Quick Links: Table of Contents
- Whippet Breed Overview
- History of the Whippet Breed. Where Whippets came from
- What the Whippet Looks Like
- How Much is the Whippet Puppy?
- Best Whippet Breeders
- Whippet Growth
- What Colors do Whippets Have?
- The Temperament of the Whippet
- Whippet Litter Size
- How Fast Whippets Can Run
- Good Names for Whippets
- How Intelligent are Whippets?
- How Popular are Whippets with New Dog Owners?
- Health Problems in Whippets and How to Prevent Them
- How to Take Care of Whippet
- Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Whippets
- Other Things to Know About Whippets
Whippet Breed Overview
The Whippet is a medium-sized dog.
The adult Whippet stands 18 to 22 inches tall at the shoulder.
The Whippet belongs to the Hound Dogs group.
Dogs in the Hound Dogs group, like the Whippet, were bred to pursue and hunt warm-blooded animals. Hounds hunt by using their good sight or their good sense of smell. Dogs that belong to the Hound Group have strong prey drives and often will stop at nothing to catch what they are pursuing.
The fact that the Whippet belongs to the Hound Dogs group is one of the reasons why Whippets have the personality and temperament that they have.
The temperament of the Whippet is generally described as:
- Affectionate
- Friendly
- Gentle
- Intelligent
- Lively
- Quiet
History of the Whippet Breed. Where Whippets came from
Their exact history is unknown, but there are several theories as to how these dogs came to be.
Another possibility is to combine Spaniels and Greyhounds.
What we do know is that these dogs were developed in England during the nineteenth century and used in rabbit-luring competitions.
As opposed to live rabbits, a fur lure or cloth was used as bait in this new hobby and was pulled down a long and straight road or field.
Between the late 1800s and the early 1900s, English immigrants migrating to New Zealand were the first to introduce this breed and its sport to North America.
The American Kennel Club first recognized the breed in 1891.
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What the Whippet Looks Like
These stunning dogs are lean and graceful, with a similar appearance to the Greyhound, albeit slightly smaller.
They have a long muzzle and head, as well as a deep chest.
Normally, their ears are held back, but when the dog becomes alert, they become semi-pricked.
The Whippet has teeth that meet in a scissors bite and eyes that vary in color from dog to dog.
They have smooth coats and short hair that lies close to the skin.
These dogs are available in a wide range of patterns and colors.
Color options include black, blue, white, fawn, cream, red, and brindle.
are intimidating or dangerous, but not so small as to be insignificant.
The patterns on their coat could be anything from blazes to spots to patches.
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How Much is the Whippet Puppy?
The average price of a Whippet puppy is $2510. The price of a Whippet puppy ranges from $2500 to $2600.
A lot of factors determine the price of the Whippet. These factors include what health records the Whippet puppy has, the lineage of the Whippet puppy, the US state the breeder is located in, etc.
To estimate how much you can expect to pay for a puppy Whippet based on the many factors that determine the price of the Whippet puppy, check out our calculator that lets you estimate how much you should expect to pay for the Whippet puppy based on what you want in the puppy.
When looking to buy a puppy, look at buying a puppy only from well-established breeders that breed puppies primarily for the love of the Whippet breed, and secondarily for profit. Do not buy a puppy from a puppy mill. Puppy mills mass-produce puppies in bad living conditions for maximum profit.
You may also consider adopting instead of buying a puppy. Adoption costs are very low compared to the price of a puppy.
Best Whippet Breeders
We have researched reputable Whippet breeders that you can buy a puppy.
Go to this page for our complete list of reputable Whippet breeders in various states in the United States.
On this page, you will see how much these breeders sell their puppies for, and how many puppies they have available.
A few of these breeders are listed below.
Wyndham Whippets / Barb & Ken Deale
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Highbrow Corgis & Williwaw Whippets
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Nickeroos
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Ivanhoe
Puppy Price: $2500
jane cooney-Waterhouse
Puppy Price: $1800.00
Whippet Growth
New Whippet owners need to know about the growth of their Whippets. This will help them plan their living spaces accordingly.
Also, knowing the typical growth pattern of the Whippet will help new owners catch the abnormal growth of their Whippet early.
