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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To get a whippet puppy in a small flat

91 replies

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 19:40

Following on from lots of whippet threads I wondered whether it would be unreasonable to consider getting a whippet pup in my circumstances. We have 2 small children and 2 cats and live in a small 3 bed flat with a patio. We have always wanted a dog, always hoped we could afford to move to a house but it will never happen. Should I resign myself to never having a dog? We can't move for a whole load of reasons. Lifestyle wise we are totally geared up for a dog. Anyone?!

OP posts:

CMOTDibbler · 14/08/2018 22:14

I have lurchers and cats, plus have fostered lots of lurcher puppies inc whippets (or at least very whippety). I've only had one puppy who was an issue with my cats, but in a flat the bigger issue would be the zoomies. Whippet puppies have these totally mad half hours where they are literally bouncing off the walls. And then they snore on your shoulder... But the zoomies might be an issue with small children

Bumdishcloths · 14/08/2018 22:19

I've had a lurcher, who was heavily whippet based, in a flat. She had terrible separation anxiety and a very high prey drive. Adding cats to the mix would have been disastrous. I would never, ever advocate having a long dog in a flat, or any dog tbh. I got her thinking I was moving out to a place with a garden but it all fell through. It was massively unfair on the dog, and one of my greatest regrets.

Disfordarkchocolate · 14/08/2018 22:19

We had our dog in flats for 5 years, not a problem at all. Even now we have a garden he's not allowed to wee or poo in it, walks every time for that. However, a puppy is very different. Have you tried rescue places as they may have dogs that are used to cats.

Maelstrop · 14/08/2018 22:25

I actually think you’ll be ok with a puppy. I think a retired greyhound is a terrible idea, dunno why that was suggested. They’re meant to be muzzled when out in case they chase small furries.

As long as you’re happy to carry the pup up and down to the patio and be rigorous with cleaning the area, I think you’ll be fine. Their joints are way too fragile to do stairs when they’re babies.

sunshineandshowers21 · 14/08/2018 22:33

our family has always had whippets/lurchers, and i would recommend them to anybody! we had our cat before we got our dog as a puppy and the cat ruled the roost from day one of the dog moving in! they used to sleep snuggled up together in the dog’s bed! we walk ours twice a day and after a quick burst of energy where they’ll run circles they’ll happily sleep the rest of the day away! (although they are prone to having mad half hours!) they’re very low maintenance and generally excellent with children. if i lived in a flat and wanted a dog, a whippet is definitely what i’d go for.

Aneurin · 14/08/2018 22:34

I have a whippet and 2 cats. It's terrified of them and they pinch her bed. We have zoomies around the house/garden approx twice a day and 2 walks per day. The rest of the time she's stretched out on the sofa asleep, because the cats are in her bed. Sometimes she tries to get in the cat bed, which is a sight to behold.

I wouldn't trust her with any other cats, but she's been with these since 8 weeks.

Paie · 14/08/2018 22:36

I know you have all the best intentions, but please don't. My DMs whippet comes from a family who lived in a flat. They couldn't understand why she was so "badly behaved" when in fact she was just bored and frustrated at not having enough space or walks. She was not a happy puppy when she arrived.

peanutbutterdog · 14/08/2018 22:37

Not all whippets have a strong prey drive. We rescued a whippet at 6 months and now have her over 10 years. Two years ago we rescued a cat aged around 4 years. We approached three rescues when we were getting the cat and one didn't want to consider us because of the type of dog we had and it was also a major concern for us that she would at best chase the cat and at worst, kill it.

We introduced the two animals slowly by caging the dog and letting the cat wander around freely outside the cage while giving the dog plenty of treats for ignoring him. We had both animals sleep on old towels for a few days and then placed the dog's towel near the cat and vice versa. After that, we put the dog on her lead and brought her into the same room as the cat with lots of commands to sit and treats for behaving (this dog will do anything for food) and now the dog wants to be best friends, but the cat is having none of it and bullies her - he even eats her food out of her bowl while she sits beside him crying!

I think if you are getting a whippet, you are right to get a pup so you can train it and have a good idea of its history. Our dog grew with two children and has the sweetest, most gentle temperament - she gets a long walk and then flakes out in various parts of the house for the rest of the day. If I were ever to consider another dog after this one, I'd go for a whippet.

DownAndUnder · 14/08/2018 22:40

I think living in a 3 bedroom flat with access to outside (patio?) and walks is a much better life than many whippets face waiting in rescues for years. Rescues will have puppies too OP.

livelyredjellybean · 14/08/2018 22:40

Greyhounds and whippet type breeds actually DON’T need lots and lots of exercise; they are known as “100 mile an hour couch potatoes” - they do like to run (fast!) but not usually for long.
But I do second that whippets, especially puppies, can be a little fragile.

Noqont · 14/08/2018 22:43

My whippets were always quite lazy and spent most of the day curled up asleep. They did need somewhere to have a good run though. They were very bad with cats, and rabbits, and children.

