How Can I Determine What Weight My Dog Should Be?

Keeping your dog's weight at the right level for its age, size and level of fitness is important for the well-being of the animal. With the current focus on preventing obesity, pet owners sometimes keep the weight of their dogs below what is optimum. This can lead to the risk of injury for the dog, a compromised immune system and lowered resistance to illness. A dog should only be underweight if it has recently given birth or it has hip and joint problems that make it necessary to keep its weight down.

Things You'll Need

  • Dog scale
  • Breed standards
  • Ideal dog weight chart
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Instructions

    • 1

      Weigh your dog using a proper dog scale. Position it standing with all four paws on the scale or seated in the middle of the scale. Make sure you are not holding the leash tightly or this can affect the registered weight.

    • 2

      Identify what breed your dog is. If it is a mixed breed, look for signs that indicate the possible types of breeds it could be descended from. You should be able to identify from its height which of the size categories it falls into -- toy, small, medium, large or giant -- and this will give you a guideline to work from.

    • 3

      Consult the American Kennel Club's breed standard for the breeds your dog most closely resembles. Check what the ideal weight should be for that breed, and keep in mind that female dogs usually weigh less than male dogs.

    • 4

      Check your dog's ribs. Veterinarians say that you should be able to feel these. This does not mean you should be able to easily see the ribs, but you should be able to find them with your fingers without having to search.

    • 5

      Check the back and spine of the dog. Like the ribs, the hip bones and spinal cord should be found only by feeling and should not be easily identifiable by sight, or the dog may be underweight. Highly active dogs like racing greyhounds usually do have easily discernible ribs, but this will be indicated by the breed standard.

    • 6

      Look at the dog's waistline. Judged from the side, there should be an obvious upward tapering of the body from the ribs to the stomach. Looking from the top, the waistline should be narrower between the chest section and the hips but should not appear "hollow."

    • 7

      Examine your dog's muscles. Although some breeds are more muscular than others, in a healthy dog there should be clearly defined muscles at the thighs and across the front of the chest.

    • 8

      Take note of the dog's behavior. Dogs that are less than three years of age are usually very energetic and often remain active. Dogs from three-to-seven years are a little more mellow, and dogs older than seven are calmer. If your dog is young and slender but less active, make sure it is getting sufficient food for the fuel its body needs.