See our calculator for predicting how big your Whippet puppy will get. You will also learn about the typical weight of the Whippet at different ages and how to catch abnormal growth in your Whippet
What Colors do Whippets Have?
Whippets come in the following beautiful primary colors:
- Yellow / Tan / Blond / Fawn
- White / Cream
- Black
- Brindle
Whippets come in the following lovely secondary colors in addition to their primary colors:
- White / Cream
- Brindle
- Brown / Chocolate
The Temperament of the Whippet
The temperament of the Whippet based can be summarized as in the table below.
The table shows the scores of the Whippet for 13 important dog behavioral factors.
We obtained these scores by analyzing raw data from the C-BARQ dog personality survey tool. The higher the score of a dog for a factor, the worse the temperament of the dog regarding that factor.
The C-BARQ tool was developed by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, and it is a scientific tool that is used worldwide for reliably measuring the temperament of dog breeds.
See our complete analysis of the temperament of the Whippet here.
| Factor | Score |
|---|---|
| Prey Drive | 85.5 percent |
| Separation Related Behavior | 49.0 percent |
| Attachment Attention Seeking | 48.6 percent |
| Touch Sensitivity | 43.2 percent |
| Dog Directed Fear | 42.6 percent |
| Excitability | 36.2 percent |
| Stubbornness | 34.1 percent |
| Nonsocial Fear | 29.6 percent |
| Dog Rivalry | 26.3 percent |
| Energy Level | 26.2 percent |
| Stranger Directed Fear | 20.7 percent |
| Dog Directed Aggression | 19.3 percent |
| Owner Directed Aggression | 11.6 percent |
| Stranger Directed Aggression | 10.9 percent |
Whippet Litter Size
Researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science did a study where they counted the numbers of puppies in 47 different Whippet birth litters.
From this study, the researchers found that the average number of puppies that Whippets can have is 6 puppies. Also, the Whippet can have as few as 1 puppies per litter and as many as 10 puppies per litter.
The number of puppies that the Whippet will have depends on factors such as the age of the Whippet, the method of pregnancy, etc.
Click here to see our calculator for predicting how many puppies your Whippet will have and how the litter size of the Whippet compares to the litter size of other dog breeds.
How Fast Whippets Can Run
How fast a dog breed can run is a good measure of how athletic the dog breed is.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) regularly conducts dog running competitions. The AKC records the running speed of competing dogs in these competitions. These competitions are open to all dog breeds.
Based on our analysis of the speeds of 880 different Whippets, the average speed of the Whippet is 30.5 mph (49.1 kmph).
The fastest speed on AKC record that the Whippet ran in a race is 40.99 mph (66.0 kmph) and the minimum speed on record in a race for a Whippet is 4.12 mph (6.6 kmph).
Click here to see how the speed of the Whippet compares to the speed of other dogs and other mammals such as cats, horses, humans, etc.
Good Names for Whippets
Here are some really good names that are typical for the Whippet ranked by popularity:
- Bubbles
- Hilo
- Malcom
- Zeb
- Odie
- Flash
- Henry
- Jackson
- Cooper
- Bridge
How Intelligent are Whippets?
| Whippet | |
|---|---|
| Intelligence Rank | 51 out of 130 dog breeds |
| Trainability | Tend To Learn New Commands After 25 To 40 Repetitions |
According to Prof. Stanley Coren, a Canadian psychology professor/dog trainer, the total intelligence that a dog demonstrates is the addition of three types of intelligence. These intelligence types are:
- Instinctive Intelligence: This is the natural intelligence that comes from instinct. For example, dog breeds that have been historically bred to be guard dogs will have a high `guarding` intelligence compared to dogs that were not bred for guarding.
- Adaptive Intelligence (learning and problem-solving ability): This indicates what a dog can learn to do for himself or herself. Adaptive intelligence is specific to each dog, and not breed specific. You can improve your dog`s adaptive intelligence by investing time to train your dog.
- Working/Obedience Intelligence: This type of intelligence is breed-specific. Certain dog breeds tend to have higher working/obedience intelligence than some other breeds. This intelligence is the closest to what we might call school-learning ability and it is based upon what the dog can learn to do when instructed by humans. This type of intelligence can be measured for each dog breed and compared to that of other dog breeds.
