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Whippet puppy - help please!

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munki

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Hi there I'm new to the forum - i'm going to be taking on a whippet pup in about 4 weeks. Very excited as this is my first dog, albeit I've been around dogs all of my life. This is my own pup.

First question is. I look after my sister's dog. She's a small dog. A chihuahua, yorkie, terrier, so very spindly, tall, but tiny. I have read a lot about prey drive in whippets and to be careful around cats, small dogs, squirrels etc. Am I putting my sister's dog in danger by getting a whippet? I understand they will bond, but when my sister's dog is running in the part, will the whippet forget all of that, run her down and attack? Very worried about that, first and foremost.

Second is, crating. Could someone tell me the benefits of crating? I've only ever understood it to be cruel to cage an animal, so I would like to hear the benefits, if it's actually better/safer for a dog. Instinctively it feels wrong, but I'm truly open to know if it's a good thing and can be helpful.

Many thanks

Axx
 
munki said:
Hi there I'm new to the forum - i'm going to be taking on a whippet pup in about 4 weeks. Very excited as this is my first dog, albeit I've been around dogs all of my life. This is my own pup.

First question is. I look after my sister's dog. She's a small dog. A chihuahua, yorkie, terrier, so very spindly, tall, but tiny. I have read a lot about prey drive in whippets and to be careful around cats, small dogs, squirrels etc. Am I putting my sister's dog in danger by getting a whippet? I understand they will bond, but when my sister's dog is running in the part, will the whippet forget all of that, run her down and attack? Very worried about that, first and foremost.

Second is, crating. Could someone tell me the benefits of crating? I've only ever understood it to be cruel to cage an animal, so I would like to hear the benefits, if it's actually better/safer for a dog. Instinctively it feels wrong, but I'm truly open to know if it's a good thing and can be helpful.

Many thanks

Axx
Click to expand...

I've never had a whippet but I do have a terrier with a strong hunting instinct. He seems to recognise other dogs as "dogs" however tiny and we've never had any problems. I was really afraid he'd mistake a teacup yorkie for a rat but they got on fine playing.

I was not keen on crating Harri as a pup but he was fine with it - he saw it as his safe cosy place, where he could sleep in peace. We threw a cover over it so it was a snug little den it what can be a very cold house. He was never shut in as a punishment and the door was always open apart from when I really needed to confine him in it (very rare after the first few weeks). As he got a bit more sensible (hah!) I left the door open all the time and then retired it completely when he was 9 months or so. I think they have their place but I'm sure they are frequently mis-used.
 
Hi i keep whippets. Whippets do have a strong prey drive for small furry creatures but if your pup and your sister's dog are introduced to each other early on and see each other regular then they'll be no issue at all. I know people who keep their whippets with cats and dont have issues, its just introducing at a young age that helps. My oldest Marleys friend is a shih Tzu so they can bond with other breeds as well. Whippets are such loving affectionate hounds.
On crate training i can't help i tried one for Marley and he hated so all my boys sleep with me lol
 
We used a crate for Evie when she was very young. It was a safe place for her to sleep, was never used as punishment and she was happy to be in there to sleep. We also had a play pen type attachment to the front of it for first few weeks which was handy when we needed her to be safe but contained for few minutes. Was also very useful when we were training her to be left happily alone and when we couldn't imagine leaving her for even five minutes with full access to the lounge! She also slept in it on the landing at night with a blanket covering it, outside our room. However she was never content to stay in it once she was awake and would make a racket until released. Hence we got rid of it when she was about 6 months and she could be more trusted to be left alone.
 
I have a lurcher who also has a strong prey drive but he absolutely knows the difference between a dog and a rabbit - I think the only time you're likely to have a problem is with ex-racing greyhounds who never met any small fluffy dogs when they were young. So I don't think you have to worry at all. Cats, squirrels and rabbits can be a problem - though my dog's reaction to a cat (apart from our cat, who he loves) isn't prey drive, more 'I hate you and want to rip your head off!!'

Crates can be useful, particularly if you want to take the dog away with you and not worry about whether the place is completely dog-safe, and also if your dog has to be crated at the vet's or rested following an injury. It's no worse, used properly, than expecting your dog to go to his bed and stay there for periods of time - or expecting a child to sit at their desk in school and not wander round the classroom during lessons. You can manage without fine, though - my dog never took to it and though I could have persevered, he's large enough that the crate took up half the room!
 
