Pepper šŸŒ¶ļø

Stand alone WAE at someone’s house. I literally got out of the car said hi met their dogs and then got Pepper out. I asked if I could bring her out because I wasn’t sure how that worked. First thing was where is her crate?!
That's total inappropriate behavior on their part and we never see that around here. I have never brought a crate for an event like this and it's a non-issue.
Sorry you had an experience like that but it shouldn't be the norm so don't let it deter you. Those sound like some of the AKC conformation snobs.
 
Recent photos from @remy shows a thicker dog, even though I don't think he's Euro, so it's more body type. I thought I remembered Pepper as being more compact so she may have a body type like that and just look stout with out being overweight.
@MichiH It could just be her body type as @Ravenbird said. Remy is ā€œheavier bonedā€ than a lot of the dogs we’ve shown with. Even though I’ve been told by a few people he could actually gain weight for showing, he can almost look heavy compared to some of the other dogs just because of the thicker bone.

I think you’d basically have to go back to when Dobes first came to the US to find a European dog in his pedigree šŸ˜† I will have to double check. I know his great grandsire is from South America, but those dogs are mostly (or maybe all) descents of dogs from the US.

Funny picture of him yawning lol, but it’s just to show that he doesn’t have much cover over the ribs, so he definitely isn’t heavy.
IMG_1236.webp I think this is one of the pictures Ravenbird was referring to. This was 2 days after the pic of him yawning. His tuck isn’t as defined as some dogs but that has to do more with body style than weight.IMG_1237.webpThis was back in April but he’s maintained the same weight. You can see the different body styles, amount of bone, substance, etc between the dogs. The first is a male, then a female, then Remy at the end. IMG_4837.webp
 
@MichiH It could just be her body type as @Ravenbird said. Remy is ā€œheavier bonedā€ than a lot of the dogs we’ve shown with. Even though I’ve been told by a few people he could actually gain weight for showing, he can almost look heavy compared to some of the other dogs just because of the thicker bone.

I think you’d basically have to go back to when Dobes first came to the US to find a European dog in his pedigree šŸ˜† I will have to double check. I know his great grandsire is from South America, but those dogs are mostly (or maybe all) descents of dogs from the US.

Funny picture of him yawning lol, but it’s just to show that he doesn’t have much cover over the ribs, so he definitely isn’t heavy.
View attachment 156259 I think this is one of the pictures Ravenbird was referring to. This was 2 days after the pic of him yawning. His tuck isn’t as defined as some dogs but that has to do more with body style than weight.View attachment 156260This was back in April but he’s maintained the same weight. You can see the different body styles, amount of bone, substance, etc between the dogs. The first is a male, then a female, then Remy at the end. View attachment 156261
Thank you @remy

Remy looks great! I do think they’re similar in body type. I was thinking that most of what I saw Saturday , they looked underweight.

Makes sense what you’re saying about them looking heavier although they’re not it’s just body type.

The pic above with the Dobermans in a line all resemble Peppers body type too.

Sorry for going down a rabbit hole on this one.
 
Sorry for going down a rabbit hole on this one.
Don't be sorry, we're here to discuss these kinds of things for learning!

@remy I didn't want to use your dog & pictures, but was hoping you would... you said exactly what I was thinking & trying to explain! Different body styles hold their weight differently!

Funny picture of him yawning lol, but it’s just to show that he doesn’t have much cover over the ribs, so he definitely isn’t heavy
This is exactly the example of when you can feel ribs but can't see them - when he stands normally they aren't visible, but if they stretch or take a deep breath or other certain movements, there they are. If they have a layer of fat over them, they wouldn't show up like this. To me this is the ideal weight. And so many types are still correct!
 
I just reacted with kindness and felt so out of place because this was new to us both
That's the best way. I said it would tick me off, but I always try to be kind in public, especially if I'm the newbie. Some people are so judgmental and hopefully other club members/guest there were rolling their eyes if they saw or heard this person being rude to you. Maybe even address it at their next meeting. They HAVE to be a DPCA sanctioned club to host a WAE.

