Blarneystone Black Mamba, F. Ch., SC
Mamba
Enjoying the sun - 9/22/02
Breed: Whippet - mostly black with white feet, white chest and a white blaze
Sex: Male
Dam: Windyglens Iditarod; Sire: Sundance Purple Sage
Born: November 9, 1991
Came to live with us: June 6, 2002
Died: March 6, 2003
Likes: Food, treats, being petted, chasing the tennis ball
We got him from his breeder because the other dogs at the kennel were
picking on him. As a result, he spent much of his time in his crate.
When we went over there to meet him, she let him out and he just went
nuts. Running back and forth, taking food off of the counter, coming over
for pets briefly, then off again.
He's settled down a lot now. He likes relaxing on the couch.
He'll let you sit with him for a bit, then move off to the other side of the
couch. But the bits are getting longer and longer. We bought a crate
for him to help him feel secure. He sleeps outside of it for part of the
night now. He comes up to us for pets when we are not on the couch and
follows us around the house.
So far, he's learned how to go up and down stairs, and out and in the doggy
door. He's learning Sit, Down, Wait, OK, Let's Go and Come. We took
him for a walk on Capital Hill (where there's people and dogs - leashed and
unleashed) and he tends to weave back and forth when walking. We took
turns having him walk next to us. Sometimes he would try to stray too far
away from us, sometimes he would lurch into us! But for a block or so, he
did fine. So he's learning that already.
He eats like he's starving. He scoops up large mouthfuls and only
occasionally, accidentally chews a piece. He does a giraffe stance thing, with
his front legs spreading further and further apart. Then after about a half a
minute, he tucks one foreleg under and lays down. He's done in about a
minute. We thought he was used to defending his food from the other
dogs. After learning that his breeder feeds her dogs in their crates and
takes the food away after a short period of time, I tried feeding him, then
leaving the room. That worked. He actually didn't finish all the
food. He ate most of it, then came looking for me. When Eric walked
into the kitchen, Mamba went in and finished his food.
Mamba was such a perfect gentleman. We took him for a run
on the beach. He ran in a Gray Hare Run for retired racers and beat his
brother! He loved to chase the tennis ball in the back yard. He went
for walks around the neighborhood.
He had some medical problems that were attributed to being in
the crate most of the time, but they turned out to be more serious. We
wished he could have stayed with us longer. He came to live with us at a
time when we really needed him. I hope we made his last months happier for
him.