Dogs are a huge part of our life here in Middle Tennessee. We brought Pepper, our whippet/Italian greyhound cross. It was very difficult to get him here and very expensive. But the pain involved has been repaid with interest. Pepper is a balm to our souls. He even attended my daughter’s wedding with perfect manners.
But one dog is only one dog. Dogs are pack animals and Pepper needed a friend. It proved difficult to find another whippet to keep him company so we adopted a retired racing greyhound. Of course, the one we adopted had ‘issues’. Rancho had an anxiety disorder, which is totally understandable. She was raised in a crate and was only allowed out for training, exercise and racing. This was difficult to deal with but the first breakthrough was when we took her out with Pepper, visited a few sites and brought her back. Her recent experiences with being spayed, a couple of foster homes and coming to us meant she rarely returned to the same place after going out. You can read all about Rancho’s career at Greyhound Data and watch her races at Greyhound Races.
Once we had a greyhound, we quickly learned that she would never behave in a casual manner living with a staid old man dog like Pepper. So I searched for a reputable breeder who would sell us a puppy. We were so fortunate to find Justin Smithey at Sugar Valley Farms in Northern Georgia. ( https://sugarvalleyfarms.com/ ) Justin’s dogs are beautiful and smart. When it came time to choose from the litter Justin was able to describe each pup’s personality and he was spot on. Pappin Double Shot Latte was born in April 2017 and came to live with us in early August 2017.
Latte proved to be a wonderful and loving addition to the pack. He was (and is) a lot of work. He could get himself into a lot of trouble in a very short time. One of us had to constantly watch him during waking hours to prevent damage to himself and our house and belongings. I had forgotten what a lot of work a puppy is and between the renovations and Latte I really didn’t get much else done. It was like having an energetic 18-month old toddler in my charge. When he was awake I had to watch him and he only wanted to sleep on my lap. (He still does but will sleep on the floor in the same room as one of us now.) I attended a Canine Good Citizen course with Latte which was good for both of us. However, it really isn’t possible to take him very far as he gets very car sick.
Latte’s presence was the second breakthrough with Rancho as she saw him being a puppy and she understood that playing is a thing. It is very funny to watch the greyhound and the whippet pup playing together. It’s like a mouse baiting an elephant.
In October 2017 I was contacted and asked if we would take a special needs whippet from Atlanta, Georgia. What! Four dogs! In February we had one, by October we had four? After much soul searching we agreed to take Ace. He had been born in New Zealand in 2008 and sent as a puppy to a vet/breeder in Detroit. He was a show and breeding dog until he was seven and then sold to a family in Atlanta. They both work and have two tiny children so not much time to devote to Ace. Then Ace developed some serious sinus problems that the Whippet Rescue Society assisted to resolve. The residual issue was, not to put too fine a point on it, snot. He had a constant discharge. Again, we agreed to take him. As soon as we got home the problem was much better. Where he had been living was covered in a lot of Georgia pine trees. We don’t have them here. Now he has discharge a couple of times a year and hasn’t experienced a re-occurrence of the infections that plagued him in Georgia.
Ace had lived almost all his life in a kennel and I have found that difficult to deal with. He never answered his name and then I found out that the Georgia family had changed his name from Pan. We now call him Pan and he responds better. Still a bit stubborn but that is a whippet trait, after all.
When Ace (Pan) came to us he was very overweight. He is now a correct weight for a whippet and has made a lovely, relaxing life for himself. After 18 months he has started to play a little with the other dogs. Pepper and Latte play chase and tug o’war everyday and the other two dogs join in sometimes.
We would not be without dogs, although four is a couple too many. We had a health scare with Pepper a few weeks ago, but he is fine now. It does bring home to us that he is now 12 years old. Whippet life expectancy is 12 – 15 years so he is reaching the end of his natural lifespan. Too sad to think about.
When we left Australia we decided that it would be too difficult and stressful to take our Schnauzer, Sam, with us. He was about 15 years old and pretty blind and arthritic. He was also an anxious dog and the very long flight wouldn’t do him any favours. Mark’s sister took him as a companion to her white German Shepherd, Rosie. By the end of his first day he was the boss and Rosie knew it! Mark’s sister took him for a checkup and the vet said that he was doing very well for a 12 year old dog. He was stunned when he was told that Sam was three months off 16! Sam finally left us in October 2017 when he was almost 18. It was heart breaking to leave him but he enjoyed his last few years in doggie retirement in Maryborough.
