes and hearts and to welcome newcomers to the breed. We actually want to prioritize homes who have not yet owned a Whippet and help change what people think of them (that they are hard to train, can't be off leash, are fragile, etc). We were also very eager to put our puppy raising start on them! To see some little Whippets who have been raised to be enrichment seekers, to have training relationships with humans. To really give them that special start and the lifetime support which we include with every dog we raise or train.
Whippets make excellent pets, family dogs, sport dogs, hunting dogs, and overall are a really versatile and great breed!
Whippets are a notoriously healthy breed, who's recommended health testing does not even include structural testing like hips and elbows, as they are not prone to such issues. Their most common health problems are of the eyes and heart. I find they also need very regular nail trims and dental care. While the recommended health testing for the breed is eyes, heart, and hearing, I test all dogs in my program to the following standard:
Full panel DNA
OFA hips
OFA elbows
OFA shoulders
OFA spine
OFA heart
OFA patella
OFA eyes
Temperamentally, Whippets can vary but largely they are go with the flow, don't overthink much, and are relatively simple to keep. They aren't predisposed to a lot of temperament issues but do commonly experience separation anxiety which can lead to trouble with crate training. They are usually good with people, kids, and other dogs, but can need a little extra guidance with small animals due to their naturally high prey drive. They can be dirty dogs and have some struggle with potty training. They can lack biddability and be hard to motivate and can require thoughtful training. While not usually barkers, they are often whiny. They can be cat like in their demeanors, love to curl up and nap, lay under blankets, and love food.
How we got into Whippets...
I think it's pretty unlikely I would have branched out from Border Collies as soon as we did for my personal dogs, so we have my partner to thank for this one!
As a dog trainer who owns Border Collies, you can experience some trivialization on your training abilities, because "Well, it's a Border Collie, so of course it can." Smartest dog breed and all that! While this has always been a little nagging sensation and not much else, we decided to make the leap and showcase our training abilities with a dog not known for biddability. I had always had an admiration for sighthounds and when researching what breeds of dog were known for being hard to train, many of them are listed! We picked out which one seemed to fit our lifestyle and goals best, which was the Whippet. The next hurdle we had to overcome was how difficult it was to find a Whippet breeder who would take the time to speak to us about their program and consider us for one of their puppies. Because we didn't have Whippet experience, this was a struggle! We were turned down and discouraged by several breeders before we finally found one who would sell us a puppy. The breeder we did end up finding had lovely dogs and was very small scale. They did not do any sort of puppy rearing protocols. This was reflected in some issues we had to overcome with our girl Lapis, including difficulties with potty training, crate training, and mild separation anxiety as a puppy. But beyond those challenges, we really fell in love with the breed and with sighthounds in general! My partner dove into the running dog and sighthound community and we both learned so much. Whippets are a notoriously healthy breed and very structurally sound. Unlike Border Collies, they rarely have temperament or behavioral issues aside from what could be called a lack of trainability and high prey drive. However, I feel that the training challenges have more to do with how people keep them and what their expectations for the dogs are.
What we want to achieve by breeding Whippets is to get this amazing breed into more people's homes and hearts and to welcome newcomers to the breed. We actually want to prioritize homes who have not yet owned a Whippet and help change what people think of them (that they are hard to train, can't be off leash, are fragile, etc). We were also very eager to put our puppy raising start on them! To see some little Whippets who have been raised to be enrichment seekers, to have training relationships with humans. To really give them that special start and the lifetime support which we include with every dog we raise or train.
Whippets make excellent pets, family dogs, sport dogs, hunting dogs, and overall are a really versatile and great breed!