Picking a winner

[Rachel]

Today I read that the sign of a fast greyhound pup is if it's pin bones align with its hind-feet toes! (twas in a general dog book).  I've also read that a long tail is a sign of a fast dog.

It lead me to wonder how DO you choose a potential fast racing whippet pup if you can't assess it's speed until it is much older...

Rachel

 

[Terry Smith]

Quote: from Rachel on 6:58 pm on Dec. 21, 2001Today I read that the sign of a fast greyhound pup is if it's pin bones align with its hind-feet toes! (twas in a general dog book).  I've also read that a long tail is a sign of a fast dog.Rachel

Hi Rachel

I'm surprised you haven't had some racing experts answer you by now. The pin bone/ toe alignment thing is pretty much common sense. A pup that isn't aligned this way isn't going to move too well at whatever it's put too. The long tail thing is quoted a lot by lurcher owners & coursers. The tail is a major factor in agility acting as a rudder such as turning etc. Thats why lots of docked breeds seem to slide around a lot. In a world were a few pips of a second define good from bad a longer tail could well be a factor.

It lead me to wonder how DO you choose a potential fast racing whippet pup if you can't assess it's speed until it is much older...

Well with greyhounds you go to a sale with all the housekeeping/holiday money for 6 month's (but you don't tell the wife). You can see the dogs run & get a good picture of what will do the business for you. Whippet racing is something else. Nearly all race owners are pet owners who happen to race. Picking the right pup is more complex. Length is a good indicator of potential speed, good shoulders, broad...ish back not over angulated. An outward going confident pup usually picks the sport up better than a shy one. Main thing is you pick the one you like most 'because as I said you're picking a pet over anything else.

 

[Stewart]

Well said Terry, as with most things in life, what you get depends very much upon what you are prepared to pay, with a bit of luck thrown in.

Best wishes for the New Year.

 

[Mark Roberts]

Hi Rachel

              "Picking A Winner"  I think the reason you have recieved so few reply is the fact that no body realy knows what makes a Champion in any field racing/showing ect.

but as Terry rightly says whippet are as much pets as they are racers, so I suppose if you go and pick the one that appeals to you colour ect and at 12 months old you're happy with it then it's got to be a WINNER

All the best to everyone Mark

 

[Vicky]

Hi Rachel,

I don't care what anyone says, you can't pick a winner as a pup, it is purely the luck of the draw.  You can look for things in the pup which you would think are a major factor in whether it's going to be fast and as Terry says your favourite in the litter, but everyone's heard stories of breeders letting all the good looking pups go and him being left with the runt and it turning out to be a flying machine.  Everyone has their favourite type of whippet and one persons pick of the litter is not always the next persons.  

Most people have also had dogs that look to be world beaters but they're doing nowhere near the times they should be (Terry eg - Missie & Mack).  And there is also the dogs that need no effort at all put into them to keep them fit (a well known non-ped was Sup Rch/Nch Kerry's Dream) where as others (my own Ella) you need to be at the back of them all the time to make sure they don't look at food because you know they'll put weight on.

ps. IF ANYONE DOES FIND A WAY OF PICKING A WINNER AS A PUP LET ME KNOW!!!!!! ha ha (as i've got a 2 week old litter in my kennel as we speak)

-----

Vicky

(Edited by Vicky at 10:27 am on Dec. 24, 2001)

 

[michelle]

My opinion- pick the pup which appeals to you the most!, in my last litter tony and I could'nt choose between the 2 bitches, so he let me pick and I chose amber, why? she appealed to me and even to this day i don't know why.

Go with you're instincts and pick the dog that jumps out at you!!!

ps.... I always rub it in to tony that I picked hobgoblin!!!!!

 

[Nigel]

There is no way to pick the fastest/best. All you can do is try and stack the odds in your favour.

Firstly choose the breeding carefully - look for lines that have gone well together before or choose a sire and dam that have both come from a successful litter. Then select the pups you like in colour & looks. Then go for the boldest that isn't going to be too big or too small.

Speed isn't everything and temperament plays a very big part in the success of any racing dog - you can start to see that develop from an early age. Try to develop that bold character and hopefully you will always get the best from the dog.

So, you certainly cannot pick the winner but I think you can increase your chances. The rest is down to luck.

Hope you're right about long tails :biggrin:

 

[Vicky]

Michelle,

You mean to say that Tony doesn't let you pick anyway, you need to put your foot down girl.

Oh and Rachel does a long tail count if its curled into a coil????

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Vicky

(Edited by Vicky at 5:53 pm on Dec. 24, 2001)

 

[Karen]

My 2p, I used to work with greys and if we went to look at a litter and could see them running around I was always told by the old boy I worked for that some like to chase and others like to be chased.  If you can watch the litter its nearly always the same ones that like the others running after them.  DONT PICK THEM!  As for the long tails it is normally an indication of length all through including the neck, a long neck was good for grabbing prey on the move without falling over your shoulderblades!!  It is sometimes hard to see a good neck in youngsters so we were told to look at the tails.  As for the curly ones my fastest ever bitch had a bit of a loop but it was long.  One last thing, I think tenacity is by far the most important factor in any running hound so if I was picking for running I would try to go for the puppy that wanted that thrown soft toy most even if it didnt get to it first, this time.  Best of luck to you all in the coming year.

 

[Tony Taylor]

I`ve only bred 3 litters so I hardly an expert but the best racers were those pups with the best shape immediatly at birth ie; when still wet.A day later when they`ve been fed they all look the same - fat and fluffy ! Older pups (ie if someone else has bred them ) are more difficult - we just go with gut feeling - not very scientific really.

 

[Judy]

It's probably just as well that it's so hard to pick the best puppies. Just imagine....the good ones would cost a fortune (that's if the breeders would part with them) and nobody would want the others

.

 

[Paws123]

just go and have a good look at them all to make sure there all fine then shut your eyes and pick one up go with that one ive breed a couple of litters and watched them grow every day youll like the look of a diffrent one its just a luck bag. denise