Ribsy usually begs for food, but in this case he begs for someone to please, please, please surprise Girl with this brooch so that she doesn't look at it longingly every day while she could be walking him instead.
Even Ribsy has to admit it's pretty darn fetching.
Know of any upcoming whippet nuptials? Ribsy knows of the perfect card for you.
Thanks to RNOF for the link!
Ribsy and Mirabel are thoroughly enjoying the attention they're garnering from their new Classic Hound collar-and-leash sets.
Ribsy shows off his Got Wasabi 1.5-inch Martingale collar and matching tag collar.
Not to be outdone, pesky Mirabel strikes a pose in her Festoon pattern.
The cinch loop of the Martingale collars allow Ribsy and Mirabel to wear their collars comfortably as they rest loosely on their necks, and tightens only when they need to be snug around the neck - usually when they're lunging after a squirrel, or when Mirabel's in full-out ugly walk mode. The matching leash affixes to the Martingale collars, allowing Girl to easily slip them off when they're running at the park or in the woods. The smaller tag collar, to which their ID tags are affixed, stays on the entire time.
The overall quality is outstanding. The collar lining is thick and smooth for the whippets, while the leash features durable metal hardware and an adjustable padded handle that's comfortable for Girl.
Thanks Classic Hound!
Mirabel shows off her new custom made fleece jammies from Dog-E-Designs. The brown leaf print pays homage to the woods she so dearly loves to romp in, and that she hopes to return to very, very soon.
The jammes fit like a glove, practically hermetically sealing in her warmth, and she promptly proceeded to fall asleep on the couch.
Ribsy - you remember him, right? - can't wait until all this pajama drama with Mirabel is over so that this blog can go back to more important things, like him.
Ribsy would like to say that he would like to have an injury just like his pesky sister Mirabel's. The way Girl is spending all her time looking after her, staring at her, placing her hand on her side during the night so she doesn't pick at her stitches. It's enough attention to make a surly older whippet spin with jealousy...although he doesn't envy her when she has to wear a ridiculous cone from time to time, like when Girl needs to take a shower and that sort of stuff:
The cone is necessary because Mirabel can't resist licking and picking at her injury site. But the cone doesn't fit in the crate - which is where Girl needs to leave Mirabel if she is to enjoy any sort of freedom over the next few days - and it makes for (an even more) manic Mira, who tosses her head from side to side and bashes into walls in an effort to rid herself of the plastic impediment.
The vet recommended pajamas. Sounds easy, right? Try to find a whippet pajama maker within Canada that ships quickly. Most pajamas are understandably made to order. Here's a quick rundown of the pajamadrama that's gone on for the past couple of days:
Vendor #1 - Pajamas in stock! However, the vendor is in the US and the overnight shipping fee is horrendous. Place an order anyway and hoped for the best.
Vendor #2 - Also in the US and made to order. No luck.
Vendor #3 - In Canada but is unavailable to sew right now.
Vendor #4 - In Canada but the style of the jammie still allows Mirabel to get at her injury.
With these vendors exhausted a local breeder, Jetstream Whippets (love the name) offered to kindly lend a pair of their jammies. Their whippet Talon was the same size as big Mira, so it seemed perfect - and they did fit great. However, the style of the jammies has only one opening - you guessed it - right where the hind leg meets the stomach, so these unfortunately didn't work.
Then came the out-of-the-box creativity. A message through a whippet list and a tweet asking for help yielded a host of helpful suggestions - from using a pillow case to a girl's dress to a men's t-shirt. Girl did try fashioning one of Boy's t-shirts on Mirabel, but she promptly jumped straight out of it when she spied a squirrel outside the window.
Finally, a solution was reached today.
One of Ribsy's Twitter friends, @bentleythegrey mentioned Dog-E-Designs, who are based a couple of hours away from the Hammer. Their pajama style covers Mirabel's wound, and they have a whippet pattern they can work with. Custom-made pajamas will be ready for pick-up soon.
Until those are ready, Mirabel still needed something temporary to tide her over. So Girl headed down to the department store and picked up a Little Tykes jumper in an 18-24 month size. Ironically it says "Turtle" and has a big picture of one emblazoned on the chest. With a couple of snips the jumper was able to accommodate Mirabel's chest:
Snap buttons run along the bottom up the bathroom area, allowing her tail some swishing room. Let's hope that Mirabel doesn't go all Hulk and pop the buttons right off.
Update: That little Houndini managed to rear up and get the back legs low enough that she could step on them and pull herself completely out of the PJs. Sigh.
Lesson learned: get a pair of pajamas for your whippet now, in advance, before injury should strike. That way, you have them on hand in case anything should ever happen: the furnace busts, your whippet gets hurt, it gets a rash etc. You just never know.
Today's apparently the most depressing day of the year. It even comes with a name - Blue Monday.