Professor Stanley Coren measured and ranked the working intelligence of about 130 different dog breeds.
Prof. Coren found that the Whippet has an obedience intelligence rank of 51 out of 130 dog breeds. Thus, Prof. Coren put Whippets in the `Average Working/Obedience Intelligence Dogs` category.
This means that Whippets tend to learn new commands after 25 to 40 repetitions.
However, we should mention that a dog should not be judged based on its intelligence alone. There are other important factors you need to consider when deciding on which dog breed to get. These other factors include sociability, adorability, and compatibility of the dog breed with your lifestyle.
See the intelligence ranking of some other dog breeds below:
| Breed | Intelligence Rank |
|---|---|
| Border Collie | 1 |
| Rottweiler | 9 |
| Pembroke Welsh Corgi | 11 |
| Miniature Schnauzer | 12 |
| Belgian Sheepdog | 15 |
| German Shorthaired Pointer | 17 |
| Pomeranian | 23 |
| Samoyed | 33 |
| Cairn Terrier | 35 |
| Norwegian Elkhound | 36 |
| Affenpinscher | 37 |
| Finnish Spitz | 43 |
| Bichon Frise | 45 |
| American Foxhound | 46 |
| Akita | 54 |
| French Bulldog | 58 |
| Chinese Crested | 61 |
| Pekingese | 73 |
| Borzoi | 75 |
| American Bulldog | 77 |
How Popular are Whippets with New Dog Owners?
Every year, the American Kennel Club (AKC) publishes information on how popular a dog breed is in that particular year. The AKC gets the popularity information of a breed from how many dogs of that breed the owners register with the AKC every year. The AKC collects this data for about 200 dog breeds.
The graph below shows the popularity trend of the Whippet.
The popularity of the Whippet averaged over the years is Number 58 out of about 200 dog breeds.
Do not get a dog breed just because it is a popular dog breed. And do not reject a dog breed just because it is an unpopular breed.
Health Problems in Whippets and How to Prevent Them
Every dog breed has its own set of health problems that it tends to develop. There is nothing like a perfect dog breed.
The Whippet is prone to certain genetic health conditions. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) is an organization that keeps track of genetic health problems in dog breeds.
From the extensive records that the OFA keeps, the OFA knows what health problems each dog breed is naturally prone to develop.
Hence, the OFA recommends which health screening breeders should perform on a dog breed to make sure that the breeders won`t breed `defective` dog parents that can pass down defective genes to their puppy offspring.
If you want a Whippet puppy that will grow up to be healthy, make sure that your Whippet breeder screens your puppy or your puppy`s parents for the health problems that the OFA recommends for your puppy`s breed. This will increase the chances that your puppy is free from genetic defects.
The following are the health tests that Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) recommends that breeders should screen Whippets for:
You can find out more about OFA`s recommended tests for Whippets here.
How to Take Care of Whippet
To take good care of your Whippet, you need to make sure that you groom your Whippet regularly.
Secondly, you need to find a veterinarian in your area that will routinely check the health status of your Whippet regularly, and give you appropriate recommendations on your Whippet`s preventative care.
Thirdly, you need to commit some time to exercise your Whippet daily. Regular exercise helps improve the health and quality of life of your Whippet.
Also, you need to feed your Whippet high-quality dog food, and the food should be of the right amount to prevent your Whippet from getting overweight or underweight.
See our recommendations on what to feed the Whippet and how much food to feed the Whippet at different life stages.
Finally, you need to make sure that your Whippet has access to clean water all the time. See our recommendations on how much water your Whippet needs to drink at different ages.
Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Whippets
If you have not made up your mind on which dog breed to get, you may also want to consider some other dogs similar to the Whippet.
We crunched the numbers and found that the following dog breeds that have similar behavior and temperament as the Whippet:
- Ibizan Hound (86 percent match with Whippet). Learn more about the Ibizan Hound here.
- Italian Greyhound (78 percent match with Whippet). Learn more about the Italian Greyhound here.
- Sloughi (78 percent match with Whippet). Learn more about the Sloughi here.
Other Things to Know About Whippets
Here are some of the very important characteristics of the Whippet that you need to know about the Whippet breed: