All About Whippets: Training, Temperament & Living with This Sensitive Breed (with Jack’s Mum Dog Training)

In this episode of The Yappy Hour (powered by Yappily), host Nathan Dunleavy chats with Vanessa from Jack’s Mum Dog Training about what makes Whippets so special and sometimes challenging!

They cover breed differences, recall that works, separation-anxiety prevention, home safety, and enrichment ideas for this elegant, soulful sighthound.

Topics covered:

Whippet temperament & sensitivity

Show vs working vs racing lines

Safe puppy setup: floors, gates, leads

Recall games & chase-play for sighthounds

Separation anxiety & home-alone training

Enrichment ideas & energy management

Living with kids, cats & other dogs

Comfort, coats & cosy living

Positive training & avoiding overwhelm

Vanessa’s mentoring journey & lessons learned

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Chapters

00:00 Intro

03:00 Meet Vanessa & Jack’s Mum Dog Training

10:00 What Defines a Whippet

18:00 Show vs Working Lines

26:00 Puppy Safety Tips

33:00 Recall for Sighthounds

40:00 Separation Anxiety Support

48:00 Daily Enrichment

55:00 Kids & Cats

01:02:00 Comfort and Care

01:07:00 Mentoring Insights & Wrap-Up

The Yappy Hour powered by Yappily

Real talk, practical advice and expert insight for dog lovers and pet pros.

Welcome to The Yappy Hour, powered by Yappily.

2

I'm Nathan Dunleavy, your host

and lead ambassador at Yappily.

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This podcast is your go-to space

for real talk, practical advice and

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expert insight into the world of dogs.

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Today I'm joined by a very

special guest and someone I've

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had the pleasure of mentoring

through my own mentoring program.

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Vanessa.

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The founder of Jack's Mum, dog

training, and a passionate advocate

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for one of the UK's most graceful

and soulful breeds, the Whippet.

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We are diving into all things

whippet, what makes them tick, how

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to set them up for success in your

home, and what perspective owners

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should really known before falling

for those gorgeous dewy eyes.

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And aerodynamic bodies.

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So grab a cup of tea, settle

in, and let's get started.

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To this computer.

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Welcome back to The Yappy

Hour, powered by Yappily.

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I'm your host, Nathan Dunleavy,

and I'm so excited to bring you

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another episode of The Yappy Hour.

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Today I'm even more excited that

I've got a very special guest

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with me today, and that's Vanessa.

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I've known Vanessa for a few years.

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We hang out in similar circles.

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We first met on our n sa course

together through Julie Na Smith, and

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I've also recently had the pleasure of

mentoring Vanessa in her own business.

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So I feel extra special

today that she's joining me.

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Sorry, Vanessa, welcome to the Yappy Hour.

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How are you?

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I am really well.

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I'm really excited to be here and

yeah, I loved working with Nathan.

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Vanessa Bsirsky: First met Nathan

on the Julie separation Anxiety

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course, and obviously done some

mentoring with you as well.

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And yeah, I you.

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Yeah, to be here and excited

to be on this amazing podcast.

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Yes.

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I'm so excited as well.

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Our first part of the podcast episode

is all about getting to know you

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Vanessa, and obviously intros and stuff.

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If we could just start really with your

background, obviously it's great that you

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are here you are gonna be one of our breed

specific experts as well, so no pressure.

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So we're talking about the

amazing whip it breed today.

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So could

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Nathan Dunleavy: you first tell

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Me what inspired

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you with Jack's Mum dog

training, please?Yeah,

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so, so Jack's Mum dog training is

inspired by my late whippet Jack, who

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was named Jack because we lived in East

London at the time where still lived.

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And he's Jack whippet.

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Yeah.

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And that was my first whip.

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So I had lived with lots of other breeds.

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I lived with a golden retriever, with a

shell tea, with a doberman, lived with

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Belgian Shepherds, lived with a stuffy.

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And my partner at the time, Ben,

was a Northerner, and we were

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thinking of getting a new dog and

he was like, oh yeah, we're gonna.

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It's obviously totally different

from the briefs I knew.

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But we were fostering a stuffy

called Princeton at the time.

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And one of his best friends was

the whip called Walter the Whippet

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whom I really liked and I did a

lot of research into Whippets.

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And yeah, we got Jack.

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Unfortunately Jack was quite unwell.

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He, despite him coming from a really top

breeder, he did suffer some autoimmune

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issues and we lost him really young, only

bit old, which was the worst most, I know.

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I do know a bit about this story, so yeah.

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But through obviously I

learned a lot about Whippets.

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I met a lot of other

Whippets through Jack.

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And I did really feel that I wanted

to do something in his memory and

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I really fell in love with the.

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So yeah, when I started my dog

training business, I worked with a

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lot of whips and I've worked with over

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Have you really?

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That's the dream, isn't it?

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In four years.

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Wow, that's a lot of whips in four years.

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Crazy.

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Yeah.

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I usually see 20 or 25 people a

week but yeah, I'm in love with.

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Bit style of style, lots of sas,

bit of emotional instability,

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just like me on my match.

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Brilliant.

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Yeah.

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So that sort of answers my next

question really is around your

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personal experience with Whip It.

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So what drew you to the breed?

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So obviously the fact you had

water, the whip it, which was

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your rescue that you fostered Jack

the Ripper or Jack the whippet.

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So a little bit of play on words there.

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So obviously it sounds even though

you did get in from a really

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reputable breeder, obviously you

did have some issues, bless it.

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But it sounds to me what you did

all your research before you even.

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You got the breed, which is so important,

isn't it, to research into the breed.

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Yeah, and it really is.

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And also with Whippets, like with a

lot of breeds you get different lines.

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So you get show whippets, you get

racing whippets, and then you get more

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of a working lines sort of coursing

whippets, which are totally different.

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So you show Whippet is more of you

couch potato, a bit like you think,

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oh yeah, they're just gonna sprint

twice a day and they're just gonna

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chill out, walk on fancy clothes.

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But if you got, get a dog from

working stock, they are really feisty.

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They're not always the easiest.

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And yes, with any breed.

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Yeah, as you said, you need to

find out what their traits are.

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So clients, if I bring a golden retriever

home tomorrow, which I don't plan to do,

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and I'm driving home in the car and I'm

thinking about what my life will be like

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with that dog, he'll also have ideas.

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He will think I'm gonna take him swimming

three times the golden retriever.

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And again, with a.

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You need to know what their needs

and how you're gonna meet that.

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Exactly.

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And that is so important.

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And really do your research.

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You don't just Google once and then hope

for the best, but speak to great clubs,

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speak to owners, speak to rescues speak to

other owners and trainer, us, et cetera.

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It's my.

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Lovely.

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So then once you got Jack that inspired

you to get into dog training, did it?

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Yeah, so I was already into dog training.

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Of course you were helping

out like some trainer things.

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Yeah, so I've done lots of

volunteer dog walking since I've

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been six years old, like nagging

my neighbors, can I walk your dog?

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And then dogs as well.

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And I've done lots of dog walking

at shelters and I was volunteering

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already a few years before I got Jack.

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I was volunteering at a Kendall Club

dog training club and I was doing a

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lot of training there with a border

colleague actually called Busby.

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Belonged to a friend of mine and I said,

oh God, Buse needs a bit of training.

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So I kept taking him there every

week, doing kennel club training and.

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When I got Jack, then I

obviously had my own dog.

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And what I actually noticed is I'd

done a lot of training with the

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border quality and with dogs like

Belgian Shepherd, super clever dogs.

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Noticed oh my God, this whip is

actually super clever because

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there are a lot of preconceptions

that whippets are not intelligent.

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And a lot of people that come to

me for training, they've been at

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dog training clubs and they've

been told, oh, yeahs are stupid.

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Are actually very intelligent yeah.

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Lovely.

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Thank you for that.

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And yeah, my my best friends

have got a whippet called Oscar.

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And he's, he is lovely.

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Bless him.

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Alright, thank you for that.

