Roach back

[Stabs 3]

I've just been packing up my books ready for a house move and I saw some old pics of whippets from the 1930/40's and they didn't have a roach back at all. Can anyone tell me when the roach came in and why? Does it aid in racing at all?

[desertdog 149]

i think whippets changed, when the k.c got hold of them, not sure about the racing bit.

[Nobby 65]

Hard to say Stabs but more than likely its down to the kc breeders as they have changed the shape of a lot of breeds as they breed for the look of a dog and if a certain shape wins the show thats the shape they will breed i have heard the roach back put down to the introduction of bedlington blood but if you look at the early working bedlingtons they don't have the roach back . I cant see that having a roach back would make a whippet a faster racer .If having a roached back made a whippet run faster then all hard blood whippets would be roached as they are bred for racing and speed and not many are roached as they carry greyhound blood .I am sure you will get plenty ped owner that will disagree.

[Stabs 3]

That was my next question Nobby....about the hardbloods.

So are there any top racing/coursing dogs that have the roach or is it more the show lines? If the roach doesn't help them, does it hinder them?

I would have thought the roach on some Beddies I've seen came from the whippet rather than the other way around.

[whin 463]

never had a running dog with a roach back got a hard blooded grew hear got collie line bred things who are not roachy they can run and stay i hate the look of a right roachy back on a dog i like a dog with a nice long back strong fronted some of these whipps with roachbacks dont increase speed as then greyhounds would all be roached back and ugly look at an arab horse a cheeta etc etc to me the look deformed with big tuck ups and roachy backs shivering etc not an ideal posture for a dog thta i want to work daily in winter etc