I was told to get off the course because the judge was talking to me too much. I said he’s actually being very helpful and explaining to me how this all works
I'd think if the judge was talking to you he didn't need someone else to shuffle you off the course?! I tested under Mr. Peterson and he spent his time talking to me after the boogy man exercise, walking with me back to the start line area conversing about our run. That's actually an exercise in itself to see how the dog reacts to him after the aggressive boogie man.
But yeah the way I was treated for no reason really makes me not want to go to anything dog wise. I will say the woman who hosted it was amazing so sweet and helpful! She explained it all to me on the phone and I thanked her when we met.
Don't let the bad experiences out weigh the good. The more events you go to the easier it is to sort out the rude folks and ignore them and embrace the kind ones like the host. The first time I went to an event the first thing I said when I met a stranger was "I'm new, I don't have a clue what I'm doing". I said this at Fast Cats, at Scent Work, at Obedience, at my Schutzhund club... This helped me psychologically to say without asking "I need help here". You can tell by their reaction if they were going to be helpful or not. Most were! And stay kind. I do all my venting after I get home, because it does a body good to air out that laundry. ;)
 
That's the best way. I said it would tick me off, but I always try to be kind in public, especially if I'm the newbie. Some people are so judgmental and hopefully other club members/guest there were rolling their eyes if they saw or heard this person being rude to you. Maybe even address it at their next meeting. They HAVE to be a DPCA sanctioned club to host a WAE.


I'd think if the judge was talking to you he didn't need someone else to shuffle you off the course?! I tested under Mr. Peterson and he spent his time talking to me after the boogy man exercise, walking with me back to the start line area conversing about our run. That's actually an exercise in itself to see how the dog reacts to him after the aggressive boogie man.

Don't let the bad experiences out weigh the good. The more events you go to the easier it is to sort out the rude folks and ignore them and embrace the kind ones like the host. The first time I went to an event the first thing I said when I met a stranger was "I'm new, I don't have a clue what I'm doing". I said this at Fast Cats, at Scent Work, at Obedience, at my Schutzhund club... This helped me psychologically to say without asking "I need help here". You can tell by their reaction if they were going to be helpful or not. Most were! And stay kind. I do all my venting after I get home, because it does a body good to air out that laundry. ;)
It was just so strange and being new made it even worse. Agree, no need to be confrontational, I try to remember - argue with an idiot then you become an idiot-

I did the same let people know I was new and had no idea what I was doing.
One younger girl did help me and we talked a lot. I let her know how much I appreciated her when we left.

Pepper now has started her heat 😜

As always thank you @Ravenbird
 
It was just so strange and being new made it even worse. Agree, no need to be confrontational, I try to remember - argue with an idiot then you become an idiot-

I did the same let people know I was new and had no idea what I was doing.
One younger girl did help me and we talked a lot. I let her know how much I appreciated her when we left.

Pepper now has started her heat 😜

As always thank you @Ravenbird
"argue with an idiot then you become an idiot-"
Very wise.

šŸ‘
 
Thank you @remy

Remy looks great! I do think they’re similar in body type. I was thinking that most of what I saw Saturday , they looked underweight.

Makes sense what you’re saying about them looking heavier although they’re not it’s just body type.

The pic above with the Dobermans in a line all resemble Peppers body type too.

Sorry for going down a rabbit hole on this one.
One thing I forgot to add earlier. This is another example of how different structure can make them seem thinner or heavier than they are, in this case judging by the waist line. It’s from the DPCA Illustrated Standard showing the ideal rib spring/cage and possible variations.

I guess the summary is that you really need ā€œhands onā€ the dog to get a good gauge of their weight IMG_1252.webp
 
One thing I forgot to add earlier. This is another example of how different structure can make them seem thinner or heavier than they are, in this case judging by the waist line. It’s from the DPCA Illustrated Standard showing the ideal rib spring/cage and possible variations.