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So we're gonna move on to part two, which

is all about getting to know the Whippet.

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Okay.

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So Vanessa what defines a

whippet beyond the elegant frame?

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Yeah, so a lot of things.

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So obviously they've got incredible speed.

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They can make it up to 35 miles per hour.

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They can actually outrun a

Greyhound on a short stretch.

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So they're more of a use and bolt

rather than a mo far I would say.

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Obviously whippets, they love soft

furnishings because they've got

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thin skin, they've got low body fat.

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So anybody who's telling me they're

getting a whippet and that whippet

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is not gonna be allowed on the

furniture, don't get whip it basically.

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Whippets also got a lot of physical

superpowers, which I love, which

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not many people know about.

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They've got really

amazing nighttime vision.

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So they've got more rot photo

sale, photo sensor cells in

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their eyes and other breeds.

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Oh, okay.

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Interesting.

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So that gives them, nighttime vision

where they would be hunting probably

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for, rabbits and things like that.

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And also they have got a superior ability

to detect really high pitch sounds.

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So the average stock can detect sounds

between sort of 40 kilohertz and 60

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kilohertz, but whippets can pick up

even slightly higher frequencies.

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And again, that makes them really

good at picking up, environmental

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cues and, sounds of prey items.

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And quite often people actually tell

me, oh, in the evening we were sitting

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there and my whippet is suddenly

looking around if they heard something.

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And they probably have.

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Because they their hearing is so good.

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And also, yeah, I mean

they are super athletes.

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So for example, when they hit a

sprint, they can drop their heart

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rate to below resting rate within

less than two minutes, which that

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only sort of top athletes can do.

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And that just shows how amazing their

sort of cardiovascular efficiency

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is and their nervous system.

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And they got unique poor rotating

movement when they're running that

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allows them to cut corners really

fast and there's lots of things.

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So they're susceptible to parasites?

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Yeah, because they incur

and their high metabolism.

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So that doesn't provide a good

feeding environment for parasites.

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So they got a.

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Yeah, but what the intelligence,

the style, the SaaS, the speed.

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Yeah, but also the sensitivity.

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I think they're the sensitive dogs.

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And by the way, everything I'm saying

about whips is obviously not the gospel.

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It's based on the experience

and knowledge I've gained so

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far and my anecdotal experience.

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But you, as we know, every dog

is different in the same way.

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Every person is different.

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Yes.

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The dog has got different emotional

experiences and different genetics

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and health and what's going on.

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I might tell you something

about my experience with.

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You might listening.

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Oh no, my word is totally different.

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And that is fine because also we

as guardians owners, trainers, we

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have a unique sort of experience

of the way we see things.

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Yeah.

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Nothing is black and white.

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Just wanted to put that out there.

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No, that's fine.

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Always work with a dog that's

in front of you and Yeah.

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You say we're all different.

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Life would be born if we weren't.

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And like you say, it's just your

experience, with working with the

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500 that you have and the ones Yeah.

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That you've fostered and had

yourself as your own dog.

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I think we touched on it a little bit,

but obviously the different types of

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working in breed of whip it or what,

whatever, or them being on the sofa,

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but it, common misconceptions are they

really couch potatoes all the time.

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So I would say once they come to two or

three years of age, most of them are,

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but I do find young whips in the first

couple of years, they can be extremely

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challenging for first time dog owners.

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So a lot people get, oh yeah,

it's gonna be really easy.

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One thing I would say that, from the age

of eight weeks, they do want to sprint.

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They do want to run.

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They're very feisty and they're

often motivated by chase and grab.

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So they're very, very bity.

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And I think young buckets are not

always set easy to leash train.

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Yeah.

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Okay.

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Walk on a loose leash

because they, I remember.

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I thought I had a wild horse on

my hands and I thought, what?

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I've never experienced anything like it.

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And now I see that all the

time with Whip Puppies.

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I'm like, oh yeah, that's normal.

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But there are things you wanna

avoid with a young Whip puppy.

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You don't want them on a really long

lead because they will just charge to

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the end of the lead and do a four foot

jump and give themselves a whiplash

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or slip disc, depending on whether

they're on a collar or harness.

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Yeah.

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So you start them on a short, but

obviously loose lead, a nice smiley lead.

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But there are things like that.

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So yeah, I would say, again, it

depends on the line and every dog

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is unique, but I would say the two

whip, they really are potatoes.

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So I have got AIE who stays with me.

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Oh, in.

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He just eat a chew, he takes himself

off to my bed not to be seen again,

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un until the next day, pretty much.

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But then there's another one I look

after a lot called Prince, and he's

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moved from hunting stock and he is very

feisty, very active, very muscular,

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and to the ones from working stock,

usually got longer legs, deeper chest.

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You can see really mu so I would

say that it depends on, on, on

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the sort of line that you go with.

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And again, you whips again, more

active, fully need a bit more exercise.

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And any whippet, I would say you

get a much better day with your

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whippet if they can a free run in the

morning and they the system and then

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need some that in that department.

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So yeah, if you are not in an area where

you can let a whip it off or you're

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not willing to let your whip it off

the lead, then that is, in my opinion,

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not a good breed for you because there

is like not allowing a spaniel to a.

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It's that sort of thing.

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They have to run.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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They're junior engineer to do.

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Yeah.

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And your point about obviously

at eight weeks they wanna run.

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That must be hard to navigate because

obviously we all know with puppies we,

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they're not really meant to be walked

loads 'cause they're still growing.

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Yeah.

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So if you've got this little funny,

fast beast wanting to run off,

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you've gotta reign them in a bit.

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Yeah.

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Free historic homicidal

wombat in your home?

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Yeah, so really there

are a few considerations.

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So I would say we all know that, for

example, wooden floors and slippery

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floors are obviously not safe for dogs.

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But if you've got a tiny whippet at

your home that is zooming around your

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home, you need to be extra careful.

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So you definitely need rugs.

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Or have toe grips on them.

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I think you also need to be very

careful with them sort of jumping

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on and off furniture, because

spiral breaks in the, for limbs a

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whip, puppies jumping off sofas.

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So I usually recommend either

get a little ramp, Yes.

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And teach them to go up and down

the ramp, or you lift them on

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and off in the beginning until.

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Fully developed.

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And the other thing with whips

is, like with most breeds, mental

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stimulation and channeling that energy

into sort of enrichment and calming

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activities, trek training, all of that.

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Because if you're not doing that and

if you're not managing that energy

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throughout the day, then yes, they around.

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Yeah.

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Maybe even more so than with

some of the breeds to help them

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upregulate and downregulate.

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Because they're adrenaline junkies and

if you allow them to go up there too

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high, I wish you very good luck and

being able to bring that back down.

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And I get that recall issues that people

just go to the park and clip their whip,

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hope for the best, and at some point

they're sky high and adrenaline back.

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And you need to be crafty with help.

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Lovely.

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Brilliant.

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Lots of useful information there.

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So we'll be coming on to train

in a bit later on the episode.

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But from your experience, Vanessa, of

working with Whippets, do you have you

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come across that obviously 'cause we're

both trained in separation anxiety.

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Yeah.

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I know you do still do some SA work, but

from your experience of many whippets,

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do many whippets suffer from sa?

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Absolutely.

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Yeah.

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I think that is one of the main

issues that I work with, really with.

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So with my separation anxiety, and

again, of course, that is just my

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anecdotal experience, but pretty much

all the dogs I work with are whippets.

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Greyhounds mini Dins, Spaniels

and Cockapoos that, yeah.

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That's so funny because I worked through

a lot of cockapoos, a lot of beagles.

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Oh really?

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Beagles, yeah.

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Beagles, cockapoos and dash hounds.

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But I didn't work with any whippets,

but I did know that you'd had some

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whippets, so that's interesting.

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Yeah so they are definitely prone

to it, and they are Velcro dogs.

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They crave that sort of warmth.

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So they historically minor used to use

whippets as life hot water bottles for

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their children and allowed them under the

covers for the kids to keep their kids.

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Warm because they couldn't

afford heating in anything.

