A-Z Challenge 2014 - 'W'

W - West Highland Terrier, Wheaten Terrier, Whippet,
       Welsh Terrier

There used to be stories about an English man, an Irish man, a Scots man and a Welsh man.The same principal applies to this post about dogs, but in a different sequence.

Poppy, a West Highland Terrier, featured in my series about North Yorkshire Village dogs.

Poppy - West Highland Terrier

You may read about her here.

"Westies" originated from Scotland and have a distinctive white coat. They were bred to hunt small rodents at places such as farms. However the Westie I met at Whitby in North Yorkshire had a carriage of its own.

Fast asleep - it had had a busy day

I always like meeting Archie, he's the most laid back dog I know.

Archie - Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier

The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier originated in Ireland and is possibly one of the oldest Irish dog breeds. They were once known as the 'poor man's dog,' working on farms as herders and hunters of vermin and small game.

When I first Archie he had a patch of ginger hair. He had rolled on a dead hedgehog and had to have some hair cut off before the vet could remove all the spines. For a while, as his hair grew back, you could not miss that ginger patch.

When I was boy towards the end on WWII my father bought a whippet from Monmouthshire (South Wales). I used to take her out for walks. I wrote a (long) story about one such walk called 'The Chase.' It began - 

"The whippet sat bolt upright on the grass, shivering with anticipation of being allowed to run. When the command came, ‘Away Flick, away,’ she was gone. She cleared the dry stone wall by the roadside at such a speed that from afar she appeared to be just a flash of brown against the grey dry stones and against the green field where she landed – or did she? She seemed to be flying - close to the ground like a different-coloured swallow on the wing in a desperate hunt for flies." 

Phoebe - a brindle/white Whippet

Whippets are sight hounds, popular as racing dogs. They can reach speeds of 35 mph (56 km/hr). The English Whippet or Snap Dog was even known as the 'poor man's racehorse.'

When I first met my Welsh dog I thought she was an Airedale puppy; I was wrong.

Tilly - Welsh Terrier

She is owned by the same couple that used to own Joe, the Airedale Terrier, I included in the Challenge under 'A.

The Welsh Terrier is claimed to be the oldest dog breed in the UK. Bred originally to hunt rodents and badgers they are now largely a show dog.

Famous owners of Welsh Terriers have included President J F Kennedy and the UK Prime Minister Clement Attlee.

I hope you have the time to watch the video with which I end the post. It's quite delightful.