Whippet Snippets

Two days in North Bay

Ribsy and Mirabel convinced Girl to go on a five-hour roadie trek to North Bay this weekend. During a snack stop at the pet store in town, they inquired about local whippets. The clerk only knew of one small female whippet. Poor thing. She probably thinks she's the only one of her kind out there in the world.

North Bay's in a pretty setting by the lake, but make no mistake, you are in a city. Here they are running by the 'decorated' facilities at the beach on Trout Lake:

And it's shadfly season. Attracted to street lights, these insects swarm in such abundance that they can form a slippery film between cars and the road, thus increasing the risk for accidents. Over the next two to three weeks, shadfly carcesses pile up everywhere. At least they don't bite.

Ribsy and Mirabel also hiked out to the picturesque Duchesnay Falls, scrambling on rocks and dodging pesky insects along the way...

...and took in a leisurely stroll along North Bay's waterfront boardwalk, watching as swimmers, boaters and fishers alike enjoyed the benefits of Lake Nipissing.

And then, as quickly as it happened, another Ontario Roadie was done.

Baby whippet steps

When Mirabel first arrived last April, Boy, Girl and Ribsy lived in an old brick schoolhouse-turned-condominium building. There were wide original school stairs leading up to their digs on the second floor, and initially, Mirabel absolutely hated going up and down the stairs. It took a lot of coaxing and patience, but after a week, she realized that zipping downstairs meant freedom, and that zooming back upstairs meant warmth (there was still snow on the ground - don't get Girl started about Ontario winters).

She was petrified, though. Much like this poor whippet puppy here:

Wordless Whippet Canada Day Wednesday

Sofa So (Whippet) Good

Oh, all the funny links you get via Twitter.

Via @azulaco, Ribsy and Mirabel find out about a new sport: couch racing. Unfortunately they live in a 100% hardwood-floor house and their couch is pushed up against the wall and not in the middle of the room. So for now they'll have to speed vicariously through these manic racers.

Gentlemen, start your whippets!

Maxing Out

Meet Max.

Max is a sweet, handsome, older whippet who lives with his sporty people in the neighborhood. He's lost his teeth and he's walking a bit slower these days, but he always greets Ribsy and Mirabel with the most dignified nose manners and a graceful wag of his tail.

Ribsy and Mirabel just want to say how much Max rocks.

Loving Rivals

How is it possible that these two whippets can be so loving, sweet, and comfortable with each other at certain times, yet emit behaviors such as the following at others?

- Ribsy snaps at Mirabel if she touches him on the bed
- Mirabel scares Ribsy off the frisbee with a husky, manly "woof"
- Ribsy growls menacingly at Mirabel for daring to steal his new meerkat toy
- Mirabel attacks the slow-eating Ribsy for his dinner

Ribsy and Mirabel are no Romeo and Juliet. But perhaps they are the strongest love/hate relationship in all of whippetdom.

Farm Frolic

Off to Mapleton's for their irresistible organic ice cream...

...straight from the source.

Ribsy and Mirabel, meanwhile, busied themselves visiting the critters on the farm.

It don't matter if you're two- or four-legged

Rest in peace, Michael Jackson.

Wordless Whippet Wednesday

 

Whippets Who Twitter

Ribsy has noticed that there are many whippets playing on the big field known as Twitter. Here are some, if you're thinking of running with the lot of 'em there:

@santyclaws (pictured) - The beautiful, beautiful Santos who lives in Vancouver and can rock any style. She may be young but she's feisty. Just the way Ribsy likes them.

@brindlewhippet - Still kind of newish on Twitter, Zepher lives with his older brother Reggie (an Italian greyhound) and pack in Nevada.

@WhippetsNiaSofi - The whippets Nia and Sofia! Not only do these delightful girls write a blog, but they tweet too.

@Bacchusboy - Yis! A handsome black whippet who hails from Wellington, New Zealand.

@WillieWhippet - Still learning how to write and spell and all that grammatical kind of stuff, but he tries really hard with his tweets. An all-out whippet effort.

@Holly315 - A spritely girl who lives in Connecticut. She must be busy chasing critters (it is squirrel hunting season, Ribsy s'poses) because she hasn't tweeted in a little while. Hey Holly, get your paws on the keyboard soon.

@BluBijou - Skylar is a girl whippet who knows who she is (a princess) and knows what she wants (anything her heart desires).

@WhippetRescue - Good folks who rescue whippets and greyhounds across Australia. Their new website is coming soon; in the meantime, you can keep up to date on hounds in need via their Twitter account.

@Timbreblue - Timbreblue Whippets is a breeder in Virginia. 

@RetroRepublik - Another Californian whippet, Fast Freddy is the chief executive dog of Retro Republik and has an eye for great design. His own fine lines served as the inspiration for Santa Barbara Bikes To-Go's company logo.

@flick_summer - Dazzling whippet twins who live the sweet life in the OC. Also not tweeting as of late, but hoping her mom @sbonnin gives them a gentle nudge. 

Are there other whippets who are tweetin'? (Wheetin' twhippets?) Let Ribsy know.

Pop Whippet Quiz

People always remark on how Ribsy and Mirabel look alike, and are surprised when they learn that they're not related whatsoever.

Given that whippets can be all kinds of colors, from jet black to all white, and all brindles and reds and greys and blues in between, it really is remarkable that Ribsy and Mirabel appear to be cut from the same mould.

So here's a whippet-quick quiz for you then. Do you know who's who?

1. (kinda looks like Australia...)

2. (Suppose this would be more like New Zealand...)

Who's Your Daddy?

"Who's my daddy? Why, biologically speaking, Lord Henry," replied Ribsy.

"I heard he's quite fetching. I've never met him."

"What about me?" Mirabel whined.

Ribsy rolled his eyes. "I've met you."

"No, no, not that," said Mirabel. "I mean, the daddy thing. It's not as if I see my father either. Here's a photo of him. His name's Jasper."

But do either of them miss their dads? Nope. 

Really, to all the dogs out there without their fathers around. Take it from Ribsy and Mirabel...

It doesn't matter so much what's on your papers, but what's in your life.

Happy Father's Day, Boy.