Philosophy

Philosophy | Contact

I believe deeply that Whippets (and Greyhounds and the other sighthound breeds) are hunters and athletes down to the very fiber of their beings. I believe that their blood runs deep with the instincts of their ancient ancestors – to swiftly and efficiently course and kill game – and I am profoundly committed to preserving this keen functionality in my hounds. Serendipity Whippets run competitively in various venues designed to test these skills, in order to evaluate their reproductive worthiness. This is my primary goal, but certainly the running venues are not my sole activities.

I am interested in non-running performance activities, such as competitive obedience, tracking and agility, not because I believe they themselves are the work for which sighthounds were developed, but because they do demonstrate certain aspects of temperament that I believe sighthounds should possess. Whippets are sighthounds – specialized hunters – but they are also dogs, and one of the mainstays of canine temperament, particularly in modern society, is the ability to live and work with people. Whippets, in particular, were specifically developed to be biddable companions. Coursing dogs require a certain mental toughness – discipline, confidence and ability to focus – to withstand the rigors of their work, and competition obedience is one activity, though clearly not the only one, that demonstrates these qualities. More importantly, I place great value on my personal relationship with each of my canine companions, and I find obedience, agility, and tracking to be activities that enable to me to strengthen that relationship in profound ways. And of course, perhaps the best reason to participate of all is that they are fun! Though my main priority is the running events, and I am no longer as active as I once was in competition obedience, I do still actively train my dogs, and insist that my whippets be smart, biddable, trainable, and fanatical natural retrievers whether they ever see the inside of a competition obedience ring or not.

Finally, I believe that dog shows, while remaining an important tool for selecting breeding stock if considered selectively, have become something of a means to an end, and too often the animals that win are not necessarily superior in type, structure, or temperament, but merely the best representative of the fad of the moment. Certainly, it is impossible to judge an animal’s functionality from putting it through its paces in the show ring. Still, I do show my dogs selectively at specialties or to judges experienced with performance sighthounds.

All Serendipity Whippets are screened for breed-appropriate health clearances, as all responsibly bred animals should be. I currently do the following health tests on all breeding stock: OFA Cardiac, CERF, and BAER. I have fed a completely raw homemade diet since 1996, follow a minimal vaccination protocol with my own dogs and litters, and maintain a holistic approach to my dogs’ health which incorporates the best of natural and allopathic veterinary practice. As a responsible breeder, I stay in touch with my puppy buyers, am available to them at any time for assistance and advice, and I will take back any dog I bred, for any reason, at any time, no questions asked. I do require puppy owners to sign a contract so that all expectations, both on their part and my own, are mutually understood and acknowledged at the start of our relationship.

With careful research, planning, and of course a little serendipity, I hope to produce healthy multi-purpose Whippets that will ably demonstrate their versatility while still conforming to their breed standard, which above all describes an athletic, functional and keen sporting hound.