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Oh wow.

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So they, yeah, they crave that

sort of, that warmth, that birth.

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Yeah.

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They crave being close to you and

you can absolutely teach a whippet

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to be home alone for a few hours.

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They do think that whippets generally

thrive in households where somebody

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is at home most of the time.

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Okay.

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Good to know.

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Bonds, they're very affectionate.

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And also because they are so sensitive,

you need to be even more careful

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in getting them used to home alone

time at the pace they can tolerate

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and cope with like with any dog.

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So the thing I compare it to, if you were

scared of heights, I wouldn't take you

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parachuting and bungee jumping tomorrow.

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You would say very much

mess up their never wanted

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go up the first step of

that ladder a hundred times.

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Yeah.

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And then the second.

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And you would think, oh, I can do that.

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And we might even go, probably go a

bit like a graph, not in a straight.

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And with a whip, you want to be really

careful because yeah, once you've got a

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problem they're very sensitive for us and

it can become quite difficult to rectify.

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Okay, brilliant.

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And we'll get your social handles

and Contactive at the end, but I

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was just gonna say that often Indie

Whip appears on your Instagram page.

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That's nice.

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Okay, let's talk then, we've

spoken a little bit about sort of

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energy levels, so Quas and stuff.

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So what should pet Guardians

be on the lookout for?

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What surprises them the most

with energy levels or quirks when

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it comes to this lovely breed?

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Yeah, so quite a.

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One must be really careful with is

securing your home a little bit.

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So for example, whips can very easily do

a four foot or five foot high jump, but

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do not let your whippet on a balcony.

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So I remember a very experienced trainer

telling me, do not let jack out on

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the balcony, get some chicken wire.

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And I was like, oh no.

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He's really well trained.

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Da dah da.

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One day he saw one of his mates in

the park and he nearly jumped over and

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committed suicide him back by the in time.

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And then good we had to call on exactly.

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And also baby gates, they

are very intelligent.

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A lot of my clients sent me

videos where the whippets have o

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learned how to open the baby gate.

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No way.

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Or they jumped the baby

gate now, so you need gate.

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So that is one of their works.

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They are sort, escape artists.

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Even slipping outta harnesses.

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So there are certain harnesses that I

recommend, which are, better than others.

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Good.

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And then quirks I would also say

is whippets can be really vocal.

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So one of the things I

get vocal whip where.

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When their needs to bond unmet, they will

be very prone to whining at you and even

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trying to mimic your sound when you're

talking, which can be quite comical.

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I've seen that in quite a few whip.

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So what I usually recommend to clients

is, for example, if you play tub with

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your whip once a day for 10 minutes,

do that twice a day for five minutes

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or three times a day for three minutes

or five times a day for two minutes

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or 10 times a day for one minute.

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So your whip, it has now got two or

three or five or 10 things to look

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forward to and we're spreading that

energy out throughout the day or we're

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setting ourselves a timer every hour.

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We're now gonna do I dunno,

30, 30 seconds of tug.

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So managing their energy really.

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The other thing I get a lot is

counter surfing with whippets.

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Yeah.

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Yes.

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Up on kit date are scavengers.

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So it's really, I.

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Don't let them go wrong and then mad

them or tell them or prevent them

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from going wrong in the first place.

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Yeah.

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I recommend then you can have a great

on them with what I did with Jack, I

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just had a baby gate to the kitchen

and from day one when I was cooking, I

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would just settle him behind the gate

with a Kong or something like that.

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And he would just know that

he's not coming to the kitchen.

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And when they're a year

old, you remove the gate.

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And they kitchen because you've

conditioned them not to do that.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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And I think what I see a lot is

when, whippet is on the counter

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and the owner's shouting off.

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So number one, prevent pro, put

some management in place, and number

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two, teach four pores on the floor.

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Yeah.

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It's more, more rewarding.

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Yeah.

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And the other thing is that

whips, they are fussy eaters.

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Yeah.

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So quite often, more often than not, they

will eat a food for two or three months.

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And then they're not gonna eat it again.

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And if you don't give a whip at

least one cross on a week, that

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qualifies a serious whippet abuse.

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What was that?

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A cross on?

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They love cross songs.

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There's lots of stuff on

social media, cross songs.

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It's hilarious.

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No.

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I never knew that.

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Yeah.

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So if again if you just feed them dry

kibble and I have some great kibbles

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now and then they see you eating

croissants and other foods, that's

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like me feeding your dry cereals three

times a day and it takes Italian de

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Yes, they are fussy eaters and yeah,

they're little, I would say in the

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spoil.

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Yeah, I love that.

431

So what I'm taking from it is

that, we need to be setting 'em up

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for success, like with all dogs,

a lot of control and management.

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And dogs are animals and animals

are unpredictable you need to

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prepare for the unexpected.

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So thank you so much.

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Moving on to our next part of the

episode, which is, which we've touched

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on a little bit as well, but it's

living with a whippet, so I'd imagine

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it's it's a full on fun time, what kind

of households from your experience,

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Vanessa, do Whippets thrive in, please?

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Yeah so I think because they

are so sensitive, I would say

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a calm and quiet household.

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So I don't think whippets thrive in

households where there's a lot of

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shouting tensions, anything like that.

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Even more than other breeds.

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They're very sensitive and

they can very easily become

446

withdrawn, depressed, ah fearful.

447

A lot of whips have got a lot of whips

have got separation anxiety, also

448

got noise phobias, I mean like other

breeds with separation anxiety as well.

449

But definitely a quiet household.

450

Definitely important that they either

have some really comfortable beds

451

because, they're quite bony and got low

body fat and they need that comfort.

452

A household.

453

Yeah.

454

Where the.

455

It's allowed on the furniture

is allowed to snuggle.

456

That is important.

457

I wouldn't say that when I say quiet, I

mean tension free because whippets are,

458

in my experience, great with children.

459

Yeah.

460

Obviously with children and dogs, you

always must supervise and be careful

461

and they shouldn't be left alone.

462

But yeah.

463

Historically they were used

as hot water bottles for kids.

464

Yeah.

465

But they're also so gentle natured

so I would just say a calm, friendly

466

household where they can be on,

on also furnishings and somewhere.

467

Where the whip can free, run,

close, close to the home.

468

It's all really important

as well that they can run.

469

Lovely.

470

We touched on my next

questionnaire, so let's go onto it.

471

Is the relationship with other dogs,

cats, and kids, what's that all about?

472

Yeah, other dogs, I do find it

side towns a very much drawn

473

to their own kind, generally.

474

Interesting.

475

So I do find that whippets, they

love being around other whippets

476

or greyhounds or sais or Italian

greyhounds, mainly other whippets

477

and greyhounds with other breeds.

478

I would say quite often I see,

when I work with whippets that

479

are maybe on the reactive side,

quite often they've got problems.

480

I'm not quite sure why with breeds

and Aita and German shepherds,

481

that sort of interesting.

482

I say that's all down

to early socialization.

483

So I think it's really important that

when you get to whip it, that you expose

484

them to other breeds in a controlled

environment, maybe gonna a lovely dog

485

group class or doing something that I

do a lot, which I call doggy tv, where

486

maybe after a walk I just sit with my

whip on my lap, on my park bench and

487

I just allow them to observe without

the need of getting involved and just,

488

also interestingly, I whip has got

so many little muscles in their face.

489

It's been studied that they have

got 180 facial expressions, 180.

490

And so flat face dog will only have 90

and they might look at a dog thinking

491

what on earth is wrong with that guy?

492

And they can't read them.

493

They get freaked out.

494

I think it's really, it's true.

495

Yeah.

496

To socialize them.

497

And then with cats, I find it

when they grow up with cats.

498

So I've got quite a few clients

that already had a cat and they got

499

puppy and that was actually fine.

500

But later on that be a problem.

501

Yeah.

502

Because obviously they have been bred

to chase and kill small, furry things.

503

Yeah.

504

And can you imagine, and I know of

Whippets that have killed mu foxes.

