Whippet Problem

[B.L.B 0]

Hi all, I recently purchased a three year old whippet to do a bit of ferreting with. Its a long story why i ended up with it, a three year old and not a pup so i won't bore you with it.

Now to my problem, she stands at 18 1/2 inches so she's quite small, she's very good at most things to do with rabbiting, good hunt drive etc, etc. Eccept she won't pick the bloody rabbits up. She'll get the tiny little ones but she dosen't get the big ones, she wants to grab them but hessitates and if its a long course sometimes she 'll just stop after a while and look at you as if to say am i suppose to pick it up or not. She's not lacking any agression or courage as she's happy enough to have a crack at one of my Deerhounds if their out of line.

I know i proberly sound like i have no clue at this game but thats not the case i just haven't had anything to do with whippets before and i don't want to do any thing that will ruin the little dog as im still getting use to the whippets attitude/character.

Some usefull advice would be helpfull, Cheers.

[B.L.B 0]

I know at three she should have it down pat but when i recieved her she wasn't in the best health, she's getting alot stronger now she's on a good diet. She has only had a couple of runs so far and that was when she was weaker so im hoping thats got something to do with it. As for running with other dogs, she had one run with one of the deerhounds but it wasn't the best of runs and it just shoved her out of the way, she did grab it when the DH had it in her mouth so she does want it i think she's just a bit unsure. Now you've mentioned that I might give her a run with a mates whippet, a bit more of an equal playing field. Cheers mate.

[swamper 11]

got exactlly the same problem with my whippet X apart from it giving up on a long run!

mine will not stop untill it is made to do so or she will pin it to the ground

and bark at it!

mine started when playing up after a caught a a big bunny by the back leg and it kicked f**k out of her eyes untill she let go!

 

this is a X post of the last time i tryed to work her

 

bleeding nightmare mate!

didn’t get her right!

it went like this !

i thought i would give her a bit of time of as the frustration builds up

in this dog until it explodes with it! (she gets real snappy)

so i kept her quite for a couple of months, then took her out 1 day

past a load of geese.

this dog would never take feather no matter what, but was really wanting to go so i slipped her.

within seconds she was on it from the back with front 2 legs right over the front of the wings keeping it down.

as it started to get to the water she grabs it by the neck and gives it a right good shake !

f**kin brill i thought alls not lost!

so i hatched a plan!

il run her at hares because she’s not fast enough to

catch um! and get her fit as f**k in the mean time so there’s no excuses there while waiting for the rabbit season to start.

(frustration city)

sure enough her fitness came right up and i could see the frustration

build in her! (she bit my brother nearly every time she saw him )

then 1 night she came a across a young hare but not to young if you know what i mean.

well off she went as usual, but this time she was on its arse looking good i thought then she lost it!

a minute later she found it again off they went again!

this when on for ages until they vanished over a hill!

then i heard the cry, music to my ears, she’s got i thought!

then heard the cry again and again?

when i got to her she had run it to exhaustion and was stood over it barking at it!

she had bit it but not even broke the skin?

so i was telling her to get it but she was trying to get it to run again

by shoveling with her nose?

so after a minute or 2 i sat back and watched to see what she would do?

the young un recovered enough to slope off and she followed it for a while then came back to me

so at that point i came to the decision that its not fair on both of us!

me putting the work into her and her workin that hard and not getting anything!

my mates wants her as a pet so she’s going there and he will still run her out now and then!

it dosen’t always work out but im honest!

 

i hope you have more luck than i did!

swamps

[smokey 0]

My beddy x whippet would not pick rabbit up at all let alone retrieve, so I got a

large gundog dummy and covered in a couple of skins , I then made it a game chucking it and hiding it and she started to retrieve it.

After a couple of weeks took her out shooting and she bought dead ones back....]

 

and now she will retrieve all the time............thats when she can catch the bloody things

[Guest mucker]

bizzarre behavior that is blb ,i,ll agree with millet and add you have your work cut out for you,all the best

[Guest Geordie]

My beddyxwhippety x mongrelly thing still wont retrieve,mind at least she has stopped fecking off half way across the field with it :11:

 

Ive tried everything i know,which aint much,but,she still wont retieve nowt except plastic bottles

 

Only reason i have kept her is cos she has a helluva nose on her,can sniff a fox from the other end of the country and leads me to the most recently used runs,which is where i set my snares.

 

Im bringing a young pup on now,so im gonna see if the jealousy thing might work with her.

 

All the best with yer dawg [bANNED TEXT]

[B.L.B 0]

Thanks for all the feed back guys. It is really weird and normaly i'd just admit that the dog dosen't have it in her but she's so tuned in everything else nose, really sharp little eyes and whats really weird is that i took her for a walk the other day through some bush near my place and we came across an injured kangaroo now i don't normally let the dogs chase roo's but she hadn't seen one before so i let her have a look ( It was about 4 foot tall ) she ran straight up to it and jumped up to grab it on the throat she missed the first time but the second she grabed it and pulled it to the ground, then i told her to stop because i was in shock and i don't want her getting a proper taste for roo, this was all with out hesitation. Now thats WEIRD, she won't pick up a 1 kg bunnie but will tackle a 35 kg roo

[Gareth12 225]

If she's trying to pin them down with her feet like swamper said you could try taking her ratting? A few nips on the toes will soon get her using her mouth. It worked for me anyhow

[swamper 11]

If she's trying to pin them down with her feet like swamper said you could try taking her ratting? A few nips on the toes will soon get her using her mouth. It worked for me anyhow

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

thats a good tip

[mark.a 0]

you say you got it for ferreting, how does she react to a netted rabbit, I start my dogs off often on ferreted rabbits if you now what I mean, not sporting I now but its got to now what to do, give it an easy run out of a net and make a fuss of it if it catches never mind a retrieve. Plus you may have to make more of a bond with the dog yet.

[B.L.B 0]

I'd already thought about the rat idea but i was worried that it might make her want to have a go at the ferrets. But she'll know the difference won't she ?