WHAT TO DO - WHIPPETS FOR SALE ON CRAIGSLIST, FACEBOOK, OR IN THE PAPER

The rehoming of whippet through Craigslist, eBay Classified, Facebook and other commerce websites and social media seems to unfortunately be here to stay. As whippet lovers, we all want to do the right thing when we see a member of our beloved breed up for adoption or sale on one of these sites. Our first impulse is often to immediately post the complete ad to every social media site we can think of, because of course, the dog is in jeopardy, it will end up going to a horrible home, and does the breeder know about this? This first impulse is often followed up by another desire, which is to e-mail or call the poster, informing them that it is really bad to try and place a whippet through this venue, don't they know they should contact the breeder, and only WRAP or other whippet rescue groups are equipped and talented enough to place this animal, so turn him over immediately to them. However, speaking as a whippet rescuer, these things, which we are all only doing out the best of intentions, our love for our breed, often upset the people who are trying to place their dog, making them wary, angry and virtually impossible to reach out to when actual whippet rescue comes calling.
So, what should you do when you see that sad little whippet being rehomed on Craigslist or Facebook? First of all, stop and calm down. As horrified as you may be that someone would do such a thing, these situations are rarely true crises, and realistically there can be days and weeks for the situation to be resolved, not minutes and hours. As tempting as it may be, resist the urge to repost the entire posting to the whippet social media groups and boards, as the original rehomer will surely then be inundated with helpful and not-so-helpful notes from whippet fanciers all over the country, one or more of which will surely make them feel attacked.
1. Go to http://www.whippet-rescue.com and look up the name and e-mail address of the rescuer closest to the situation and send them the posting, asking them if they are aware of the situation. It is a safe bet if you saw the ad/post, at least twenty other concerned whippet people have also seen it & forwarded it to their local rescue rep, so they are probably well aware of the dog.
2. Do not write the rehomer yourself, as I can guarantee, if you saw the posting, 50 other whippet people, some not all that tactful, have seen it as well. If you must write them, be kind and tactful, and offer only truly helpful information. Notes that consist of the phrases "you must" or "how awful" or " only whippet rescue is qualified to place this dog" will surely make the poster feel that whippet people are snobby, mean, and will make any subsequent interactions with whippet rescue very difficult.
3. If you must repost the information to the whippet pages & groups, please take a moment to cut and paste out the information that will be most useful for identifying the whippet to its breeder, such as general location, age, sex, color, name, and maybe first name of of the rehomer. Please do not include any contact information, as this will surely lead to the situation outlined in #2, above. The best type of posting in this situation reads something like "if you bred a male brindle parti, who is three years old, and sold it to someone in Podunk, CA". please contact me". This gets the info out there, but keeps the identifying details off a public forum.
Following the the rules above will certainly help whippet rescuers attempt to assist whippets in need on Craigslist and other commerce sites. We are all want to do the right thing for our beloved breed, and by taking a minute and forwarding the offending posting to the appropriate WRAP rep, the proper outcome, of a happy, properly rehomed whippet, is much more likely to occur.
Guin Borstel
WRAP Whippet Rescue Representative, Northern California.
So, what should you do when you see that sad little whippet being rehomed on Craigslist or Facebook? First of all, stop and calm down. As horrified as you may be that someone would do such a thing, these situations are rarely true crises, and realistically there can be days and weeks for the situation to be resolved, not minutes and hours. As tempting as it may be, resist the urge to repost the entire posting to the whippet social media groups and boards, as the original rehomer will surely then be inundated with helpful and not-so-helpful notes from whippet fanciers all over the country, one or more of which will surely make them feel attacked.
1. Go to http://www.whippet-rescue.com and look up the name and e-mail address of the rescuer closest to the situation and send them the posting, asking them if they are aware of the situation. It is a safe bet if you saw the ad/post, at least twenty other concerned whippet people have also seen it & forwarded it to their local rescue rep, so they are probably well aware of the dog.
2. Do not write the rehomer yourself, as I can guarantee, if you saw the posting, 50 other whippet people, some not all that tactful, have seen it as well. If you must write them, be kind and tactful, and offer only truly helpful information. Notes that consist of the phrases "you must" or "how awful" or " only whippet rescue is qualified to place this dog" will surely make the poster feel that whippet people are snobby, mean, and will make any subsequent interactions with whippet rescue very difficult.
3. If you must repost the information to the whippet pages & groups, please take a moment to cut and paste out the information that will be most useful for identifying the whippet to its breeder, such as general location, age, sex, color, name, and maybe first name of of the rehomer. Please do not include any contact information, as this will surely lead to the situation outlined in #2, above. The best type of posting in this situation reads something like "if you bred a male brindle parti, who is three years old, and sold it to someone in Podunk, CA". please contact me". This gets the info out there, but keeps the identifying details off a public forum.
Following the the rules above will certainly help whippet rescuers attempt to assist whippets in need on Craigslist and other commerce sites. We are all want to do the right thing for our beloved breed, and by taking a minute and forwarding the offending posting to the appropriate WRAP rep, the proper outcome, of a happy, properly rehomed whippet, is much more likely to occur.
Guin Borstel
WRAP Whippet Rescue Representative, Northern California.