Original poster

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 22:44

Wow, very mixed responses! Even more confused now! Just because someone lives in a flat doesn't mean they won't walk their dog. A dog in a house or flat that isn't walked will be equally unhappy. As I've said we are out all day every day (understand this is not possible for a pup) but what I mean is that there is no issue with walking a dog for us. My question was rather is a flat suitable for a whippet, ie, it wouldn't have the run of a large house when it was inside. Maybe I need to speak to more whippet owners to get an accurate picture, I don't know?! Obviously I wouldn't get a dog unless we were certain we could provide a suitable life it, I am only thinking about it at present and certainly not going to make any rash decisions. Thanks again everyone.

OP posts:

Noqont · 14/08/2018 22:44

100 mile an hour couch potatoes”

Yep. Exactly this.

Original poster

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 22:46

Thanks again, lots to consider!

OP posts:

Noqont · 14/08/2018 22:48

I don't think there's an issue with the flat op, as long as the dog has somewhere to run, which is important, and that they have good recall. You don't want them to be heading off into the distance without that, as you will never catch them. My neighbor used to take their whippets to the greyhound track and exercise them there.

Original poster

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 22:50

That's a good idea. Luckily we have a fully secured "dog park" very close by which is recommended for training etc as is fully fenced and secured but very large!

OP posts:

Noqont · 14/08/2018 22:52

Sounds fine then.

JustBeReasonable · 14/08/2018 22:55

Spoken to breeders and all said puppy not an adult re the cats

I don’t mean to be rude but breeders are not exactly impartial sources of advice. They have a product to sell, and even the most well meaning breeders will be biased towards puppies of their breeds. It’s like asking a Toyota dealer what the best car is for your circumstances.

I wouldn't consider a rescue as with children / cats I want to start from scratch and know / be in control of all the history.

Honestly, this is nonsense. It really is. You can never guarantee what a dog will turn out like, but with many rescue dogs (not all, of course) you can make a far far better prediction of how they’ll be with children and cats than with a puppy from a breeder. Rescue dogs don’t all come from abusive homes or running the streets- many come from very loving, well trained homes that for other reasons can’t keep them. The dogs are carefully assessed by experienced staff before being matched with suitable homes. People use that reasoning a lot, and I think sometimes they believe it, but often it is just an excuse as they’re uncomfortable admitting that they simply want a cute pure bred as a bit of a status symbol. I don’t mean to imply that that’s you though!

What is it you hope to get out of showing?

JustBeReasonable · 14/08/2018 22:56

(For what it’s worth, there are thousands of puppies in rescue, and there are also breed specific rescues)

Noqont · 14/08/2018 22:59

I have a dog I had from a puppy (not a whippet) and she's terrible with other dogs and children she doesn't know. It's been very hard work to socialize her. In some ways a rescue could be better as at least it would be observed / documented what their faults (if any) are. I think it's more of an unknown with a pup.

mistlethrush · 14/08/2018 23:02

I have a rescued lurcher. I have many friends that have lurchers (sometimes up to 6 or 8) with a cat or multiple cats. I have a friend with a whippet sized lurcher who lives in a flat (actually she has had a whippet in the past too).

I think if you get a pup and your cats are relatively confident, there should be absolutely no problems whatsoever.

I think that there are many lurchers and whippets that are older that would quite happily fit in - the lurcher rescue we got ours from definitely has some that are cat safe (and they're prepared to home the right dog with young children, and in a flat).

You will need to ensure you put the training in wtih the children to make sure that they don't plague the dog. (We had a dog when our son was small and we were really strict with him!)

TheLuckyHare · 14/08/2018 23:03

Our whippet lives with two cats and is absolutely fine, even cuddles with them. I would say it's fine as long as you have somewhere you can let them run off lead at top speed daily! Whippets are so intelligent and such characters, although you might end up with one that's an absolute nut case; there's no knowing!

stopgap · 14/08/2018 23:06

I had two dogs when I lived in NYC, one a low-energy pug, and the other a high-energy Boston terrrier. Before kids I was able to take them to the dog park daily, but now when my baby came along. So I used to strap my infant son to me in the carrier and walk the dogs daily in Central Park for four miles (on leash) and then off leash at the weekends minus baby.

But these dogs were 8 and 9 when faced with this situation, and adjusted well. Only when I was able to dedicate massive amounts of time for trips to the off-leash dog parks and for training did it make sense to have a puppy in an apartment. You sound like you have your hands full.

Original poster

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 23:09

Thank you. I wouldn't consider a rescue in my circumstances, I've known 3 separate cases of rescues that have gone horribly wrong, not all rescues have experienced staff who are good at matching dogs and it's just not a risk I would take. I think buying a puppy from a good breeder who knows their dogs and their dogs temperaments going back many generations, ie a lot of breeders have grandparents , great grandparents, siblings and know their dogs temperaments very well is in my personal opinion a much safer bet. I don't want a pure bred dog as a status symbol but much more knowing what I am getting. You can expect certain traits and thus suitability in certain breeds. I don't understand what you mean by what do you hope to get out of showing. Er to have fun, to socialise to have days out at the odd show with my dog? Hope that explains! I understand rescues are overrun with dogs and if I didn't have children I would most likely consider a rescue.

OP posts:

Original poster

Wantaskinnydog · 14/08/2018 23:12

Thanks everyone. Going to sleep on it and try to make some plans to meet up with some whippet owners, I know there's a whippet club walk here so maybe I could tag along and discreetly ask them all my questions

OP posts:

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