Whalebone and his full-brother Whisker were produced by the prolific and important broodmare Penelope, and they contributed to the perpetuation of the genetic line (tail-male) of their sire Waxy and grandsire Eclipse into the 20th century.

[2] Whalebone was a mottled bay or brown colt that stood 15.2 hands high[3] with "short legs, high-bred nostrils and very prominent eyes.

[6] On 7 June at Epsom, Whalebone won the Derby Stakes, beating The Dandy, Eccleston and a field of eight other horses after leading from the start in a race where he "was never headed."

[17] Whalebone won the 100-guinea King's Plate a few days later,[18] and at the Second October Meeting, received a forfeit from major Wilson's colt Erebus[19] and was unplaced for the Cheveley Stakes.

[22] In April at Newmarket, Whalebone won the 100-guinea King's Plate[23] and was third in a 300-guinea sweepstakes race to the colts Trophonius (not the 2000 Guineas winner) and Invalid.

[28] Whalebone's first start under Ladbroke's ownership was on 26 October at the Houghton meeting where he won a match race against Mr. Lake's two-year-old colt Turner.

[32] On 7 August, in what was ultimately the last start of Whalebone's racing career, he won the 60-guinea Ladies' Plate against Lord Somerset's colt Offa's Dyke.

[34] Whalebone was initially thought to be a poor stud prospect due to his small stature and Lord Egremont put him back into training.

[4] However, the seven-year-old horse had become "dangerous to ride," having "acquired the habit of rearing to an alarming extent"[28] and would frequently "knock his hooves together like a pair of castanettes.

His groom, Dryman, commented on his condition, "His feet were so contracted and high on the heel, and became so Chinese boot-like and full of fever at last, that he never moved out of his box.