Thanks Ice! I did misstate that and should have said they are stockier. Thanks for the clarification on it.
-
Disclaimer: Hello Guest, Doberman Chat Forums presents the opinions and material on these pages as a service to its membership and to the general public but does not endorse those materials, nor does it guarantee the accuracy of any opinions or information contained therein. The opinions expressed in the materials are strictly the opinion of the writer and do not represent the opinion of, nor are they endorsed by, Doberman Chat Forums. Health and medical articles are intended as an aid to those seeking health information and are not intended to replace the informed opinion of a qualified Veterinarian.”
I Think She's Fat
- Thread starter DobieWanKenobi
- Start date
thewalkingdead
Member
Alright guys, please, give me a hand; an opinion - anything. The great people of Doberman-Chat have been able to help me the last, uh, 1 time I've needed it, and you have helped with what seemed to be relative ease, so here's one I trust you'll be able to conquer for me!
I've never had a problem with any of my dogs' weight before getting my 3 year old female Doberman, who has always seemed a bit on the 'chubby' side of life. She gets far more exercise than the other dogs and eats the same type and the same amount of decent quality food as the other dogs in the house. Worm-free since 2010.
I can't work out if it's just her shape that makes her look, er, over-indulged, or if she's not compatible with the food she's getting.
View attachment 27590
She measures 27 inches at the shoulder and weighs 83 pounds. I know the Euros are less 'delicate' than the Americans in body shape, but this is confusing me. I can clearly see and feel her ribs, she doesn't FEEL fat, she doesn't over-eat, she gets plenty of exercise, no known health problems aside from a few allergies that make her fur fall out, but she sure doesn't look in proportion to me. All dogs are different, sure, but shouldn't there be an "up" underneath her stomach regardless - or am I expecting a concave curve that's not meant to be there?
Hoping some people of vast Dobie Info can tell me whether I need to take better care of my dog or whether I need to renew my glasses, because this is really bugging me.
Cheers for any/all input.
She looks HEALTHY to me. All of my dogs are healthy and not in "show" shape. I cut their food alittle a few weeks prior to showing, but I dont show them bone thin. She looks good to me.
My 2 brood bitches are alittle chunky but they each have had 1 litter. Ben might be the only one on the thin side due to bitches in heat.
MeadowCat
Well-Known Member
Well, I guess I'm going to disagree, and I say this as nicely as possible - she's too heavy. Her tuck up isn't as tucked up as it should be, and in the top down pics her waist isn't as defined as it should be. Carrying too much weight is really hard on a dog. If she were mine I would want her leaner. I like to see the last rib on my dogs.
DobieWanKenobi
Active Member
Marko, your dogs are great. I've always wanted a Rottweiler.
Those were my thoughts too, MeadowCat. All of my other dogs are naturally thin dogs. Because Kay's from lines that are naturally 'bulkier', I wasn't sure what was too much. I'm still not entirely sure, but I've decided I want her a little less "pluergh". It's not like losing a few pounds is going to hurt her.
We've switched foods twice over the last few years for different reasons, and she's had her exercise messed around with because of various injuries, but she doesn't drop out of the 80lbs range. This is as heavy as she's been, and she's not gaining any more; she just isn't losing. All the dogs are free fed from the same bowl. The food's rationed out and monitored. Both the Dobes eats a little less than 2.5 cups / day, and the other dogs eat less than is recommended for their breed as well, despite the fact that the food is there and readily available. I'm trying to avoid actually restricting their food and feeding them at set times from separate bowls throughout the day, but it's a pain finding a food they all work on. Kay does really bad on the higher quality foods that are out there. Right now they're on a medium quality working dog food.
I take all the dogs for individual walks throughout the day, and then they all go out together at the end of the day. Usually I'd restrict any intentional exercise to the individual walks, and leave the groupie for the dogs to wander and get their "mental fix", but I'll just start taking the ball with me on that walk as well, so that Kay can get a little bit more exercise without me having to drag myself out of bed at 4am.
I'm gonna look into adding more protein to her diet to see if she starts converting fat into muscle, and if nothing changes over a few months... I'll think of something else.
Those were my thoughts too, MeadowCat. All of my other dogs are naturally thin dogs. Because Kay's from lines that are naturally 'bulkier', I wasn't sure what was too much. I'm still not entirely sure, but I've decided I want her a little less "pluergh". It's not like losing a few pounds is going to hurt her.
We've switched foods twice over the last few years for different reasons, and she's had her exercise messed around with because of various injuries, but she doesn't drop out of the 80lbs range. This is as heavy as she's been, and she's not gaining any more; she just isn't losing. All the dogs are free fed from the same bowl. The food's rationed out and monitored. Both the Dobes eats a little less than 2.5 cups / day, and the other dogs eat less than is recommended for their breed as well, despite the fact that the food is there and readily available. I'm trying to avoid actually restricting their food and feeding them at set times from separate bowls throughout the day, but it's a pain finding a food they all work on. Kay does really bad on the higher quality foods that are out there. Right now they're on a medium quality working dog food.
I take all the dogs for individual walks throughout the day, and then they all go out together at the end of the day. Usually I'd restrict any intentional exercise to the individual walks, and leave the groupie for the dogs to wander and get their "mental fix", but I'll just start taking the ball with me on that walk as well, so that Kay can get a little bit more exercise without me having to drag myself out of bed at 4am.
I'm gonna look into adding more protein to her diet to see if she starts converting fat into muscle, and if nothing changes over a few months... I'll think of something else.
