My three Whippets...

[Johnnysan]

Two I've had for awhile, the third I just recently acquired from Dave Keith!

<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/Johnnysan/Lounge%20Photos/ThreeWhippets.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

Don't ask me to pick my favorite...

 

[Solid Citizen]

Now I understand your Whippet pic w/fedora PS What are their names???

 

[Johnnysan]

Now I understand your Whippet pic w/fedora

...and why I REALLY wanted to find a Stetson Whippet in my size!

PS What are their names???

From left to right, the Whippets are: Chloe, "Gorgeous" and Echo! Needless to say, I love all three of them! :cheers1:

 

[scotrace]

Love all three!

I lobbied for a Whippet to go with our bulldog, but alas... Mummy is a bulldogger, period.

Great hat too!!

 

[Johnnysan]

I understand completely...once you fall for a particular breed, you're hooked for life! Keep working on it though - whippets are worth the effort!

 

[Biltmore Bob]

Great dogs. Do you do any 'coursing' John?

I have four favorite breeds, in no particular order...

German Shepherd Dog
Australian Shepherd
Border Collie
Australian Cattle Dog

I love the GSD for their trainability and natural protective instinct. I love the Herders and the Heelers because of their drive and focus on their trainer.

 

[Johnnysan]

Great dogs. Do you do any 'coursing' John?

I have four favorite breeds, in no particular order...

German Shepherd Dog
Australian Shepherd
Border Collie
Australian Cattle Dog

I love the GSD for their trainability and natural protective instinct. I love the Herders and the Heelers because of their drive and focus on their trainer.

Thanks, Bob! We tried lure coursing with the girls once, but they weren't crazy about it and neither were we. Many of the folks who are into lure coursing were way too serious for our tastes, even to the point of letting their dogs sustain serious injuries in the process.

Echo (the reddish dog in the photo to my left) is a serious hunter...her dame was a national field coursing champ and she has the same prey drive and skills...to the sad surprise of many ex-bunnies. For the most part though, they're couch potatoes, but what a thrill to see them at a full run!!!

Whippets are a great breed...prone to occassional bursts of raw energy and then sacked out for the rest of the day! Although they look fragile, they are among the most tenacious dogs I've known. They have the greyhound speed and terrier toughness...when they're going, they go all out and there's no quit in them.

I watched my first whippet wipe out mid-stride at 35 mph, do a double sommersault, land on his feet and just keep running. When we got him back on lead, he was sporting a ground in grass stain from the tip of his ear to the base of his tail. The impact alone would have killed some other dogs. I've also been tackled by one of our girls and let me tell you, if (Force=mass x acceleration), then acceleration counts for a lot more in the equation than mass!

They're also pretty good guard dogs despite their appearance. These two kept a 120 lb. Briard at bay that was threatening my eight-month pregnant wife. Pretty brassy for two 30 lb. dogs working in tandem. (They got extra treats that night!) Anyway, let's just say that I'm sold on them!

You look just like I had you pictured in my mind John...

I'm taking that as a compliment and thanks!

 

[Not-Bogart13]

Adorable Dogs

(Nice hat, too). I had a mixed whippet some years ago, and she inherited strongly from that breed. The toughness, the speed, the attitude, the energy, and the body. Smart as a whip(pet), too. But she had German shep and black lab in her. She looked like a skinny black border collie with white paws! I miss her dearly. Thanks for the story... it brought back fond memories.

 

[jamespowers]

Gee, this brings the thought of getting a whippet to the forefront of my mind. I would love to but the cat,Australian Cattle Dog and numerous German Roller Canaries are too much as it is for now.
I could always use another Stetson Whippet though. That one looks great on you and I think they refer to it as Gridiron Grey in their ads but then again, what do I know?

Gee, we missed observing hat week here. Mark it on your calendar for next year.


Regards to all,

J

 

[Bebop]

Years ago I rescued a Whippet from Whippet rescue and she was one great dog. My current dogs are a black Czech/East-German German Shepherd that is the easiest, most protective dog with incredible drive that I have ever trained and a Mini Schnauzer that is also a rescue. My Whippet was at her best laying next to me while I read or watched TV. Most poodles are also high on my trainability list. I also had a white bulldog who was named "Bebop" that obviously left quite an impression on me. I miss all my past dogs.

 

[Johnnysan]

Animal lovers please take no offense...

One advantage of having whippets is that I always have a ready supply of hare for those custom felting jobs...

<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/Johnnysan/Lounge%20Photos/Huntress.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

(Ed. Note: I do not hunt these dogs...they simply do what they do when a stray furry thing enters their yard. Please do not have the folks at P.E.T.A. flame me. Dogs hunt, I'm bald...blame genetics.)

 

[Bebop]

That is a great way of explaining dogs that hunt. They hunt and you are bald. Genetics. When people ask me if my dog bites, I tell them, "All dogs bite. Hopefuly she won't bite you".

 

[Johnnysan]

That one looks great on you and I think they refer to it as Gridiron Grey in their ads but then again, what do I know?

A great deal, my friend - and thanks for all the info that you've shared on the Lounge! I was thinking it was Gridiron Grey too, until I saw this ad for one in Moor Grey from 1948...it seems to be a shade lighter:

<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/Johnnysan/Lounge%20Photos/moor_grey.jpg"; alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

What do you think?