505

Yeah.

506

A lot of this sort of hunting.

507

Line whips, they are

incredibly strong and feisty.

508

So I would say be very careful with cat

if they have not grown up with cats.

509

And with children, yeah.

510

Again, use caution, make sure the

dog knows their boundaries, the child

511

knows their boundaries and supervise.

512

But usually I'd say they're

quite good with kids.

513

Brilliant.

514

Yeah.

515

What about whippet proof in your home?

516

Do we need to do that in

case they get the zoomies?

517

Yeah, so I think yeah, obviously,

being extra careful with wooden

518

floors or slippery floors.

519

Oh, yes.

520

Yeah.

521

Making sure they're not jumping on and

off furniture when they're really young.

522

Yeah.

523

Making sure you've got

the, higher gates in place.

524

But other than that.

525

I would say it's pretty much the

same, as other dog breeds that we

526

do with puppies, make sure they're

not chewing your iPhone cables.

527

But that's just standard.

528

Or your ear pod is my, one

of my dogs Got my ear pod

529

chewed up the end.

530

Lovely job, Lee.

531

Let's move on to a.

532

Part four, which is all about training and

socialization, which we have touched on.

533

So Vanessa, from your experience,

are whippets easy to train

534

and what should people expect?

535

So I think yes, with generally,

whippets are very easy to train.

536

So they pick up all the sort of

standard training staff, recall tricks.

537

All of that I find, sit, stay down,

all of that stuff really easy.

538

I think the things where people struggle

a little bit is probably three areas,

539

but again, if you know what to do.

540

Those can be quite easily navigated.

541

So number one I would say

is the home alone training.

542

So build, yes, home alone time.

543

So you can do things like teaching the

puppy not to follow you around the house.

544

So for example, there's a the magic mat

game, but Julie Naysmith, which I love,

545

which is, yeah, I love the magic mat game.

546

That's amazing.

547

And dogs love it, so it's, they do, yeah.

548

So basically that is teaching your

dog a structured 25 minute down stay,

549

step by step which makes it really

rewarding for the dog to stay in

550

one place, not follow you around.

551

And I do find if you practice

it four or five times a week.

552

After two weeks, when you get that

mat out, you'll hardly be able to

553

put it down because the dog would

be so excited to get onto that

554

mat, which is just lovely to see.

555

And I get lot of clients that tell me,

Ooh, my dog zero went to the inlaws.

556

He was lying on the door mat all weekend.

557

So they start to lie on anything

that looks like a mat, which is, and

558

one of my friends is a specialist

whip Walker that I sort cross with.

559

He always that Jack, he calls them,

they lie on anything that looks.

560

Yeah, so that is important.

561

And then, yeah, building up

home alone time really slowly.

562

So in the beginning, even when you've

got five minutes and you work, it

563

is sleepy, but not asleep, just walk

in and out of that door a hundred

564

times and back in hello, as if

you're walking in and out an office.

565

And then once the dog is not, following

you around anymore, you then build

566

that up slowly again at the dog's face.

567

And really important not to allow the

dog to get stressed or cry it out.

568

So if your dog gets stressed, that means

you need to go more slowly at a pace the

569

dog can tolerate so that we're building

positive associations home alone, not

570

teaching to settle teaching.

571

Teaching them a bit of independence

and building up slowly at

572

a pace they can tolerate.

573

Then the second thing I think

people sometimes struggle with

574

withs is the lead training in the

beginning, because they're wild jumpy.

575

So I would usually say,

actually teach them what the

576

heel position means as a trick.

577

Make that really fun.

578

So I do a.

579

Tricks that teach you with it.

580

Being close to proximity

to your legs is fun.

581

Like spins and twists and leg and middles.

582

And then we do heel as a trick.

583

And then we do a lot of walking around

heel in the house without a lead on.

584

And then we add in the

short, but really loose lead.

585

And then we practice it outside,

but yet don't put them on a harness

586

or even a collar that's really long

because they will jump to the end

587

and give themselves a whiplash.

588

So to be careful with that.

589

And again, short training

sessions with puppies.

590

Set up with play with enrichment,

with rest, et cetera, et cetera.

591

And then the last thing I

think that people struggle

592

with a lot was with is recall.

593

Okay.

594

They are obviously adrenaline

junkies and as I said, one there

595

it's difficult to bring them down.

596

So I would say a couple of

things that are really important.

597

So when you take your whip for a walk, I

always say to clients, don't walk the dog.

598

Work the dog.

599

And I don't mean we're now going

into some sort of obedient drill,

600

but what I mean is split your walk

maybe into 10 minute increments.

601

So we might be, yeah.

602

Park and we start with some scent work,

bit scatter feeding or the tree game.

603

Always sticking some trees into

all the gaps of a tree trunk.

604

And then we do some breed specific

running games and we are now part of that.

605

So that dog is focused on us and

then we're practicing some tricks.

606

And then we might be sitting on a park

bench and doing some calming touches,

607

maybe some tea, a tea touch sort of style.

608

And then the whip can maybe run

with some other whippets and

609

then we do something calm again.

610

But you need to upregulate

and downregulate.

611

And the other thing I would say is

because they're so driven by chasing and

612

hunting food usually does not work that

well for whippets with a recall now.

613

So if I am in the park and I've got a

piece of food here and there's a squirrel

614

there, some other dogs running there,

football there, tennis ball there.

615

Unfortunately with a ripper, they

are very unlikely to come for the

616

food, even if I've got caviar.

617

But they're so effective.

618

If you work with the emotion and

the excitement, I find that works

619

a lot better and my clients always

tell me that's a total game changer.

620

So we do a lot of reconditioning,

the recall word, by just saying,

621

Fido come or whatever, and then

exploding with excitement, cuddling

622

this whip for 10, 10, 20, 30 seconds.

623

And then the food can be

the icing on the cake.

624

Yeah.

625

But it's not, the only thing is it has

to be about the excitement and it has to

626

be about you running around with a dog

as well, and you doing breed specific

627

games with your dog so that you now become

interested in you doing something that

628

they are genetically compelled to do.

629

But.

630

Similar to the recall or anything

with a whip, don't unclip

631

them and hope for the best.

632

So you need to channel their

energy into different activities

633

and focus them on you.

634

And also there are whip specific

toys where you can practice chase

635

and grab in a safe play context.

636

Yeah.

637

As wildlife be responsible,

put you with on a lead.

638

If you are in a forest, do

not let your with a lead.

639

If there something, stories

run, herd, never be seen.

640

They've got such a high pre drive

so I think it's about, focusing

641

them on you being sensible.

642

Being responsible, but also,

yeah, playing with them.

643

Breed specific play like with any breed,

giving them an outlet in a safe context.

644

Yeah.

645

Brilliant.

646

Oh God, I just got visions of a

whip it with whiplash just then.

647

And yeah, no, it's honestly, you

have to be careful because I see that

648

all the time with a really long lead

on a tiny C collar and I'm like no.

649

We can't do it actually, they're

gonna hurt their neck or their back.

650

Yeah.

651

Harness.

652

So you have to be careful and I

love that there's a Whippet Walker,

653

a specialist, whippet Walker.

654

Is that in London?

655

In London, yeah.

656

Barking boy in hat me is my friend.

657

It's actually not barking boy

because he's barking mad or anything

658

like that, but because he lives

in barking and he works in hat.

659

Oh good.

660

So we touched on it a little bit then.

661

So common challenges.

662

So Pray, drive.

663

We call sensitivity.

664

Yeah, I would say so.

665

Yeah.

666

Yeah.

667

So yeah, pray drive, definitely.

668

And that is all about, a combination

of being sensible, managing a,

669

putting a lead on, but also giving

them an outlet in a play context.

670

And also doing things with your

dog, focusing the dog on you.

671

Yeah.

672

So I always say to clients, you need

to take your dog for a walk and you

673

need to do training, enrichment,

mental stimulation with your dog.

674

So why not marry the two together and

do a lot of these things on your walk?

675

Obviously you need to do

stuff at home as well.

