What is standard weight for a female?

[anna&jacksmom]

I looked at the akc page and didn't find a weight I found a height. My girl is spayed and will not be bred. She is suffering from HD and her markings aren't perfect but WE love her very much. I am just wondering what the standard says her weight should be. Is it ok to keep her on the lighter side to help out her hips as long as she doesn't look too skinny? If she had it her way she would eat all the time but I want to keep her as comfortable as possible for as long as possible. I just don't want to hurt her health by making her too skinny either. She weighs 76 pounds right now and is 15 months old. The vet says she is a "great weight" but she should fill out some. Can I keep her right about 76 or should I let her gain a little weight as she gets older?

[rottnkidd]

Hi Emily - According to the American Rottweiler Club, the wt for
females standing 22"-25" at the shoulder should be around
80-100#. Every dog is different, depending on genetics. Some grow larger, some stay within the standard, and some fall short of it. It's much healthier for your dog to be on the lean side, and alot less stress on the bones. I certainly wouldn't restrict the
recommended amount of food you're feeding. If she can use a bit of weight, then let her have a bit more. Just keep a close eye on her, exercise her daily, and enjoy her to bits! Many rotties don't really start 'filling out' till their about 2-3 yrs of age. My girl has really started muscling up this year, and she's close to 2 and a 1/2 yrs.
kathy

[fbkeays]

My bitch is also pet quality. She was spayed at 9 months and is now nearly seven. She has been at 85 pounds since she was about 1 1/2 old. When she had knee surgery at the begining of the year, I dropped her down to 80-82 pounds. On the few occasiions she has crept up to 90, she looked FAT! Misty is 24 1/2 inches tall at the shoulder, so she is a big girl. At 85 pounds she is not fat, but she doesn't looked starved either(she did at 80 lbs). I wouldn't worry what the standard says or what the scale says. I would look at her and feel her. If you have to really hunt for those ribs, either increase her exercise or decrease her food. If you can see all of her ribs while she is running around, add a bit to her food. A leaner dog is a healthier dog, especially if she has HD.

[livertw]

My spayed female furgrrrrrrrl is tall and thin and long and lean. She is 26" tall and weighs 85 pounds. She looks wonderful! She will be two years old in a week or so and over the past year has grown 2 inches taller and gained ten pounds. She seems to be fully grown now, and I want to keep her weight under 90. :p

[Grendl]

Years ago I had a male Malamute with HD. At age 4 he weiged 110 lbs, and was a rangy build. I took him to UGA Veterinary college for an opinion, and aside from recommending him for total hip replacement surgery, they suggested I get his weight down to 90 lbs, no exercise off the leash, no running, no jumping. But he was to get daily walks to keep the muscles that support the hip strong. And the arthritis that had formed on the bad joint would probably give him more day to day problems than the HD, and the arthritis would only get worse. We did all of the above, (not the surgery) and Thunder lived a happy, if sedentary life to the age of 13 1/2. I did finally have him euthanized as a result of the hip deteriorating rather quickly.

[RottieGirl86]

Sasha came to us after heart wurm surgery ( long story) and was 75 lbs. Very underweigth for her size. She topped max. 95 lbs. , per Vet advice, we leaned her back down to 85 lbs.

She stayed that weight till she passed.

Most books I read, have stated as long as you cannot *see* the ribs, but feel them, they are a proper weight. No idea exactly how accurate that is, but seems to work good.

[Sharon Marples]

This was on another post in this same section:

http://www.placervillevet.com/canin...20condition.htm

You can go to this website to see info on how your dog should look and how to determine if her weight is ok.

What we have always gone by is that if you place your hand lightly on their ribcage, you should be able to feel the ribs if you press lightly. If you cannot feel them, she is too heavy. If you can feel them without pressing at all, she could probably use a few pounds.

Sharon