That is a great way of explaining dogs that hunt. They hunt and you are bald. Genetics. When people ask me if my dog bites, I tell them, "All dogs bite. Hopefuly she won't bite you".

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Echo descends from a long line of outstanding coursers. She has taken five rabbits over the course of the past six years that she has been with us. Following each kill, she goes into a funk for about a week and seems to regret giving injury. But, when the hunter's insticts kick in, she simply does the job that her entire line was bred to do.

All of our dogs are pseudo-rescues that have come to us from a breeder who place their dogs with new owners when they are done with the show ring, lure coursing and/or breeding. Fortunately, there aren't many whippets in the rescue program as they are not overbred for profit like greyhounds. I'm glad to hear that others have had such fond experiences with their whippets as well!

 

[feltfan]

That is a great way of explaining dogs that hunt. They hunt and you are bald. Genetics. When people ask me if my dog bites, I tell them, "All dogs bite. Hopefuly she won't bite you".

Any animal with a mouth can bite. I always find that such a silly
question. But unless it's a kid, it's usually asked by someone I want
to keep a distance from me... Interestingly, I get the same reaction
whether I am walking my dog or carrying my python on my shoulders.

I also like your explanation. My dog is fast, but not as fast as
a whippet (I had a whippet cross in high school). She hasn't caught
a rabbit yet, but she has racked up her share of rats, mice, and above
all squirrels. The other day a possum came into the yard...

I wonder what sort of a hat you could make with squirrel fur. Okay,
I won't wonder long.

 

[Biltmore Bob]

When asked if my dogs bite, I reply...

"They haven't bitten me today" or "They got teeth don't they."

I have discovered that dogs are a good judge of character, naturally and instinctively. Much better than Humans are. I can meet someone and talk with them several times and on several ocassions and not really know much about them. But my dogs instantly know someones character on the first meeting. It's uncanny, but my dogs have been 100% correct about people. If my dogs don't like you there's something wrong with you.

When my daughter starts dating her would be boyfriends are going to have to pass the "Dog Test".

My old K9 academy instructor once told me, "Bob, always trust your dog."

 

[Slate Shannon]

Yeah, I always wonder about someone who asks if my dog bites. Makes me wonder why they want to know. One time when I was out walking my dog, this shady looking character came up and started talking to me about my dog. First, he wanted to know if she was a biter or just a barker, then he wanted to know if I kept her in the house or outside, then he wanted to know where I lived!! Hmmm, wonder why. Anyway, I told him that she is very protective and changed the subject about where I lived. We got away from him as fast as possible.

 

[Bebop]

"They haven't bitten me today" or "They got teeth don't they."

I have discovered that dogs are a good judge of character, naturally and instinctively. Much better than Humans are. I can meet someone and talk with them several times and on several ocassions and not really know much about them. But my dogs instantly know someones character on the first meeting. It's uncanny, but my dogs have been 100% correct about people. If my dogs don't like you there's something wrong with you.

When my daughter starts dating her would be boyfriends are going to have to pass the "Dog Test".

My old K9 academy instructor once told me, "Bob, always trust your dog."

Sorry Bob but I don't think dogs can tell bad character from good character. By that logic, a bad guys dog would hate him, run away and find someone with better character. Dogs know when things are about to change before we do or if someone is acting a little more nervous than the situation. I have never seen a dog that is %100 correct when judging a situation. That is why training is so important. They use their nose, eyes and hearing unlike us. If my trained dog growls at you it is because of something you did even if I did not see what you did. It is not because you have bad character. If an untrained dog growls at you it is because it is trying to tell you it is the boss and you are "stepping on it's toes". The thing that dogs respond to most is pack order (dominance and submission) not character. Dogs that "know character" make for great movies and TV shows. If one of my dogs ever growled at my daughters date, I would reprimand that dog. There are very few situations when it is ok for my dogs to growl at people accepted into my house. They are aloof but they are not allowed to growl unless told to do so.

 

[Johnnysan]

When my daughter starts dating her would be boyfriends are going to have to pass the "Dog Test".

Sound advice, Bob...I'm filing this away for future reference!

 

[jamespowers]

A great deal, my friend - and thanks for all the info that you've shared on the Lounge! I was thinking it was Gridiron Grey too, until I saw this ad for one in Moor Grey from 1948...it seems to be a shade lighter:

<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/Johnnysan/Lounge%20Photos/moor_grey.jpg"; alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

What do you think?

Man, I think you hit it right on the head. The ribbon treatment is right as well. I don't have that ad but I do now. Now I expect you to repose with the hat in the same manner as the ad.
Moor Gray does look to be a lighter shade of gray. Very nice. I am still looking for the ad that describes a blue/gray Whippet of mine. I'll post pictures later.

Regards to all,

J

 

[Johnnysan]

I am still looking for the ad that describes a blue/gray Whippet of mine.

I may actually have this ad...did Stetson call it "Skyline Blue" or something like that? I'll look around tonight and try to post a scan. If it's the same color I'm thinking of, I am in awe!

:cheers1: