Boysie Villavicencio: Breeder of champions

I have had Whippets for the last 20 years. There is no other breed for me," says Renato "Boysie" Villavicencio, fashion designer, lover of Whippets and assistant treasurer/director of the Philippine Canine Club Inc. (PCCI). "Many of the Whippets in the country have come from me."

Boysie did not always have Whippets. His first dog was a Black Cocker Spaniel named Sultan, which came from the US. Boysie must have been five at the time. However, his mother was not very fond of dogs and would often ask Boysie to choose between her and Sultan. "I would chose Sultan of course," a laughing Boysie recalls. "A mother will never turn her back on her kids. But she did turn her back on Sultan."

Since then Boysie has had German Shepherds, Dobermans, Miniature Poodles, Rottweilers and a Dachshund. But he found his ideal pet in the Whippet.

When Boysie first discovered the Whippet, he was breeding Dobermans. Boysie pointed out that the Whippet looked a lot like a Doberman except that it is a little more sleek. "I had to have one. I called a friend in New York and he helped me get one," says Boysie.

Today, Boysie is proud of the Whippets his Villavicencio Kennel has been able to produce. He opines that of the 50 Whippets, which are registered with the PCCI, about 30 to 40 of them are Philippine champions.  For a Whippet owner, the male of the breed is a prize catch.

And just what about the Whippet does Boysie like?

"Whippets do not smell, they are very malambing. They are the finest companions to have. Whippets are clowns. They can make you laugh."

The first two Whippets that Boysie owned became Philippine Grand Champions of the PCCI. And that is no easy feat – in order to reach that status, a dog must get 100 points and then he becomes a Philippine champion. And then get another 40 points to become a Philippine Grand Champion. Added to this is the fact that when a dog joins a show, the most number of points it can get is five. So that means a dog must join at least 20 shows before it can become a Philippine champion. And work a little harder at that to become a Philippine Grand Champion.

Huey, one of Boysie’s two Whippets, got sick and had to be kept with the vet for a few months. When he was given back to Boysie he was skin and bones. Boysie, thinking that Huey was harmless, kept him with three other female Whippets.

Wrong.

The three bitches got pregnant and all gave birth almost at the same time. "Twenty-one of these puppies became Philippine champions," says Boysie.

Boysie was not able to sell all the 21 pups so he co-owned a few of the dogs with other people. When a dog is co-owned, they all take care of the dog but it is Boysie who brings them to the show and shows them. "Now I am in my fourth generation of Whippets and if I showed you a pedigree sooner or later all of them will be champions," says Boysie. "I require the people who get dogs from me to show the dogs so that we can maintain the quality of the dogs. I breed dogs to produce something good."

Boysie continues to improve on his breed. He has recently imported a dog from the Ronndal Kennel in New Zealand because the owner is a Finnish woman who has served as PCCI judge in their dog shows. "I rely on her to tell me which dog is a good one," said Boysie.  Matter of fact, when she was here last Boysie showed her the pups in his litter. The lady judge was able to rate the dogs perfectly well. The pups, which she rated good, have already won.

"But for me joining a dog show is just a game. Sometimes I win and sometimes I lose. There are even times when I lose to my own dogs," laughs Boysie.

A Whippet does not come cheap. It can cost anywhere from P40,000 to P50,000, perhaps this is why the breed is not so popular here.

It is important to Boysie that the quality of his pups are maintained – this is why he only sells the pups that are of show quality. The other pups he prefers to co-own.

For Boysie, there is no dog show too far for his Whippets, whether he brings them there just to socialize or for show. His Whippets have been to Davao, Cebu, Bohol, Pangasinan, La Union, Batangas and Laguna.

So, who gets more stressed out during a dog show?

"I guess the dogs, they are the ones who have to face the judges," says Boysie. "But I only take one or two dogs with me because that’s all I can handle."

But for Boysie his Whippets are not just for show – they are also all the family he has. He lives with eight Whippets – Olivia, Dora, Nicole, Guada, Alyanna, Pero, Ponzie, Tisoy.

Maricel, one of the people who works with Boysie, has become an intermediate handler. She also serves as yaya to the Whippets in Boysie’s home.

Boysie believes that when a dog dies, it does so to give energy to someone who is sick. This is how he explains the extra time his mother got on her life. Boysie shares that the doctor told him that his mother would not last the night so he stayed in the hospital. But the doctor was wrong and his mother made it through the night. But when he got home he found out that the seven-month-old Whippet pup that he had imported from the US died a mysterious death. "It was strange. But I believe that he died to give my mom a little more energy," says Boysie. "Even if she did not like dogs."

It was different with Boysie’s dad, who was fond of the Whippets. Matter of fact, Boysie says that several litters of pups were born under his father’s bed. "It is good that these Whippets are very clean and do not smell so my dad did not mind them one bit," he quips.

"After I lost my parents the dogs have become my extended family. They keep me company. And if I must bother about something or someone – they are my someone," says Boysie. "My Whippets are the finest companions."