There's no need for any of that, thought Ribsy. Especially when there's great whippet work out there to perk you up. Toadbrier, who created the round 'n round carousel hounds, has stocked more whippet art in her Etsy shop.
Who can resist a smiling whippet? (Love the whiskers!)
Or how about a royal whippet? (She looks like Mirabel...if Mirabel ever decided to go all feminine on us.)
Next up in the lineup: an aristocratic whippet. (She kinda looks like Ribsy, minus the bodice.)
And finally, going in a completely different direction, here's a "whippetly good" depiction of the slightly perturbed sideways sighthound glance. Devo-licious!
Ribsy would like to file this report to Boy:
"Girl is too distracted by her new birthday shoes (courtesy of John Fluevog) to take me and pesky Mirabel out for a walk. Yes, she treated herself to these shoes and I thought you should know. I don't believe she has disclosed this purchase to you yet. They not only affect the bank account but they also seem to be affecting our routine. We have a serious situation on our paws.
Love, Ribsy"
Must. Have. This. Shirt. Now.
There are some great shirt designs on Threadless - "an ongoing open call for tee shirt design submissions." This is the by far the best one ever (no bias whatsoever here). For any whippet owner who's ever received the "Whip it good!" catcall while walking down the street, this is for you.
All designs printed on Threadless are voted on and picked by the community. This one's in the running for one more day. So go now and rate this a 5!
Update: OK, turns out that Boy didn't understand the meaning of the shirt. Hello! Devo! Check it out:
By the way, Devo's new album - their first since 1990 - is due out this spring!
Ribsy is shocked. Girl hasn't bought a single thing in the past three days. And yesterday was Boxing Day, the biggest shopping day in Canada. Every December 26th, the local news shows are peppered with stories of people (sane people?) who line up overnight at choice stores that tantalize these bargain hunters with 10-per-store door crasher specials and the like, crazies who complain about the lack of parking, and sweaty shoppers who brag about their steals, not knowing that they could have bought the exact same item at the same price the week before.
For Boy and Girl, the previous year was the big purchase of a new television set to replace their 26-inch box with the scratch in the glass (there was a permanent fly on the screen). This year Ribsy and Mirabel realized that the things they really need in their life (eg. Boy), you can't bat your big bulbous eyes and beg for Girl to whip our her credit card to purchase. You can't buy the things that truly matter. However, if there was a 75% off sale on rawhide chews, well, they are sorely disappointed that Girl did not consider their needs.
Perhaps a tiny reason behind the non-activity has got to lay with one of Girl's Christmas presents, a most satisfying gift. She was delighted to unwrap a pin of a whippet, a whippet who is a dead ringer for Ribsy:
Thanks Linda! Girl will wear it with pride.
Winnie Tam, the Vancouver-based artist behind the pin, designs pins of other whippet colors, of other dog breeds, of even - gasp - cats.
Come on, doesn't Ribsy look like the muse for this pin or what?
But really, pins and television sets aside, nothing compares to the real thing - the love and connection between people, between people and their dogs, and between dog and dog. Mirabel will be the first to admit that she missed her brother dearly when they were separated a little while ago (although she was no doubt spoiled and coddled).
And during the past few days, Ribsy and Girl have both realized that it's painful to be apart from loved ones. As much as we are programmed to covet material things in our society, there's something priceless about a simple hug, a tender kiss, a warm snuggle.
Thank goodness whippets are grade A cuddlers.
As one laugh-out-loud whippet blogger writes, "hug your hounds."
Ribsy is glad his Girl can't sew. If she could, there's no doubt that he would be wearing something beyond humiliating for Halloween.
Despite her lack of domesticity, Girl has managed to outfit Ribsy in some memorable numbers, thanks largely to her scrounging abilities and Boy's handiwork skills:
Ribsy the Airplane, Part I:
Ribsy the Airplane, Part II:
Ribsy as Seabiscuit (hmm, Girl as Tobey Maguire?):
"Hahahahaha," laughed Mirabel. "You look ridiculous."
"Wait till you see what I've got planned for you, Missy," Girl warned.
Mirabel's eyes widened.
Anyway. So what if you don't have time to scrounge, or the skills to sew? Then you'd have to go the ordinary route and buy a costume. Unfortunately, being a whippet has its disadvantages, despite their obvious awesomeness. And that is, most off-the-rack canine clothes don't fit the whippet body type.
That being said, Ribsy thinks he's found a few (emphasis on the word "few") Halloween costumes that may work on whippets:
First up, the Headless Horseman:
Next, as modeled by their Internet pal, Santos, the Pet Lobster:
For the predatory whippet, the Shark:
And in the "I can't believe what I'm seeing" category, Ribsy kids you not - the Gray Squirrel:
"Oh please no," gasped Mirabel.
Have you found any great Halloween costumes for whippets? Or are you planning to create something that's just as special as the breed?
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