FAQ

$2,800 for every puppy, pet or show prospect, male or female, any color. It covers the vet work, BAER and eye exams, microchip, AKC registration, the puppy pack and our support for the dog’s life. There are no other fees.

$500, taken only after we’ve approved your application and talked by phone — never to join the list. It holds your place in a born litter and comes off the price. If we can’t match you with a puppy it is refunded in full within a week, or moved to the next litter if you prefer. If you withdraw after matching, we refund it if we can place that puppy with someone else.

We breed one litter a year, sometimes none. Four approved families are on the list for Clover’s spring 2027 litter, which we expect to be five to seven puppies; we keep one. Realistically, if you are approved now, you are looking at summer 2027.

Not from photos. We watch the litter every day for nine weeks and run a temperament evaluation at seven; then we match each puppy to a family, in order of the waitlist, against what you told us. You can tell us your preferences on sex and color, and you can say no to a match without losing your place.

Yes, and we want you to. Approved families visit the litter from week 5, by appointment, one family at a time: shoes off, hands washed, no visits to other kennels or dog parks the same day. Before a litter, anyone is welcome to meet our adults. Far away? We do a video call first, but you must meet us before go-home day.

No. Every puppy is collected here, by you, after you have seen where it was raised and met its mother. If you are a day’s drive away we can sometimes meet you halfway with a second visit — never a parking-lot handover with a stranger.

AKC limited registration for pet homes: your dog is fully registered and can do every AKC sport, including coursing and Fast CAT, but offspring can’t be registered. Show homes get full registration, usually under a co-ownership. We change limited to full later only for a dog with complete health testing and an agreed plan.

Every breeding dog has an echocardiogram by a board-certified cardiologist within two years of the mating, an eye exam (CAER) within a year, a BAER hearing test, and a myostatin (MSTN) DNA test. That is the American Whippet Club’s CHIC set plus MSTN. We add thyroid and, for Rook, hips. Every result is public at ofa.org and on each dog’s page here.

For two years from birth: congenital or hereditary heart disease, deafness, and inherited eye disease, if diagnosed by a board-certified specialist. You keep the dog, and we refund up to the full purchase price toward treatment, or offer a puppy from a later litter. Injuries, infections and anything caused by care are not covered — whippets do break toes.

Yes, at any age, for any reason, for the life of the dog. Your contract says you must offer the dog to us before rehoming it or surrendering it to anyone. We collect it ourselves. Since 2011 we’ve had four Ashgrove dogs come back, all rehomed by us within a month.

No. We ask you not to before 12 months (for a girl, after her first season), so the growth plates close. If you do neuter, tell us, so we can keep our records straight.

A large-brand puppy kibble, soaked, four meals a day until 12 weeks, then three. You get 5 lb of it and the exact feeding chart. Switch slowly if you want to change. Whippets should look lean — you should see the last two ribs — and new owners nearly always overfeed.

Most whippets raised with cats live with their own cats peacefully and will still chase the neighbor’s. Ours meet our two cats through a gate from week 5. With children, whippets are gentle but don’t love rough play; they are better with kids over six who can be taught to let a sleeping dog lie.

Yes, many do well — they sleep 18 hours a day. What matters is a safe place to sprint at full speed a few times a week (a fenced field, a dog park at a quiet hour, coursing) and someone home for much of the day for the first months.