676

But that way you're focusing your dog

on you, because if you're not, they'll

677

just do what they've been to do.

678

You just start looking squirrels.

679

And when you mentioned just now

about breed specific play, are

680

you able to give an example of

an activity or what that means?

681

Yeah, absolutely.

682

So things I would do, so there are

some sort of great sort of chaser

683

toys, which is like a really long

string and then it got something,

684

it's a bit like a fake squirrel on the

end, like bit like tug enough toys.

685

Yeah, those yeah.

686

Like with, yeah.

687

Yeah.

688

And you can just ask your wicked to wait

for example, and then say ready, steady,

689

go and run and you are dragging this

thing on the floor behind you and you

690

get the face, you keep changing direction

and they will absolutely love this.

691

Don't wave for in the air because

light now you look at jumping

692

in your face, but drag it on the

floor, keep changing direction.

693

And then when they catch up

with you and they grab hold of

694

it, you can play tug with them.

695

Then you get them to release it and then

rinse and repeat, get them to chase you.

696

The other thing I really

like is because they're.

697

And they're not retrieving dogs obviously.

698

Sometimes people say, Ooh, play

playing fetch with my whippet.

699

And they're just chewing up the ball.

700

And you number, we all know

that too much ball plate is

701

not necessarily good for dogs.

702

Exactly.

703

Adrenaline, cortisol impact

on the joints and whippets.

704

They will just, they finish the hunting

sequence, they shake the pray to

705

death, kill it, dissect it, et cetera.

706

So they will just shoot the ball.

707

But what I like to do, because Whippets

got great noses as well, start a little

708

game in the home where you've got a

tiny tup of web box, make some holes

709

in it with a needle so the scent comes

out and then put something, cheese or.

710

Pate or something they

really want in there.

711

Ask them to wait, run around

the house and hide it somewhere.

712

When they find it, they

need you now to open this.

713

What you got there?

714

Aren.

715

You clever.

716

Ooh lemme give you a treat.

717

You rinse and repeat by the

way you've done, you know ya.

718

The box that's been 20 minutes,

you whip it, is now cream cracker.

719

And then when you go to

the park, you take the box.

720

If I now see something over there that

I don't want my whippet to run towards,

721

I get the box, I'll shake it and throw

it in the opposite direction and they

722

will retrieve the box back to me.

723

Number one, they will run away from

what I don't want 'em to run towards,

724

but they will bring the box back to

me because they know the game and

725

they know that when they bring it back

to me, they get cheese, for example.

726

Yeah.

727

So I love that.

728

Things like that.

729

Yeah.

730

Be a bit clever.

731

Yeah.

732

Inventive.

733

Yeah.

734

I love that.

735

So Vanessa, what are your go-to

tips for working with the whip?

736

It breed positively and ly please.

737

Yeah so I think obviously whips

have got very thin fur Yeah.

738

And skin.

739

So I think it's even more important that

your hands are really gentle with a whip.

740

So if you get frustrated, you shouldn't do

with any dog, but don't grab them and drag

741

them off the counter or the, so you have

to be very, like with any dog, but even

742

more so they're super, super sensitive.

743

I think when you're stroking them, go

in for long slow motion firm strokes,

744

again, because their skin is so thin

and they're fur, that sometimes if

745

you're too wild, you might again

be winding them up and they're high

746

on adrenaline before you know it.

747

I think, yeah.

748

What else?

749

I think.

750

Helping them to regulate their energy

because there is this sort of saying

751

that they only got two settings,

which is true, which is and zero.

752

But I think to prevent them from going

really nuts, do some stuff throughout

753

the day at home, every two to three

hours, set yourself an alarm and do

754

some do.

755

We all get busy.

756

Some days we might be busy at

work, we haven't got the time.

757

So if need be, use something

like a food puzzle.

758

I'm always more of a fan of doing

something together, like the Game with

759

a box and then and we're not bonding.

760

But yeah, there is nothing wrong

with giving your dog a food puzzle.

761

And you can do things like

snuffle mats, all of things.

762

These things are

763

throughout the day.

764

Only happens when they're out and about.

765

Then that is quite often why the

dog is dragging us to the park now.

766

Because they've got this sort of, oh

my god, it's all happening in the park.

767

So sometimes what I say to clients,

and this is a joke by the way,

768

I'm saying this tongue in cheek.

769

Don't quote me on this.

770

Sometimes I say to people, okay, if for

the next six weeks I had the veterinarian

771

wait in the park and take your dog's

temperature, they're bum, they wouldn't

772

be pulling you towards the park anymore.

773

Associations.

774

And if you don't do anything with

your dog at home all day long, and

775

then all the good stuff happens in the

park, then of course they're gonna,

776

go completely bonkers in the park.

777

But if you're doing, play with your

dog at home and in the park, so

778

we're balancing things a little bit.

779

Brilliant.

780

Great.

781

Yeah, and obviously, always make sure

it's positive and positive training.

782

Yeah.

783

Force free positive reinforcement.

784

Always.

785

And there is never a need to not do that.

786

Yeah.

787

And I was just, actually, I heard

somebody on Instagram yesterday say

788

something that I really liked about, why

we shouldn't give our dog corrections.

789

Obviously, it's unkind, unethical, but

she was saying actually, that, because

790

even saying you need to correct a

dog is operating under the assumption

791

that the behavior is incorrect.

792

And how arrogant of us to say

that the behavior's incorrect.

793

The dog has just got their own experience

and their animals and they're dealing

794

with a situation in their own way.

795

So we can't just say this incorrect.

796

We can teach them different choices,

take them into environments that they

797

can tolerate, they can cope with.

798

But yeah, training should always be

positive, force free, kind, ethical.

799

Absolutely.

800

Brilliant.

801

Brilliant.

802

Let's move on to part five,

which is all about breed specific

803

advice for prospective guardians.

804

So Vanessa, what would you say to

someone thinking of getting a whippet?

805

I would say, yeah, definitely think.

806

How much time you're spending

at home because dogs generally

807

are social animals as we know.

808

But I don't think whippets are

suited to spend long, stretches of

809

time home, home alone because they

are so affectionate and cuddly.

810

And they be close to us.

811

So I think that's important.

812

I would say also because when it

gets cold, they will need coats.

813

That's true, an additional cost you wanna

look into and they need extra comfortable

814

beds and blankets and all of that.

815

So there is that financial implication

that you wanna be thinking about.

816

Yeah.

817

Are you living somewhere

where the dog can free run?

818

And also I do actually think

that when you have a whip it

819

again, some people may not agree.

820

I think you need a certain level of

fitness because they really thrive

821

from playing, running games with

you, where you are running with them

822

and you're what they want to do.

823

So I think yes, if you are.

824

With their guardians.

825

And people always tell me that

for recall training, that has

826

been an absolute game changer.

827

And then I'll get complimented

complimented on there with its recall.

828

And I think, running with them and doing

stuff like that with them is important.

829

Good.

830

That brings us nicely onto daily needs,

enrichment, exercise and comfort.

831

Yeah.

832

So daily needs, I think, definitely

ideally they should be able

833

to free run every day ideal.

834

And I would say ideally in the morning,

I find if they free run in the morning.

835

They're going to be happy and you're

going to get an easier day with your whip.

836

So I find if they haven't got a good run

in the morning, they can be more vocal

837

whiny because they're getting frustrated.

838

Yeah.

839

Their needs have not been met, and

I would say they, because they are

840

so affectionate and they're bonding

with us, they really love trick

841

training and doing stuff with you.

842

So I'm a really big fan of, not

yeah I give, choose Kongs and all

843

of these things as well in toll and

snuffle boxes and free work, but

844

they like doing things with you now.

845

So playing with you.

846

And doing trick training with you.

847

Anything sort of teamwork, always think

about how can I actually be part of what

848

my whippet likes to do and how Yeah.

849

How can we do things together?

850

I think that's really important.

851

Yeah.

852

And comfort.

