On Appropriate Weight for your GSD or; Your Dog is Fat

[2daughters]

I originally posted this a bit over a year ago, but seeing as there have been some weight discussions happening more frequently here lately, I thought it might be worth posting again.

(I get that I'm probably going to be lambasted here for this post.. but take the following with a grain of salt.)

I'm a frequent visitor and sometimes contributor to this sub and I've been noticing something the last little while.. a lot of your dogs are overweight.

Yeah, I know.. it's taboo to say things like that. People tend to get offended at a comment like this about their dogs almost as quickly as if the comment was being lobbed at themselves. But as more and more pictures of unhealthy dogs show up, I'm finding it harder and harder to not comment about the weight of these dogs... so, if you're still with me, here's some information you can take or leave at your pleasure.

Our dogs depend on us to be responsible for them. To give them a good life and help them lead a healthy lifestyle. To watch out for them and help them be a part of our lives as long as they can. I think we can all agree that a dog that looks like this is carrying "a little extra". But even dogs that look like this are pushing it.

See this chart over at petcarerx.com. Does your dog fit into the 4-5 category? It should. You can look here if you want more detail. If your dog doesn't have a long-haired coat, you should be able to see a little bit of ribs sometimes, especially when they're running or laying on their side (GSDs are a "ribby" breed). You should be able to see that nice tuck in their abdomen and a little bit of hip bone. The definition/dip between their hips and stomach should be visible. This and this are what you're aiming for. A couple more examples.

(2016 Edit: I took the liberty of uploading a couple pictures of one of my bitches that were taken today. Find them in this imgur gallery.)

If your dog is actually at this healthy weight, you'll get your fair share of "your dog is too skinny!" and "are you actually feeding that thing?".. sometimes even from your own vet! People have gotten used to seeing this breed overweight, so dogs at the actual, correct weight can look out of place. Don't let that make you feel guilty. And I'm not here to tell you that it's not ok for your dog to be big. While I prefer sheps that meet the standards, I get that there are dogs out there that are 100lbs and the perfect weight for their structure. I also get that there are dogs out there that are 100lbs and should be 85. Please remember that you have a breed that is more prone to hip problems and excess weight on those joints does not help over time. Also, just like in humans, excess weight can cause other health problems and just plain shortens life spans.

I'm not trying to be abrasive here.. just hoping to show a few people what to look for and only for the sake of your pets. If you can't see ribs and you can't see a tuck, it might be time to take a look at Deisel's diet.

/soapbox

 

[sam26]

@2daughters

Gets on soapbox about weight while using examples of dogs in a forced stack which displays how we've bred them to be full of hip/back issues.

Good post with good info...just find that a bit ironic.

If your dog is actually at this healthy weight, you'll get your fair share of "your dog is too skinny!" and "are you actually feeding that thing?"

Yea, people have lost their sense of what a healthy weight is. Plus you have the issue that owners want to force their thoughts/opinions on their dog like it's how things should be. A good example is food. People see things like liver, by products, "xxx meal" and they freak out just because it doesn't sound palatable to them. In reality though, there is nothing wrong with those ingredients at all.

In a lot of cases owners need to take a step back and realize that the health needs of their pet don't perfectly align with what they think is "healthy".

Also, just like in humans, excess weight can cause other health problems and just plain shortens life spans.

Exactly. It's always better to be too thin than to be too big.

 

[2daughters]

@sam26

Gets on soapbox about weight while using examples of dogs in a forced stack which displays how we've bred them to be full of hip/back issues.

Good post with good info...just find that a bit ironic.

First off, a lot of the photos are field stacks, not forced stacks. You don't see a lot of conformation rings, do you?

Second, I don't disagree with you on some of the photos, but realize that most of the working line photos are built almost exactly like the progenitors of the breed.

As to the other photos - I figured it was the best way to show both weight and show it in something that would look like some redditor's dogs. I'm not a big fan at all of overdone toplines, but one step at a time At least weight is something people can change on their current dogs

 

[emxcore]

@2daughters My German shepherd is about 55 lbs. Her hips were x-rayed when she was two, and she was found to have poor hip structure and have a high risk of developing dysplasia. She's nine now, and she has yet to develop any signs of dysplasia or show any pain. My vet credits her healthy hips to her low weight!

 

[foundwandering]

@2daughters I never heard the term until we were at the dog park but our GSD is a 'giant GSD.' She's 105 pounds, looks like she's a big dog, but by no means fat. Unfortunately, she does have bad hips (and elbows). Her long hair does cover her up quite well.

I haven't seen it too much on here but we have a few fat GSDs in our neighborhood. It is really sad.

 

[2daughters]

@foundwandering I'm sorry to hear about the health problems. It's never easy

"Oversized" and "fat" are two different issues, though both problematic. A lot of times, people can't help the shape of the dog they already own - they're going to grow into their genetic potential range. Dogs that are too big for their actual frames though? That can be fixed

While the above post focuses on the "fat dog" problem, there are a lot of pet GSDs out there that are just plain being bred too big. It doesn't do their joints, bones, or hearts any justice when that happens. Unfortunately, it's one of the fads that negatively affects the breed and seems to be getting more common.

Here is the current breed standard if anyone's interested. Weight/height info is about 2/3s down that page. You can see from those sizes that a lot of what we see is just too damned big.

 

[foundwandering]

@2daughters I agree! Its not fair to the animals or the families adopting. We love our GSD though and wouldn't trade her for anything.

 

[sam26]

@foundwandering Any idea on her lineage? If it can be traced back to Europe relatively recently she could be mixed with something else.

There are several "breeds" out there such as the king shepherd that came about from taking GSD's from the larger side of the spectrum and cross breeding them with other large shepherd breeds.

 

[hoahtx]

@foundwandering I too have a "giant" 120-pound GSD, and his vet tells me that he could be a King Shepherd. He certainly looks like your textbook black and tan GSD, just bigger and without the sloped stance. He was found as a stray and the rescue I adopted him from didn't have any paperwork or a microchip to identify his previous owner or where he came from.

He's a BIG dog for sure, but he's only gotten a couple comments from passersby that he's "fat". We do plenty of exercise together and he's full of energy, but I don't ever see him getting as thin as some of the GSDs that OP posted.

Here's a recent photo of him. What do you think?

 

[2daughters]

@hoahtx So that's an example.. he's overweight. He's not FAT, not OBESE, but he's not ideal, either. Without seeing him in person, I'd say he could stand to shed 5-10lbs.

I also don't know that he's purebred, which might be throwing it off, too. There's something about the way he's set up (look at both the withers and his hips) that screams "mix" to me. In which case, maybe his weight is ideal and it's just his frame.

 

[foundwandering]

@hoahtx To be honest, I've seen fat GSDs and that dog doesn't look like one of them in my opinion!

 

[hester708]

@foundwandering My dog is also giant. He is a very lean 95lbs. He does, unfortunately, have mild dysplasia as well. I have him on supplements, joint diet, and exercises. I actually work at a canine rehabilitation clinic and it is really hard to see what these dogs struggle with. It is never too late to work with your pet's diet.