Are my dogs underweight.

[JayBee612]

So I adopted my first border collie in October. Besides my mini poodle this is my first pet. In February I adopted a 2nd border collie/aussie mix. I can feel both of my dogs bones although you can't see them.

Are my dogs underweight? I have thought they were fine, but friends and family have made comments.

Anthony was found as a stray at about 1 year old, the family I adopted him from, had him until he turned 3ish.

When I first got him another border collie owner said he looks lean or skinny compared to hers. I thought nothing of it, she was a bigger lady and I'm a lean man. I just thought the dogs took the shape of their owners.

Both are very active dog, we bike anywhere from 5-20 miles, up to 3 times a week. We also play fetch and go for walks.

My other dog Jay is a Border Collie/Aussie Mix. He has the border collie shoulder blades, he also has the border collie tail. (Aussie have small hidden tails)

Jay I adopted this February, he was in a abusive, neglectful home. When I got him he was a good 25-30 pounds over weight. He was also really dyhadrated , with neon pee. He wouldn't drink water, I would put kibble or beef broth in the water to make him drink. He also stayed in an overly excited state over mind. This combined with him being over weight caused heavy breathing/panting. (so loud, words can't describe)

Anthony has gotten a little bigger, Jay has gotten a lot smaller. Both dogs have made a ton of progress and have a lot of energy. (We bike 15-60 miles a week not including walks and play time)

Check out the pics and let me know what you think.

Anthony: Black, White, Brown

 

Jay: Black and Grey

[Smalahundur]

 

 

Are my dogs underweight? I have thought they were fine, but friends and family have made comments.

 

Though difficult to say from your pics your dogs are probably fine.

What the general public thinks is a healthy weight is usually way too fat.

[chene]

I remember someone saying (maybe on this board) that if you hold your hand out flat and feel your knuckles from the top, that's how the dogs ribs will feel if he's healthy weight. Now make a fist and feel your knuckles. Those are the ribs on an underweight dog. Now turn your hand over and feel your knuckles from the palm side of your hand. That's how an overweight dog's ribs feel (that is, you can't feel them). Generally I've found this technique is pretty damn accurate. There is also a good thread called "what a healthy dog looks like" on th boars that you might find helpful. I can't link now, I'm on my phone, but I will later.

[Tess's Girl]

Though difficult to say from your pics your dogs are probably fine.

What the general public thinks is a healthy weight is usually way too fat.

 

I agree. I get people telling me all the time that Tess is too skinny, but she's in excellent shape.

 

Here's the thread Chene mentioned, you might find it helpful:

 

http://www.bordercollie.org/boards/index.php?showtopic=7572&hl=%2Bhealthy+%2Bweight&do=findComment&comment=81916

[GentleLake]

The best way to tell if your dog is a good weight is to put your hands on him and feel. You should easily be able to feel ribs and spinal protrusions.

 

Here's a body condition chart that vets often post in their offices: http://vet.osu.edu/v...n-scoring-chart

 

The thing to remember, though is that border collies should be on the lean end of this chart. The chart's good as a guideline, but a normal, healthy sighthound would rate emaciated using it. Border collies aren't as extreme as sighthounds (well, some young dogs can be!), but healthy condition for them is definitely leaner than many dogs. You want to be in the 2 to 3 (max) range.

[RemsMom]

I agree that most people are so used to overwieght dogs that they have no idea what a dog should look like.

 

My Border Collie is still a puppy so I haven't had anyone comment about her weight or how I feed her. With my German Shepherd whenever someone asks me how much I feed him I think "Here we go again". I can't tell you how many times I have been told I don't feed my dog enough food. When I say he is at an ideal weight people still think I must be underfeeding him because they feed their dog so much more and it is a smaller breed of dog. I try to be polite so I don't tell them that their dog is really, really FAT!

[simba]

Pet sitters/family minding my dog for the weekend get told my dog gets more than she actually does (the labrador I posted a pic of elsewhere). Otherwise I get reproachful looks and they start telling me the poor thing is starving.

 

She's going to get fed more than I feed her when I'm away anyway, I might as well avoid the guilt-tripping. I think some of my friends are getting close to staging an intervention... Pot-bellied is the usual look 'round here, spayed females look very very pregnant. I don't say this to those people for fear of offending them, I don't see why they can't follow the same rule.

[CMP]

I am lucky to get Molly to eat a cup and a half of food every day and I often have to add something especially yummy to get her to eat at anything approaching a regular schedule.

 

And still people say "What a chubby little puppy!" and I have stopped telling them that all BC puppies look a little like bears. When I tell people what I feed her they look at me like I am Cruella Deville in the flesh!

 

Our working dogs (raw meat/veggie fed) are all extremely fit and healthy and most people say they look "skinny".

 

I agree that many pet people wouldn't know a fit dog if it hit them in the face and I, for one, find it hilarious that someone with a very fat, very unfit, panting, drooling mess of a dog that needs lifting into a chair, wants to tell me to feed my dog more. I would rather NOT have a panting, drooling, fat mess that I have to lift into a chair - I prefer a dog that can get into the chair, get out of the chair and move the chair to the shade, if necessary

 

Your dogs look fine to me. Although the cues are certainly partially visual, the real clue is in performance fitness. Do they have enough metabolic energy to regularly and properly do the task(s) which are part of their life? If the answer is yes, then they are getting enough food.

 

A dog that can run 40 or 50 miles in a week seems to have the right nutritional base.

 

YMMV, of course. I amnot a vet nor do I play one on television. :/

[CMP]

I remember someone saying (maybe on this board) that if you hold your hand out flat and feel your knuckles from the top, that's how the dogs ribs will feel if he's healthy weight. Now make a fist and feel your knuckles. Those are the ribs on an underweight dog. Now turn your hand over and feel your knuckles from the palm side of your hand. That's how an overweight dog's ribs feel (that is, you can't feel them). Generally I've found this technique is pretty damn accurate. There is also a good thread called "what a healthy dog looks like" on th boars that you might find helpful. I can't link now, I'm on my phone, but I will later.

That's an excellent piece of information! Thanks for that.

[border_collie_crazy]

I admit...I am not shy about calling dogs fat lol. I work in a dog kennel and if a staff member comes in just starting there shift(so they don't know who the dogs are) and I need them to fetch an owners dog, they wont know who it is, so I will describe it...right in front of the dogs owners.. "hey can you go in that area and grab the fat grey poodle?" lol when I openly say stuff like that I usually find the owner is actually very interested in learning what a healthy weight is and they put there dog on a diet and regularly come back just to ask me how their dog is looking. most people WANT their dog healthy, they are just so used to seeing fat dogs that they assume that is what's normal.

 

gotta love the people who assume I don't know what a healthy weight is just "because" I work in a dog kennel though! I have been chewed out by working dog owners, when I have informed them that we needed to increase their dogs food to maintain the healthy weight they were at while staying at the kennel. they start yelling at me about how I just don't know what a healthy weight is yadda yadda... I just cut them all with "I have had competitive sport dogs almost my entire life, I am well aware of the difference between healthy and conditioned and too thin" followed by a compliment about how great their dogs looked upon intake lol

 

that said, its hard to tell from the pics, but they look great from what I can tell!

[nancy]

Most everyone but the vet have told me that Fergie, then, or Dixie, now, is too thin. The vets have always praised us for keeping our dogs at healthy weights.

[simba]

Border_collie_crazy, can you come live near me? I am looking for someone to do an over-the-top "Oh what a nice NORMAL-WEIGHT dog you have, who you are certainly not starving!" comment near my friends.