853

Yeah, making sure, they've got the

appropriate gear in the winter or when

854

it's raining and they have got access to

soft furnishings soft beds, memory, foam

855

beds, ONGs, so there's lots to consider.

856

There's lots to consider

anyway with getting any dog.

857

Yeah.

858

But when you are then going for a specific

breed, you need to really look into

859

the breed specific stuff, don't you?

860

Yeah, absolutely.

861

Yeah.

862

Yeah.

863

Alright, so how about then, what

considerations need to be made

864

for a rescue whip it versus a, a

breeder, a whip it from a breeder.

865

Yeah, so I think that's a great question.

866

And I think, there is a

misconception about rescue dogs

867

that they all got terrible issues.

868

Not of rescue dogs, they

are just secondhand dogs.

869

So maybe, sometimes unfortunately

a guardian passed away or families

870

split up or they lost their job and

they maybe couldn't keep the dog.

871

Never really had any issues.

872

But obviously, yeah, do your research

go through a reputable rescue.

873

And if the whip has got any

sort of behavioral issues, then

874

obviously make sure that you hire

somebody to help you with that.

875

As soon as you bring that dog home.

876

Yeah, as a puppy, again, with

puppies, the things you need to be

877

thinking about is sleep deprivation.

878

It's hard work in the beginning, but

also maybe you want to make sure that

879

you socialize and train your dog from

day one in a certain way, and maybe

880

you want to experience puppyhood.

881

So I think, I'm not pro or

against one or the other.

882

I think as long as you go through

a reputable breeder or reputable

883

rescue whatever you feel is best.

884

But I would say yeah, number one, don't

operate under the misconception that all

885

rescue dogs have got terrible problems

because a lot, and, but obviously,

886

if you know that you are adopting a

dog that has got sort of behavioral

887

issues, then you need to be prepared

to work on that with a professional.

888

You can be happy and more importantly, the

dog can feel happy, safe, secure with you.

889

They can have a good quality of life.

890

You are helping that dog with

their emotions to feel better to

891

make better choices, et cetera.

892

Yeah.

893

Brilliant.

894

Thank you so much.

895

So we're gonna stop talking

about Whippets, just one

896

next part of the episode.

897

So we'll be coming back to Whippets

in a minute when we start to wrap up.

898

Part six is just all around

your mentoring journey with me.

899

Okay.

900

Nathan, as your mentor.

901

So we're just gonna spend five or so

minutes having a quick chat about that.

902

So just reflecting on your time when

you did your mentor with me, were there

903

any standout Muments for you, Vanessa?

904

No pressure.

905

Yeah.

906

The main reason I came to you was because

I felt really burned out at the beginning

907

of the year because I was seeing so many

people and I was doing everything by

908

myself and I was on my phone like thirty

four seven, all of these questions.

909

And I think there was two main

things I really took away.

910

So one, it said I can't

do everything by myself.

911

So I now have got a va, which is

the best decision I ever made.

912

Ah, who helps me with my emails and

my scheduling got like an automatic

913

sort of booking system now and helps

me to update my Google account every

914

week and making me some templates.

915

So that has been life changing.

916

And then the other thing that has

been really great is discussing

917

my training packages with you that

I had, because I think one of the

918

things that I was doing was that I

was available for everybody 34 7, and.

919

As we know, again, that is not possible.

920

So when you first start out with

your business, you know you want, you

921

wanna be on top of that everything.

922

And yes, you're messaging everybody like

11 o'clock at night, but the more clients

923

you get, that becomes unsustainable.

924

And I now got packages where clients do

receive support in between sessions, but

925

then there is, like an extra cost to that.

926

And there are packages where

they don't receive that.

927

And again, that has made a massive

difference to my free time.

928

And I now feel that has also

improved the quality of my training,

929

which, I think it's always been.

930

Good.

931

I'm blowing my own trumpet here.

932

That's fine.

933

You've blow away.

934

Yeah.

935

Lots of things.

936

I'm not good at training and I

have 76 5, so Google reviews,

937

which I'm proud of in four years.

938

Good.

939

And so you should, and I was gonna say

obviously like you are an amazing doc

940

trainer, but it just meant that struggled

maybe with some of the business aspects.

941

Yeah.

942

And that's okay.

943

And that's where a mentor

comes in to help with that.

944

Yeah.

945

How did your business or how did your

confidence grow through the experience?

946

I think I feel a lot more.

947

In control of the business now because

before or failed Before that I was

948

working in the business all the time,

so I couldn't work on the business.

949

Yeah, it was running you rather

than it running, you running it.

950

Yeah.

951

Like it was yeah, we just fail, work,

sleep, repeat, and feel exhausted.

952

Yeah.

953

Now I actually feel, I do actually,

because I've got these special training

954

packages now where people do pay for

that extra support if they need it.

955

And I've got Alison my VA now there

has taken a lot of pressure off

956

me and that means I also have got.

957

Yeah, more time to think about

the cases that I'm working with.

958

And I'm, I'm not saying that I ever

haven't done that, but I feel, as you

959

said, you can't pull from an empty cup.

960

And I feel now that I'm more

rested and I'm more healthy

961

and I feel more organized.

962

Yeah.

963

I have got much more of a

bandwidth to give more to clients.

964

And another thing, I've got a

discovery call book the pet business

965

accountants that you recommended.

966

So I'm now just, ah, great.

967

I can't do everything by myself.

968

Nathan was right.

969

This is a lot better.

970

And yeah, I feel a lot more, yeah.

971

I feel a lot more positive

and more rested and.

972

You were burned out and

you were getting poorly.

973

Yeah.

974

Just running on empty.

975

Yeah.

976

And yeah, now I'm in, in a much better

place again, which is fantastic.

977

So yeah, definitely recommend working

with Nathan if anybody needs help.

978

Nice look.

979

Shameless plug.

980

So I think it's good to know how just by

getting some support and help that really

981

helps to empower you to be a great pet

professional because like you say, you

982

are, you feel like you're giving more

back now that you've got that support.

983

Yeah, absolutely.

984

Yeah.

985

And I think, we all think that we

can maybe do things by ourselves.

986

Yeah.

987

Thank you.

988

Do I think I am a bit of a

control freak to an extent.

989

Same worked to really high standards.

990

So even when I had a few days off and I

knew my VA was looking after my emails,

991

even the first was checking it, and then

I thought, stop doing this, Vanessa.

992

You can't do everything.

993

You just can't.

994

Yeah.

995

And I think ultimately you need to

be thinking about what is really,

996

which things do I have to do, which

other things that only I can do.

997

Yeah.

998

The things that I can let go of.

999

And even if it's not a hundred percent,

it's taking a lot of pressure away

00:52:18,100 --> 00:52:23,800

from me and it allows me to focus

on my vision my mission, my purpose.

00:52:24,130 --> 00:52:25,420

Why am I doing this?

00:52:25,420 --> 00:52:28,030

What yeah, I wanna achieve,

et cetera, et cetera.

00:52:28,480 --> 00:52:31,270

Like I said, like you can be an

amazing dog train, which you are.

00:52:31,270 --> 00:52:36,670

You've got 170 plus five star

Google reviews, but sometimes a

00:52:36,670 --> 00:52:39,730

business, you do just need that

little bit of help and support.

00:52:39,730 --> 00:52:45,230

And I just think even simple things like

we got you to get a separate phone number

00:52:45,230 --> 00:52:47,600

and a separate phone and to have a.

00:52:48,035 --> 00:52:51,245

A rep, an out of office reply

message when it was your day off.

00:52:51,365 --> 00:52:51,725

Certainly.

00:52:51,725 --> 00:52:51,785

Yeah.

00:52:51,785 --> 00:52:54,455

Just little things like that make

a huge difference, don't they?

00:52:54,540 --> 00:52:55,615

They really do.

00:52:55,675 --> 00:52:55,975

Yeah.

00:52:56,495 --> 00:52:58,235

And I think it's also important.

00:52:58,235 --> 00:52:58,715

So yes.

