09/06/2025
One of the goals for the Elvershire program was to bring together strong, diverse, health tested bloodlines for the perfect balance of health, speed, agility, endurance, longevity and, above all, temperament. We dreamed of one day adding a splash of the European kick with our very own whippet stud, and this year that dream became a reality.
MARAKAYA’S OUT OF LOVE x CULANN’S BE HAPPY, a litter destined for incredible things with the perfect balance of speed, power, grit and sweetness. A leap of faith that took us on a Dutch adventure, introduced us to the absolutely wonderful Geby, Erik, Lizzy and Suzanne, and brought us our beautiful Calibre. The only boy in Happy Banani’s first litter, raised with nothing but love, pride, and the utmost care.
The Elvershire breeding program was created with health, integrity and transparency as non-negotiables. And at 4 weeks, when the vet could only feel one testicle in the right place, a health risk was suddenly a factor. Cryptorchidism, also known as retained testicles, is a condition whereby both testicles fail to descend into the sc***um. An estimated frequency of this abnormality in several breeds is as high as 4-15%, with an unfortunate prevalence in whippets. Normally both te**is are down in the correct place by 2 months old, but some dogs can take up to 6 months with rarer cases even beyond that. “Do you still want him?” We were asked. The truth is, Calibre had stolen our hearts before we’d even blinked, and there was no way we wouldn’t be bringing him back to the UK with us for our program. We just had to keep everything crossed that decent would happen.
Over time Cali’s little set have basically played the hokey-kokey. In, out, up, down, one then two then none then one; it’s been quite the song and dance. However, Calibre is now 8 months old, and unfortunately though his left is down and perfect there is no chance of decent for the right - the string is just too short.
So, with fullest transparency we announce that our boy, HAPPY BANANI’S AMMO FOR ELVERSHIRE, is Cryptorchid.
The undescended testicle is inguinal, and is at no greater risk of torsion or cancer than if it were down in the correct place. He is a happy, healthy, perfect boy excelling through his sport foundations and maturing into an absolutely gorgeous dog. In no way is his Crypt a reflection on his beautiful pedigree or the Banani program - with zero history of Cryptorchidism in either parents’ lines and over a dozen brothers with perfect sets of te**is, unfortunately for our Calibre it really is luck of the draw. We do believe that there is not a whippet line in the world that doesn’t have any cases of crypt in its genetic history, and we assure you nobody was more devastated than his fantastic breeders. Us on the other hand… we’re still just incredibly grateful to have such an amazing dog.
There has obviously been interest in Cali, and as such we put this all out on the table. No, he will not have the esteemed Elvershire stud career he was initially destined for. However, he WILL aid in the genetic exploration of Cryptorchidism through the Elvershire program, DNA samples and profiles contributing to possible breakthrough research. And, well… that perfect testicle he does have is fertile.
We have researched and researched, gotten opinions and second opinions and third opinions, and upon veterinary and scientific advice specifically NOT to discount him from breeding, Cali will still be fully health tested. That’s DNA, hips, elbows, shoulders, spine, heart, eyes, etc. And if he performs, proves his worth, and his tests are as beautiful as his parents’, he may still have a litter in his lifetime if there is interest, but ONLY upon full consent of the bitch owner and full transparency of the risks involved, entirely on a case by case basis. He would not be used for the continuation of the ES lines, and would only be available for crossbreeding. If he is used internally for one of our Elvershire bi***es, the pups produced will be under STRICT non-breeding contracts.
It’s not quite gone to plan, but it matters little to us. The dogs come first in our program over making money or pumping out litters, and we will forever be grateful to Geby and Erik for letting us have Calibre, and for raising such an incredible, cheeky boy. Whatever the future holds for Cal, stud or not, he has opened up our program to the wonderful world of whippets, and he will always, ALWAYS be an Elvershire dog 💛
If anybody has any questions at all, please feel free to DM the page, or Ellen Schofield / Johanna Barnett directly ❤️🖤🤍
