I was born into a family of Poodle lovers. My mom and dad had Poodles even before I started kindergarten. I played with Poodles, slept with Poodles, trained Poodles, groomed and showed Poodles. Our household always had between eight and twenty Poodles ( Stds & Mins) for the first 18 years of my life! I grew up believing that was the ONLY real family pet. There was also a brief period of time that I had a scruffy little Maltese. We also acquired two Afghan pups along the way but they didn't measure up to the Poodles so out they went. I could not imagine anyone loving any breed that wasn't a Poodle!
In April 1982, I was at a dog show in Gary, Indiana. It was about 6:30 A.M. and I was hard at work grooming my Standard Poodle for the Breed competition due to start at 9 A.M. Along came a lady with her crate dolly stacked with four crates of Whippets. I said to my new husband (who was half asleep with boredom), " If I had any sense, I would have one of those little wipe 'n go dogs." He instantly replied, 'why don't you get one"? In the hours that passed, I had come to know Barbara Pendergrass (Rafina). I had drilled her with questions about the breed . Are whippets smart? Are whippets clean? Are whippets healthy?. Within two weeks, I bought my first Whippet. Her name was Rafina Puppet On A String (Ellie). Of course I was going to have only ONE whippet. After all, I was a Poodle person!
Debbie is the oldest of my three children. She was 17 at the time I bought "Ellie". Debbie was infatuated with the whippet from the very beginning (she really hated all that fluffing and coifing). Debbie has now handled nearly 70 whippets to their championship titles, 35 of these were bred at Kamada.
My friends let me warn you, if you are thinking of owning just ONE whippet, you are in for the surprise of your life. NOBODY can stop at one. They will lure you into their web of cunning demeanor. They will mesmerize you with their sweetness. They will entertain you with their clever antics. You will know the true meaning of "unconditional love" when owned by a WHIPPET!
Please join us as we celebrate our second decade of raising, showing, coursing and loving these most incredible creatures, WHIPPETS!
Happy Whippeteering,
Kathleen Davenport