00:52:58,715 --> 00:53:03,790

My business is obviously huge part

of my identity, huge part of who

00:53:03,875 --> 00:53:08,590

I'm, IO obviously I also got private

life, and that is also important

00:53:08,590 --> 00:53:11,890

because you need to recharge your

batteries and it's not about work.

00:53:12,130 --> 00:53:15,220

And I think a lot of us, we are in

a job and then we think I start my

00:53:15,220 --> 00:53:17,110

own business, do I have more time?

00:53:17,260 --> 00:53:23,770

And then suddenly actually you not working

seven days, you're like, hang on a minute.

00:53:23,770 --> 00:53:24,970

That wasn't the idea.

00:53:25,220 --> 00:53:28,610

But then over time sort

of things, yeah, evolve.

00:53:28,610 --> 00:53:29,270

It's true.

00:53:29,270 --> 00:53:31,100

You learn as you go along, don't you?

00:53:31,280 --> 00:53:34,610

And sometimes you need to learn

your own lessons, because people

00:53:34,610 --> 00:53:37,100

have been telling me for ages, you

can't do everything by yourself.

00:53:37,310 --> 00:53:37,880

And I'm like no.

00:53:37,880 --> 00:53:38,360

I can do this.

00:53:38,360 --> 00:53:39,740

No, only I can do this.

00:53:39,740 --> 00:53:40,820

Oh, nobody can do this.

00:53:43,340 --> 00:53:48,080

You need other people and other people

also even you looking at things, looking

00:53:48,080 --> 00:53:53,450

at my training packages and just coming

in with a fresh set of eyes from the

00:53:53,450 --> 00:53:56,680

outside because sometimes we're so

absorbed in what we're doing that

00:53:56,680 --> 00:53:58,030

we can't see the wood of the trees.

00:53:58,330 --> 00:54:00,070

That is just really super helpful.

00:54:00,250 --> 00:54:04,425

And obviously the other sort of pro

of working with you is that you are

00:54:04,430 --> 00:54:09,110

also in the pet business industry and

you know very much what it entails.

00:54:09,140 --> 00:54:14,150

And I think like me, you are also quite

sensitive and you are an empath and

00:54:14,150 --> 00:54:17,840

you also get affected because that was

another thing when i's working with

00:54:17,840 --> 00:54:21,680

really difficult cases and they're

messaging me all the time that, that

00:54:21,680 --> 00:54:25,480

started to emotionally affect me as well,

worrying about the, and the guardians

00:54:26,800 --> 00:54:30,880

and distance myself from that to.

00:54:31,830 --> 00:54:32,730

Boundaries.

00:54:33,000 --> 00:54:33,060

Yeah.

00:54:33,110 --> 00:54:34,760

All about boundaries as well.

00:54:34,790 --> 00:54:35,600

No, and that's great.

00:54:35,600 --> 00:54:39,630

And it's, people by people and obviously

you chose me to, because you knew me

00:54:39,630 --> 00:54:43,140

anyway and I hadn't mentored a dog

trainer before 'cause it was primarily

00:54:43,140 --> 00:54:45,420

owned at dog walkers and pet sitter.

00:54:45,420 --> 00:54:48,720

So I was absolutely privileged

and I'm still feel very humbled

00:54:48,720 --> 00:54:52,890

to play a very small part in

your continued success, Vanessa.

00:54:52,890 --> 00:54:53,100

Thank you.

00:54:55,035 --> 00:54:55,515

Okay.

00:54:55,515 --> 00:55:00,705

This episode has been full of so

much useful whip it information

00:55:00,705 --> 00:55:01,785

that we've sailed free.

00:55:01,785 --> 00:55:06,105

So we're gonna spend the last five

or so minutes with a quick wrap up.

00:55:06,375 --> 00:55:12,585

So part seven is just some final questions

and a quick fire round for you, Vanessa.

00:55:13,245 --> 00:55:13,545

Okay.

00:55:13,545 --> 00:55:15,705

So let's go back to whip it Talk.

00:55:15,705 --> 00:55:19,695

What's the weirdest whip it

quirk you've encountered?

00:55:19,695 --> 00:55:21,045

Now that's a mouthful for me.

00:55:21,135 --> 00:55:24,615

So the funniest thing I've seen is.

00:55:24,760 --> 00:55:30,220

The whippet home alone on a camera

standing in front of his snuggle

00:55:30,220 --> 00:55:34,630

bed where, you know you need to

lift up the cover to get in, looking

00:55:34,630 --> 00:55:37,120

around for his slaves to lift up.

00:55:37,210 --> 00:55:38,050

Nobody was there.

00:55:38,710 --> 00:55:43,645

Si and despair and walk over to

the sofa and light they can get.

00:55:43,645 --> 00:55:44,285

That's hilarious.

00:55:44,985 --> 00:55:47,150

But that is like a typical whip thing.

00:55:47,930 --> 00:55:51,710

And another thing that I always

found very funny is that when,

00:55:51,740 --> 00:55:53,960

when we were when we had Jack.

00:55:55,010 --> 00:55:57,860

Sometimes, we were cooking in the

kitchen and we had something like,

00:55:57,860 --> 00:56:02,600

like a blueberry or something, and I'd

chuck him a blueberry over the baby

00:56:02,600 --> 00:56:07,140

game and he would play football with

it for age, kick it around the lounge.

00:56:07,390 --> 00:56:09,400

So yeah, that, that's really cute as well.

00:56:09,610 --> 00:56:11,980

And the other thing that I've

noticed in a lot of whips.

00:56:12,805 --> 00:56:14,965

And actually read a funny story

about that on the internet.

00:56:15,205 --> 00:56:18,565

He said, quite often when they

want a peace and quiet, they

00:56:18,565 --> 00:56:20,725

like to camouflage themselves.

00:56:21,125 --> 00:56:23,945

So I read this story the other day

night about this whippet that was

00:56:23,945 --> 00:56:27,425

at a dog show and had enough, and

I didn't wanna be at a dog show.

00:56:27,500 --> 00:56:31,790

And actually at some point they couldn't

find this whip anymore and panic broke

00:56:31,790 --> 00:56:37,760

out and he was a brindle whippet and there

was this sort of camouflage style armchair

00:56:37,970 --> 00:56:40,280

and he laid himself against it flat.

00:56:40,280 --> 00:56:44,655

He blended in and they didn't find

him for an hour, but they heard

00:56:44,655 --> 00:56:46,155

that quite often from guardians.

00:56:46,155 --> 00:56:48,495

And oh, they couldn't find a

whippet and they were somewhere

00:56:48,495 --> 00:56:52,605

had camouflaged themselves into the

environment when they wanted quiet.

00:56:52,755 --> 00:56:54,885

So I think that's quite a

funny whip and quirk as well.

00:56:55,275 --> 00:56:56,055

That's hilarious.

00:56:56,055 --> 00:56:58,575

So what's your favorite

enrichment activity for a whippy?

00:56:58,575 --> 00:57:01,835

It might have might be the box

of the holes then, but Yeah.

00:57:01,840 --> 00:57:01,850

Yeah.

00:57:02,045 --> 00:57:03,065

I love that one.

00:57:03,365 --> 00:57:03,755

Yeah.

00:57:03,995 --> 00:57:06,575

But also, I like to use things.

00:57:07,475 --> 00:57:08,495

From my household.

00:57:08,495 --> 00:57:12,435

So rather than, because I always

say to, to guardians as well, your

00:57:12,435 --> 00:57:16,005

whip doesn't know whether this toy

cost 49, 9 9 from pets at home.

00:57:16,070 --> 00:57:18,980

So why exactly something

like you know IT card.

00:57:19,280 --> 00:57:23,870

I remember playing with a piece of

cardboard box with Jack Park chug

00:57:24,380 --> 00:57:26,060

and everybody thought it was amazing.

00:57:26,060 --> 00:57:30,560

So what I do, I get something from

my house and I pretend that this is

00:57:30,560 --> 00:57:32,120

the most amazing thing in the world.