Hi A

I don't have experience with whippets' prey drive towards smaller dogs (although I was worried my aunt's greyhound would see my tiny whippet puppy as prey, and she didn't at all - my aunt said the greyhound instinctively knew what was 'dog' and what wasn't, even though she's an ex-racing greyhound. It could be a very different story however if they were out in the open and my puppy ran, so I honestly don't know).

RE the crate. Seems to be a lot of people above who haven't done it, or who haven't found it useful, however crate training, at least round where I live, is what the majority of people do (I've spoken to lots of owners and have just come back from a puppy class where the whole group, without exception, were crating their puppies.) I started by letting her wander in and out as she pleased and letting her sleep in different places, e.g. the sofa, another dog bed, and the crate, and also gave her treats for going inside it. I'm on my own, so crating her with the door shut was a necessity after a while, and she is absolutely fine with it once she settles down. I guess it depends on your situation. I work from home so I spend a lot of quality time with her and I only put her in the crate when she's sleepy, and shut the door so I can go and do other things without worrying that she'll wake up earlier than expected and destroy a sofa or two :)

Crating a dog is absolutely NOT cruel unless you use it the wrong way, i.e. too much of it, or using it as a punishment. If used the right way, I don't see how a crate is any different from any dog bed, except that you can close the door if you need to, for a short while. I understand that because it looks like a cage it looks wrong. But logically a crate can't be said to be holding a dog 'captive' if it's where the dog wants to be and feels comfortable.
 
I
munki said:
Hi there I'm new to the forum - i'm going to be taking on a whippet pup in about 4 weeks. Very excited as this is my first dog, albeit I've been around dogs all of my life. This is my own pup.

First question is. I look after my sister's dog. She's a small dog. A chihuahua, yorkie, terrier, so very spindly, tall, but tiny. I have read a lot about prey drive in whippets and to be careful around cats, small dogs, squirrels etc. Am I putting my sister's dog in danger by getting a whippet? I understand they will bond, but when my sister's dog is running in the part, will the whippet forget all of that, run her down and attack? Very worried about that, first and foremost.

Second is, crating. Could someone tell me the benefits of crating? I've only ever understood it to be cruel to cage an animal, so I would like to hear the benefits, if it's actually better/safer for a dog. Instinctively it feels wrong, but I'm truly open to know if it's a good thing and can be helpful.

Many thanks

Axx
Click to expand...
I have a whippet mix who loves her cat sisters, she protects and plays with them.
Although I can’t bring my school guinea pigs home at weekends- she just wants to eat them for lunch
I crated her as a pup when I had to go out for short periods and at night. The only reason i crated her was because she was absolutely hyper and would have torn the place apart. She actually enjoyed going in with a treat. And eventually (when she’d calmed down,) she would take herself in when she knew it was bedtime and wait there for me to come and tuck her in with a biscuit
 
Id just say its what they get used to... Murphy is a hunter, he is bred to hunt yet he shares the house peacefully and happily with Basil our parrot and ignores next doors cats who often sunbathe in our drive. He has been around them and seen them from 8 weeks old so they are parth of the furniture..
If your pup is bought up with other pets like that chances are he will ignore them or count them as family.
 
I can only repeat what has been said, yes Whippets in general have a strong prey drive, but they easily see small fluffy dogs as dogs and treat them as such. Other fluffy things like Rabbits and Squirels are seen and treated as prey.
 
Hi, I’m in a similar situation to yourself, I’m due to get my first whippet pup in just over 5 weeks time. I was completely against the idea of putting him in a crate as I felt it would be cruel. However after doing my research & finding ways of using it as a positive experience, I’ve changed my mind and we have purchased a large one with a divider to make it smaller for him while he’s little, then for him to grow with it. X
 
Wooliewoo said:
Hi, I’m in a similar situation to yourself, I’m due to get my first whippet pup in just over 5 weeks time. I was completely against the idea of putting him in a crate as I felt it would be cruel. However after doing my research & finding ways of using it as a positive experience, I’ve changed my mind and we have purchased a large one with a divider to make it smaller for him while he’s little, then for him to grow with it. X
Click to expand...
Good idea! I got a large crate, thinking it would be big enough, but my pup just grew and grew so I ended up buying an extra large one. The large one is still ok for travelling in the car and she can lay down comfortably but wouldn’t keep her in it at night time so she has the extra large :)
 
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