The Whippet is a short-haired sighthound from Great Britain. The FCI describes a balanced combination of muscular power and elegance, “built for speed and work”.[1]
The breed standard
The FCI standard gives a desirable height at the withers of 47–51 cm for dogs and 44–47 cm for bitches. No weight is given. The skull is long and lean, the ears are small and rose-shaped, the chest is very deep and the belly is tucked up. The coat is fine, short and close, and any colour or mixture of colours is allowed except merle.[1][2] The temperament is described as gentle, affectionate and of even disposition, highly adaptable in domestic and sporting surroundings.[1]
Name and origin
The FCI standard has no history section. The Kennel Club (UK) says that dogs of Whippet type were common in the Middle Ages, that by the 19th century the Whippet was a recognisable breed used to hunt small game and to kill vermin, and that Whippet racing became popular in the mining areas of northern England and Wales.[3] The same page says genetic studies have found that it originated from the Greyhound, but it does not name the studies.[3]
Health and lifespan
In a 2014 owner survey of Kennel Club registered dogs in the UK, 55 deaths of Whippets were reported, with a median age at death of 9.8 years. The authors say that rising numbers of registered Whippets may have biased longevity estimates downwards, and the sample is small, so the figure may underestimate.[4]
Behavior
In an owner-reported survey of 59 Whippets, 0% were reported to have snapped, bitten or tried to bite an unfamiliar person in the recent past, 1.7% a member of the household and 3.4% an unfamiliar dog. The averages across the 33 breeds in the survey were 4.7%, 2.0% and 10.7%.[5] The authors list Whippets among the breeds least aggressive towards both people and dogs.[5] Breed explains only about 9% of behavioural differences between individual dogs, so an individual’s behaviour can differ a lot from the breed’s average.[6]
Popularity
The AKC recognised the Whippet in 1888.[7] The Whippet ranked 48th on the AKC’s list of most popular breeds in 2025.[8]
Sources
- FCI breed standard 162, Whippet
- The Kennel Club (UK), Whippet breed standard
- The Kennel Club (UK), Whippet breed page
- Lewis et al. 2018, Canine Genetics and Epidemiology 5: 10 (longevity in Kennel Club registered breeds)
- Duffy, Hsu & Serpell 2008, Applied Animal Behaviour Science 114: 441–460
- Morrill et al. 2022, Science 376 (breed and behaviour)
- American Kennel Club, breeds by year recognized
- American Kennel Club, most popular dog breeds of 2025