[Ayoka]

Originally Posted by hcelsa

*To check the neck, press your thumb and index finger deep into the side of the neck just ahead of the shoulder, and pinch them together. If your fingers are more than 1/2" apart, the dog is overweight. (Note: this is where old dogs tend to carry most of their excess fat, and they may actually be thin in other locations.)
*To check the ribs, stand with your dog beside you, facing his butt. Place your thumb on the middle of his spine half way down the back and spread your fingers out over his last few ribs. Then run your fingers up and down along his skin. You should be able to feel the bumps of his ribs without pressing in.
*To check the hips, run your hand over your dog's croup. You should be able to feel the bumps of his two pelvic bones without pressing down.

This is great, I think I saw it on the Chris Zink website...it's so true that dogs carry wiegth differently and that a dog with a heavier front may be seen as a big strong dog when in fact he may be overweight. It's sneaky but when petting other dogs I check the ribs and the hip bones out. A lot of dogs have the ribs but the hips are less obvious.