Whippit Query?

[WhippitGood]

Hi,

My partner and I are very keen on getting a whippet early January as we have just bought our first home with a good sized back yard!

My query was with proper training and obedience classes, can Whippets be tought not to kill cats and small dogs? Or is it something that always needs to be managed?

Also, ideally we would love to take our newest member of the family to the park and let them run around and throw balls etc, I've heard that getting them to come back to the leash can be an issue, is this something that can be trained?

My last query, is re kids, I've heard they are good with kids if properly socialised from a young age, we don't have kids now but plan to in the next few years. Are Whippits ok with babies and jealousy of babies etc?

Would love some advice! :rolleyes:

[Cosmolo]

Provided you properly socialise and train in a way that works for your individual dogs personality- with a trainer who understands your goals, i don't think there would be a problem with any of the things you mentioned.

[OSoSwift]

Hi I am a first time Whippet owner of a now 11 month old Whippet. I have 3 cats and yes it was a long process but she is now really good with the cats, she tries the odd fly-by but does not try to bite at all. My Whippet came after the kids, one was just over 2 the other was 5 months. She is fantastic with my kids however I am very strict with interaction and NEVER allow the kids to tease the dog, or pull ears etc. My now 13 mo is a work in progress of course. I did end up with the quietest puppy out of the litter, so I think having a good realtionship with your breeder so you are more likely to get the temperament you require is very important. I live on acreage so exercising off lead at a park is not a problem but a friend of mine has one that is always 2 feet away and never takes off, once again training , consistancy and the correct puppy will go a long way. I think the most important thing re babies is treat the dog the way you want to treat it BEFORE the baby is born, restrict access to rooms well before baby comes home. I think they are fanatstic as a pet and with kids but all dogs only have a certain tolerance level and should not be pushed until they retaliate so training of the kids is equally important.

My girl is super quick with obedience training. She doesn't have the length of concentration of my other dog, and gets distracted more easily, but weaves better than my other dog at 5. She has been purely positively trained and they are sensitive so I don't think they would handle correction based training at all. Her heeling is magic. She is loads of fun and as long as they get a 15 to 20 minute free run each day they are happy to lay around - preferably with you inside. My girl has 5 acres around the house were were go on 2 dedicated exercise sessions per day of about 30 minutes but she follows me around hanging out washing, watering etc.

I think the are fantastic breed of dog suited to many different types of people.

Oh and they do not handle extremes of weather, need coats and inside in winter, and inside if very hot. I have many different coats to handle all senarios, and she is inside a lot anyway.

ETA - My Whippet has a very very good recall but I have worked on it since she was brought home and always very highly rewarded the recall.

Edited November 11, 2008 by rommimum

[Sezy]

One of the best recalls I have ever seen on a dog was on a whippit. Start training yound and keep training.

Every whippit owners that I have seen have also had cats and some had kids too.

[Crisovar]

My experience has been that Whippets are simply one of the BEST childrens dogs, and to top that off they can and do live very happily with all other pets when raised to do so.

The thing to remember is that each and every dog is an individual, and there are always exceptions to the rule, but in my experience Whippets raised with kids and cats are no problem at all.

Choose a breeder who does not have flighty nervous animals, and there are some I am sad to say, bring your pup home and right from day one allow it to experience calm, dog friendly cats and children. Do not make the mistake of your baby being the first your Whippet meets, teach basic manners and I doubt you will have any problems.

[Kirislin]

I suppose I will echo what others have said. I've had whippets and a cat together in the past and they were fine, but I had the cat first and got the whippets as puppies. My dear Pumpkin (cat) has long since died and these current whippets haven't grown up with cats. I know they would kill one if they got the chance so no more pussycats for me anymore, as long as I have these current whippets. I think you need to introduce them as puppies, an adult whippet who hasn't grown up with cats could be alot more difficult.

[WhippitGood]

Provided you properly socialise and train in a way that works for your individual dogs personality- with a trainer who understands your goals, i don't think there would be a problem with any of the things you mentioned.

I feel very reassured after everyone's responses, thank you!

I just had a look at your website re training and there was no pricing structure, are you able to send me something?

Cheers

[Cosmolo]

If you'd like to send me an email i can send prices through to you

[skip]

Sounds like the overall opinion is that it is not a real concern if training occurs.

But anyway I thought I would add. I looked at whippets when getting a new dog. When I spoke to a breeder and asked him if recall off lead would be an issue as I walked in the bush and also walked in off lead parks. He said that he could not guarantee it would not be a problem. Even if I did all the right things.

I have since also found a friend who has a whippet that hangs close to her all the time off lead. But at the time it was enough for me to loook at other breeds.

Hope you find the dog that best suits.