I guess the summary is that you really need ā€œhands onā€ the dog to get a good gauge of their weight View attachment 156277
Really appreciate all the info regarding body types. This all makes a lot more sense now. Thank you @remy

Looks like I have a slab sided girl

My kids call her a slippery sausage lol
 
Really appreciate all the info regarding body types. This all makes a lot more sense now. Thank you @remy

Looks like I have a slab sided girl

My kids call her a slippery sausage lol
Heh. Somehow this topic "your dog looks fat?"
Reminds me of that joke "do these jeans make look fat?"...(there is no good answer except/running away...)
 
Pepper finished her heat October 21 and still continued to have loose stools. This went on her entire heat and then some so I took her in to the vet. She lost a good amount of weight since she was last seen which was about 6 weeks in between. I felt like an idiot for not seeing that she lost 8.5 pounds.

The vet said she looks great and should be around her current low weight, coat looks beautiful, and she looks healthy. We discussed a prescription diet and if her stools didn’t firm up/weight stay on then we’d test for EPI. She did have a lot of grey mucous in her stools too. Also, has always had some bile come up here in there. The vet is thinking this is more of an IBD issue at this point. With her history too.

She started Hills ID digestion and I slowly transitioned her from bland diet to her new food, ten days. Stools started to get consistent after that and I pray this is the answer. As of last week she gained .7 pounds and stools are even better now. I’ve noticed she has a little more energy, for instance we go out later in the day for off leash play / training and she doesn’t want to stop. I’m happy to see how excited she is to keep going. I end it eventually and she is bummed, so that’s a good thing!

As this has been ongoing her entire life and it seems she has flare ups which are difficult to get her out of. I don’t like that she’s on Hills, but it’s working so far and if that’s what works then so be it. She enjoys it which helps! It’s pricey, but whatever I can do to fix her up then that’s it.

I did find out one of her brothers had to switch his kibble recently due to diarrhea. He’s been on it for a while too. Pepper has been on two brands of kibble in her life which she’ll do well on and then have issues, maybe it’s related to that I am not sure. So I hope this one works and works forever for her.
 
Pepper finished her heat October 21 and still continued to have loose stools. This went on her entire heat and then some so I took her in to the vet. She lost a good amount of weight since she was last seen which was about 6 weeks in between. I felt like an idiot for not seeing that she lost 8.5 pounds.

The vet said she looks great and should be around her current low weight, coat looks beautiful, and she looks healthy. We discussed a prescription diet and if her stools didn’t firm up/weight stay on then we’d test for EPI. She did have a lot of grey mucous in her stools too. Also, has always had some bile come up here in there. The vet is thinking this is more of an IBD issue at this point. With her history too.

She started Hills ID digestion and I slowly transitioned her from bland diet to her new food, ten days. Stools started to get consistent after that and I pray this is the answer. As of last week she gained .7 pounds and stools are even better now. I’ve noticed she has a little more energy, for instance we go out later in the day for off leash play / training and she doesn’t want to stop. I’m happy to see how excited she is to keep going. I end it eventually and she is bummed, so that’s a good thing!

As this has been ongoing her entire life and it seems she has flare ups which are difficult to get her out of. I don’t like that she’s on Hills, but it’s working so far and if that’s what works then so be it. She enjoys it which helps! It’s pricey, but whatever I can do to fix her up then that’s it.

I did find out one of her brothers had to switch his kibble recently due to diarrhea. He’s been on it for a while too. Pepper has been on two brands of kibble in her life which she’ll do well on and then have issues, maybe it’s related to that I am not sure. So I hope this one works and works forever for her.
Sorry this is happening to Pepper.
Have to say; you are doing a great job observing her and being on top of it with the vet.šŸ™
 

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