hmmm thinking about getting a whippet..please put me off

[brimfull]

dh does not want another dog
we lost ours 18months ago

WheretheWildthings the article I read said £6k over a lifetime, and it didn't say they are the most expensive dog at all.

You seem to be agreeing that £6k is about right - I just think this is a lot of money. I am always shocked when people give details of their monthly budgets, and pets come out as costing around £40 per month for one pet.

In my fantasy life I have 2 whippets, but £80 a month would be hard for me to afford!

Oh sorry, differenet article then

Er, my maths is a bit shit but -

£16 a month insurance (but will go up obv. last dogs insurance also was £39.50 a month for his last few years of life).

About £250 pounds a year ish to feed, including treats, maybe a little more a little less.

Training classes £20 a month

Collar and lead as cheap or pricey as you like really.

Toys as above

Ditto bedding

Can't really see how it would be less than £6K, more if you had to factor in things like kennels and also excess on insurance for vets fees.

last dogs insurance alone

Whippets are lovely but there are also lots of greyhounds looking for homes, some of them are tiny, only about knee high, they vary a lot in size as you can also get very tall greyhounds.

I would love a grey
ds is intimidated by jumpy dogs and would also need to be comfortable witha large dog
our last dog was large but not jumpy at all and well trained

I am not fussed about size myself although we only have 3 seater sofa

Greys are not usually "jumpy" - quite the reverse, they are generally super laid back, very affectionate, and tend to have short bursts of activity when there is food to be stolen/tickles to be had/a bed to be colonised/a cat to be chased.... From their working lives, they are usually excellent on the lead and good at travelling - ours all clicked with housetraining within a day. Am bemused by the figures quoted previously - don't make sense to me either. Greys are generally incredibly healthy as they are bred to work not to show, and are long lived, often to the mid teens. Our adorable dowager duchess is 11 and very small and dainty and is the undisputed boss of our two huge hulking males - there really is an enormous size difference within the breed. Others have also mentioned lurchers - PLEASE do make sure you get a rescue dog - there are masses of lovely sighthounds out there and they make truly wonderful companions.

Just one of a huge list of lovely, lovely dogs needing homes

I try and avoid that website because I end up wanting them all. But the beauty of it is that the dogs are all fostered by experienced owners so you really know what you're getting. And loads of tiny ickle bundles of lurchery gorgeousness to choose from

OP - here's something to put you off. My whippet managed to cut himself today when haring about it in the woods. I'm now £177 poorer, he has a shaved leg and a line of stitches, and I will have to walk him on the lead for 10 mins only for the next 10 days. He will go stir crazy.

There you go - any help?

ihearthuckabees-aww poor dog. Sadly hasn't put me off.

Still need to work on dh though

Whippets are wonderful. And really, £500 is not very much for a pedigree dog. You'll pay almost double that for a retriever. Although TBH, I've just sold all of my litter of whippets for rather less than that.

But whippets are really fab dogs, they are quiet and gentle in the house, but lively and fun out on walks. They hardly moult, don't smell and are pretty much free from genetic problems (the gene pool has not been restricted in the same way it has for a lot of other breeds).

The biggest danger with whippets is that hardly anyone stops at one, they are totally collectable. Do it, everyone needs a whippet in their life!

Also they don't cost much to keep - although I sympathise with iheart as I've dealt with a few rabbit-hunting related skin tears in my life.

My older whippet has skin like tissue paper and is currently sporting a scar much like yours, iheart - at a similar cost . Hope your whippet feels better soon.

Torn whippet is healing well thanks southwest, although is very annoyed about being restricted to 10 minute walks on the lead!

DH keeps trying to persuade me to get another, but I don't want to jeopardise the cosy dog-sitting arrangement we have with my parents, and 2 may just be a step too far for them. Is very tempting though - saw some gorgeous pups the other day...

I'd love a whippet too - our friends have one who is lovely. However I'd feel uncomfortable about buying a pedigree dog when there are so many dogs in rescue

You don't get many whippets in rescue it seems - but how about this one?

Quodlibet -adorable puppy!

I am having second thoughts now , worried about leaving a dog while I am at work. I work 3 days a week and dd who would help out is soon leaving to go travelling .