Meet the "kids"

There's nothing better than having a dog. No wait, yes there is, having two dogs! Meet Tango and Kody, my two purebred Whippets. Tango is on the right in the photo above, and she is about to turn 13 in March. Kody will be turning 8 later this year, but he acts as if he's still 2. When I am stuck on a design or in the middle of thinking about how best to approach a design, I will often pick one of these guys up and just pet them - kind of like Dr. Evil and Mr. Bigglesworth in the Austin Powers movies...but without the evil. These two are my second and third Whippets. My first was Kelsey, my miracle dog that survived cancer for four years before finally losing his battle at age 11. Then there was Tango, whom I decided to show when she was about two years of age. Not everyone can say they got to show their dog at professional dog shows. While I was hopeful she would achieve a championship, she just had a few too many flaws that would have made it very difficult, and very expensive, to get there. So when Tango was four years old, she got the old snip snip and her show days were over. The week that Kelsey passed away Kody came into the world. It was like one life ended and seven new lives began.

Whippets and Design

So how do two Whippets help me with my design work? By keeping me calm for one. There's nothing like a warm Whippet kiss to make your day better. Kody has a keen eye for design as well. He will usually look at a design I am working on and, I am not kidding, will give me a look that is easily discernible - he either likes it, or he hates it. Tango couldn't care less either way. Here's some facts about Whippets:

• LIFE SPAN: 12-14 years
• WEIGHT: Males run 30-42 lbs; Females run 26-34 lbs
• HEIGHT: Males - 18-25 inches; Females - 17-21 inches
• COAT: Fine and short; Some shedding during seasonal changes
• MEDICAL ISSUES: Relatively none
• TOP SPEED: 37 miles per hour

Want to know more about Whippets, here's a great place to start:

AKC Whippet Page