Whippet
- Group 10: Greyhounds
- Section 3: Short-haired Sighthounds
- Without working trial
Great Britain
Small English Greyhound
Male 47-51 cm Female 44-47 cm
Not set
The Whippet is a recognized by the FCI British breed (FCI Group 10, Section 3, Standard No. 162).
Origin and History
Dogs of this type were in the 19th century in the UK - used for hunting rabbits view - according to the tradition of English miners. To a reputable breeding and the writing of the first breed standards sought some minor gentry and medium-sized batches military whose earnings was especially steadying a specific, powerful, yet elegant, attractive type. This first standard was written in 1891 and protected, it still exists today with some rather minor changes.
Whippets were more popular as a hunting dog than the Greyhound because they were less prone to injury, convenient in maintenance and of course cheaper due to their small size. Beginning of the 20th century, the Whippet was then also used in dog racing, but were never professional race from the Whippetrennen as in the Greyhound.
Description
On speed and performance optimized medium-sized, up to 51 cm large greyhound. Physically, it corresponds to the layman a small Greyhound, but should be clearly distinguishable from that in the exterior. The retracted rod is interpreted frequently as anxiety, but it is a race-specific property: it is the extension of the spine and is supported at greyhound races due to the tilt of the pelvis in neutral position towards the ground and never horizontally or raised high - except in high-spirited young dogs or aggression.
Whippets are dry on the constitution, so they have no excess fat and no dewlap or other skin folds. They are sensitive dogs with a strong will. Occurring tremor is an expression of intense arousal. His hair is fine, short and close in all colors. Small, rose -shaped ears complete the overall picture. The Whippet is a sporty According to the original standard, equipped with a lot of muscle dog, but always to bring elegance and never appear coarse. Because of its pleasant nature, it is suitable as a family dog , but its hunting instinct we must not underestimate.
The whippet like the majority of greyhound races (in particular Greyhound, Magyar Agar, Saluki and Borzoi ) to the fastest land animals on earth.
Use
In addition to the Greyhound Whippet Sports is a family dog today in the first place.
Nature
The breed standard of the FCI describes the Whippet as a kind, affectionate and well-balanced dog that is an ideal companion. It should be adaptable both in domestic as well as in sporting environment with a high degree.
Health
The life expectancy of Whippets as is generally quite high for small dogs; one study found in 1999 among a sample of 14 dogs of this breed have an average age of death of 14.3 ± 3.9 years. 2010, a study on a larger number of dogs (n = 374) at a mean age of death of 12.8 years.
The Whippet is the only known breed of dog in due to a mutation in the myostatin gene, a significantly greater muscle mass can be formed. Different mutations of this gene also occur in mice, sheep, several breeds of cattle and man. Affected Whippets are known as "bully whippets " and match because of their wider chest and strong muscles, especially on the neck and on the legs, not the breed standard. Apart from a stronger predisposition to muscle spasms and a significant overbite at about half of the animals show "Bully Whippets " no health problems.
A 2007 study did show that individuals homozygous for the genetic defect show the phenotype of the "Bully Whippet ". Heterozygous animals have on average compared to homozygous normal dogs on a likewise greater muscle mass. However, they correspond to the breeding goal and achieve in competition often perform better. The classification of dogs examined in performance classes led to the realization that the mutation in dogs most often and for pure show dogs occurs least often with good racing results. When studying a group of 146 Whippets that were selected without regard to the occurrence of the mutation in the family and included both competition dogs and other animals, 2 homozygous carriers of the mutation, 20 heterozygous carriers and homozygous 124 healthy dogs were determined.
"Bully Whippets " differ in the first weeks of life significantly from their littermates. Whether a Whippet is a carrier of the mutation can be detected by a genetic test.