00:57:32,120 --> 00:57:35,840

So remember Whippets got 180

facial expressions, very good at

00:57:35,840 --> 00:57:36,920

reading your facial expressions.

00:57:36,920 --> 00:57:39,020

I go, Ooh, what a beautiful box.

00:57:39,290 --> 00:57:41,180

Isn't that the most

beautiful box in the world?

00:57:41,210 --> 00:57:43,615

I do that for three days, put,

and then I put it somewhere

00:57:43,625 --> 00:57:44,935

where the dog can't get it.

00:57:46,355 --> 00:57:48,965

Before I take it to the park,

when I get a thing out, they're

00:57:48,995 --> 00:57:50,105

desperate to play with it.

00:57:50,135 --> 00:57:51,875

And they were playing

tag with that for a week.

00:57:52,025 --> 00:57:55,085

And then I spin and then

I use something else.

00:57:55,085 --> 00:57:55,865

An old sock.

00:57:55,865 --> 00:57:58,925

What A beautiful sock isn't the

most beautiful sock in the world.

00:57:59,105 --> 00:57:59,615

Three days.

00:57:59,615 --> 00:58:03,125

Put it away, get it out in the

park, get that sort of thing.

00:58:03,455 --> 00:58:04,805

Make things interesting.

00:58:04,805 --> 00:58:06,755

It's about what you make of the toy.

00:58:06,755 --> 00:58:10,445

You need to be a bit like doctor

who bringing the toy rather than,

00:58:10,545 --> 00:58:12,105

I'm buying a really expensive toy.

00:58:12,165 --> 00:58:13,455

Ooh, my dog is not interested.

00:58:13,505 --> 00:58:15,245

You need to do a bit more

exciting with the toy.

00:58:15,695 --> 00:58:16,835

Yeah, I love that.

00:58:16,835 --> 00:58:18,905

I was chatting to someone on a

podcast every day and they said

00:58:18,905 --> 00:58:20,105

just about using the house.

00:58:20,105 --> 00:58:21,905

I, I, yeah, household items.

00:58:21,905 --> 00:58:23,765

It doesn't need to be expensive.

00:58:24,725 --> 00:58:24,756

I agree.

00:58:24,786 --> 00:58:29,776

It can be, anything around the

house and just be inventive variety.

00:58:29,776 --> 00:58:34,126

So you're not using the same toy for,

one year, two years, three years.

00:58:34,306 --> 00:58:37,426

You have something new every week and

you throw in the bin and then you use

00:58:37,426 --> 00:58:38,626

something else that you don't need any.

00:58:38,626 --> 00:58:38,746

Yeah.

00:58:40,141 --> 00:58:44,941

What three words would you use to

describe living with a Whippet Vanessa?

00:58:46,951 --> 00:58:53,011

Peaceful, because I do feel that they

bring this sense of calm and quiet.

00:58:53,671 --> 00:58:54,211

Okay.

00:58:54,361 --> 00:58:55,381

Hilarious.

00:58:55,591 --> 00:58:56,071

Yeah.

00:58:56,551 --> 00:58:58,711

Just because of, yeah.

00:58:58,921 --> 00:59:03,211

When they get vocal and they start

making their little sounds and

00:59:03,211 --> 00:59:07,651

start talking to you, it, it's very

funny and they're quirky and fun.

00:59:07,711 --> 00:59:08,251

They're fun.

00:59:08,251 --> 00:59:09,331

I love seeing them.

00:59:09,331 --> 00:59:10,381

Free run.

00:59:10,411 --> 00:59:13,426

They've obviously got this

unique, unique Withed Gallup.

00:59:13,681 --> 00:59:13,921

Yeah.

00:59:15,121 --> 00:59:15,421

Brilliant.

00:59:15,526 --> 00:59:17,701

And just a bonus question

I'm gonna tag in here.

00:59:17,701 --> 00:59:21,601

What would be your one piece of

advice to someone thinking about

00:59:21,601 --> 00:59:23,101

bringing a whippet into their home?

00:59:23,101 --> 00:59:23,791

Vanessa,

00:59:26,701 --> 00:59:28,471

prepare to be a slave to your whip.

00:59:29,301 --> 00:59:29,591

Yeah.

00:59:30,421 --> 00:59:31,511

Prepare to be a slave.

00:59:31,906 --> 00:59:35,616

They often say about that, about

cats, that cats have slaves.

00:59:35,616 --> 00:59:37,506

So is that the same for Whippets then?

00:59:38,706 --> 00:59:39,126

I think, yeah.

00:59:39,126 --> 00:59:39,761

Yeah, definitely.

00:59:40,686 --> 00:59:45,541

There's a really funny video on Instagram

where there's a whip on the rug and

00:59:45,541 --> 00:59:49,401

they put like a little crown on them

and they play this like a king and

00:59:49,401 --> 00:59:50,841

they're dragging him across the floor.

00:59:50,871 --> 00:59:52,276

I think that sort of sounds it up.

00:59:52,341 --> 00:59:52,731

It sums.

00:59:52,791 --> 00:59:53,751

Sums it up, yeah.

00:59:54,106 --> 00:59:54,396

Yeah.

00:59:55,131 --> 00:59:55,581

Brilliant.

00:59:55,631 --> 00:59:59,471

Vanessa, where can our listeners or

viewers, if you're watching this on

00:59:59,471 --> 01:00:02,711

YouTube, find out more about you, Vanessa?

01:00:02,891 --> 01:00:06,491

Yeah, so they can go to my website, www

01:00:09,311 --> 01:00:12,581

uk, all one word, or my Instagram at.

01:00:15,626 --> 01:00:16,376

Perfect.

01:00:16,456 --> 01:00:19,696

Vanessa from Jack's Mum Dog Training.

01:00:19,996 --> 01:00:26,116

Thank you so much for joining me on

The Yappy Hour powered by Yappy today.

01:00:26,326 --> 01:00:30,496

I've absolutely loved speaking

to you, your friend, colleague,

01:00:30,496 --> 01:00:32,146

and a previous mentee of mine.

01:00:32,566 --> 01:00:34,006

I know you were so nervous.

01:00:34,006 --> 01:00:38,866

This is your first podcast appearance as

a guest, and you wouldn't even think that.

01:00:39,136 --> 01:00:43,146

And I know how you feel because even

though I've been doing this as a host, I

01:00:43,146 --> 01:00:47,496

actually guested for the first time on a

podcast last month, and it went live this

01:00:47,496 --> 01:00:49,146

week and I was literally peering my pad.

01:00:49,236 --> 01:00:53,346

So I know you were nervous, but

I've absolutely, really enjoyed

01:00:53,346 --> 01:00:54,516

talking to you about whips.

01:00:54,516 --> 01:00:56,221

You really know your stuff, so thank you.

01:00:56,741 --> 01:00:57,541

I loved it as well.

01:00:57,541 --> 01:00:58,506

Thank you so much.

01:00:58,506 --> 01:00:59,706

Yeah, it was really good fun.

01:01:00,216 --> 01:01:01,296

Thank you so much.

01:01:01,296 --> 01:01:02,526

We'll speak to you again soon.

01:01:03,666 --> 01:01:04,266

Bye.

01:01:06,720 --> 01:01:09,030

Coming soon to the yappy hour.

01:01:09,120 --> 01:01:13,320

A heartfelt and informative

conversation with Vanessa, founder

01:01:13,320 --> 01:01:17,550

of Jack's Mum Dog Training and

proud Wi Whippet adv advocate.

01:01:17,970 --> 01:01:21,450

We talked about what makes

Wicket Whippets unique and why

01:01:21,450 --> 01:01:23,190

they might not be for everyone.

01:01:23,415 --> 01:01:26,955

How to create a safe and enriching

life for this sensitive breed.

01:01:27,555 --> 01:01:31,155

Common challenges like recall,

pray, drive, and Sofa Hogan.

01:01:31,545 --> 01:01:35,355

Plus Vanessa shares her experience

as a past mentee of mine and how

01:01:35,355 --> 01:01:37,125

it helped shape her business.