Does My Whippet Love Me?

Does my whippet love me? This is one question that bothered me for at least a couple of years after getting my first whippet.

However, it took me just a fraction of a second to fall in love with the fast running, food stealing, bundle of joy.

I want the process of understanding your whippet to be a bit easier for new owners.

That’s the reason why I am putting this write-up together. Read on to understand the feelings of your dog better and create a strong bond with him.

Dogs Love Like No Other

As a dog owner, you must know that dogs are born to care about their owners irrespective of the breed they belong to.

However, that’s something you can expect even from other pets to a certain extent.

What separates dogs from them is the ability to be perceptive of little things that might have an impact on your happiness and wellbeing.

I read somewhere and then experienced myself that whippets (and possibly all other breeds) can understand whether their master gets ill-treated by someone. In turn, they start acting coldly towards that person.

These four-legged companions are instrumental in reading the emotions on our faces.

does my whippet love me? — Image: bbartlomiej

They know whether we are angry, sad, happy, or worried just from our expressions.

For instance, I have seen my dogs trying to cuddle with me and cheer me up when I am sad or become extra playful when I am in a joyous mood.

Seeing all these, I can confirm that dogs would love you like no other.

Signs That Your Whippet Loves You

You should not expect a whippet to feel a bond with you just after you bring it home.

You will need to be patient to see him become obsessed with you.

Here are a few signs you should look for to know whether the whippet has finally fallen in love with you.

Soft eye contact

Eye contacts are usually very revealing. However, dogs do not make eye contact with people every easily.

What’s more, when a whippet looks at another directly in his eyes, it is not a good sign.

It signifies that the two are not in good terms and are challenging each other.

But you should be happy if you see your pup looking at you directly with soft and relaxed eyes.

This indicates that the little one finds you trustworthy and I feel that there cannot be a stronger form of love than trust.

Tail wagging

The tail of your whippet might represent a series of emotions. Contrary to the popular belief, a wagging tail doesn’t always mean that the pooch is happy.

You should consider tail wagging as a sign of love only if the dog greets you with full-body wiggles, which will begin at his shoulder and continue till the end of his tail.

On certain occasions, you may also see your dog’s tail spinning around vigorously. Such reactions clearly show that you are extremely special to him.

Happy greeting

If you see your whippet waiting for you at the door and greet you every time you come back from work, it indicates that he loves you dearly and feels exceedingly happy when you come back home.

Licking

Whippets lick may have a range of causes. The most common one is definitely for showing affection.

These dogs also lick for seeking your attention and telling you that they want to spend some time interacting with you.

Yawning when he sees you yawn

Does your dog often yawn right after you have yawned? This habit indicates that he has developed a strong emotional connection with you.

Remaining calm when you leave

Contrary to what most people believe, whippets never panic when they see their masters leaving.

Instead, they watch them leave calmly. This happens only after the pup has started to trust you and know that you will get back to him at some point.

Ways That Your Whippet Shows That It Loves You

The previous section talks about various signs indicating that your whippet has started loving you.

The pointers below will tell you how these dogs express love.

They become alert the moment they hear, see, or even smell you

Your dog might have been asleep when you entered the room, but all his sleepiness would disappear when he will hear, see, or smell you.

Wiggling and lifting of eyebrows

I never knew that dogs may also have facial expressions until I noticed one of my whippets moving his left ear and eyebrow when I met him after a month’s break.

The vet told me that my dog did so as he wanted me to know that my return has made him immensely happy.

Leaning

We, humans, tend to lean on people we trust.

As grown-ups, we lean only on individuals, who will be helping and comforting us irrespective of the situation we are in. The same can be said even about dogs.

When your dog will lean on you, it indicates that he wants to tell you how much he loves you. This happens because of the security and affection he feels.

Jumping on you the moment you are back home

If your whippet loves you, he will find it difficult to hide the love and happiness he will feel when seeing you after several hours.

The most common way of expressing this happiness is by jumping on you and licking your cheeks.

The pooch may also bring a ball, wag his tail and keep jumping up and down until you cuddle him and tell him (through expressions) that you have understood his love for you.

Sleeping with you

I first knew that my whippet wants me to know how attached he is with me when he started to sleep in my room.

He sacrificed an extremely comfortable bed to sleep on the floor of my room. Of course, when I noticed this, I started sharing my bed with him.

Post-meal cuddling

When your dog comes to you for a cuddle after having his meal, it indicates that he wanted to make you feel special.

I am saying so because several studies conducted over the years have found that dogs prefer engaging in their favourite action after having their meal.

Why Building a Bond with Your Whippet Is Important?

As a new whippet owner, your first duty is to build a strong bond with your pup.

Without the bond, you will never be able to train the canine successfully.

You should take the necessary steps for developing a loving and caring relationship with your whippet the moment the dog enters your house.

This will make winning the little one’s confidence and trust easier for you.

When the whippet will feel secured and understand that he is a part of your family, he will respond better to all your training commands.

Here, I would like you to note that like all other relationships, this one also demands mutual respect and trust.

You cannot expect the puppy to trust you right away.

Keep offering him food when he is hungry, cuddle him from time to time, put him to sleep every night, and within a week the dog will start trusting you.

To earn respect, on the other hand, you will have to set rules and whenever any of those rules is violated, you will have to treat the situation with fairness and firmness.

It’s important for you to know that you will never be able to train your pup if he doesn’t respect you and respect can never come if there’s no enforceable limitation.

How to Build a Strong Bond with Your Whippet?

Here are the four things you should do to building a strong bind with your whippet:

Spend some quality time with the dog (this may include cuddling, playing, massaging, and so on)
Take the whippet out and explore life and the world outside together
Establish mutual respect
Find a way of communicating with each other and understanding each other’s requirements

Once you succeed in building the bond, you will see your whippet become quieter.

He will also become very well-adjusted. Training him will also require much less effort from your end.

Do Whippets Feel Love?

Researchers have found that dogs result in a similar increase in our oxytocin levels as our babies.

This leads us to the question, “Can dogs understand how much we love them?” The answer is “Yes”.

My vet told me that whenever I look at any of my beloved whippets (I have three at the moment), both of us experience a spike in our oxytocin levels.

Something similar will happen even when you will play with your dog or pet him.

This happens because you are not the only one feeling the love, but your canine friend is also feeling something similar.

Final Thoughts

Hopefully this article helped you to identify the common behavioural changes that may indicate that your whippet loves you.

However, there may be some habits and reactions that are unique to your dog.

Creating a strong bond with the pooch will allow you to get acquainted with those.

So does your whippet love you? Absolutely! They are such loving dogs that are full of affection.