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I always had collies when I was growing up, and thought I'd never change breeds, but about 5 years ago a chance meeting with a greyhound opened my eyes to the wonderful world of sighthounds!
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Now I'm currently owned by two of these beautiful hounds, a whippet x greyhound girl called Willow and an elderly whippet called Eddie.
I say owned by, as Willow is convinced that we are her servants and should pander to her every need!
But if we are servants then we're willing ones. Her gentle ways and beautiful eyes would melt the hardest of hearts.
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I'd always thought that greyhounds and all their sighthound kin would need hours of exercise, and could only be owned by those with
acres of their own grounds, now I know that actually what you need the most is a large sofa and a willingness to share your bed!
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Like their larger greyhound cousins my whippet types are perfectly happy to sleep most of the day away - though should I rattle those
leads they will trample me underfoot in their rush to the door! They are happy with a wander around the footpaths and lanes of my
village, and are very good on the lead. This is a must for me, as my elderly mum has quite bad arthritis but loves walking the dogs,
but a dog that pulled or bounced would be dangerous for her and she'd not be able to cope with walking them, and that would be so
depressing for her.
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When we find somewhere safe to let them run then run they do! There is little to compare with the sheer delight of one of these
dogs running! They invariably do a large circuit and come back to me grinning all over their faces!
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We often take them to the local rec where the village playgroup has its base. The little girls cuddle them and Willow and Eddie
lap up the attention, loving every second of it. The boys are, of course, tougher, and content themselves with a stroke and asking
how fast they can go and have they caught any cats?
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Now I have many friends who's dogs live happily with cats, but not having any myself I wouldn't want to trust mine if they came
across one while we're out, as it's not something they are used to, so I do keep a wary eye out, just in case! However I DO have
two pet rats, and despite the reputation of the whippet for being a good ratter, all my two do is give them black looks if they
think the rats are getting food that they should have had!
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I always vowed when I was young that I'd never have a dog that needed a coat when it rained, now, 30 something years later I find
myself putting up an umbrella, tying on coats, and accompanying my two into the garden if it's foul weather otherwise they stand
on the step and glare at the rain! Their short fine fur leaves them vulnerable to inclement weather and they do feel the cold
unless they are running around, but on the plus side any dirt from rolling can be quickly wiped off and a cleaner breed of dog I've
yet to meet.
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Would I change my two for another breed? Not a chance!
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