My girlie is overweight :(

I had to take my Rottie to the vet last night so I decided to take Cheyenne with me just to see if her weight was ok...............OH DEAR.

I put her on the scale and to my horror she weighed an astounding 18.82 KG!!! that is waaaayyyy overweight BUT she don't look overweight which I just don't get .

What is the optimum weight for a female staffy???? I have looked on the web but every one is different

I also have the issue of my rottie is on restricted exercise due to pulling her shoulder muscle and don't have time to walk the dogs seperate. Why does life throw these things at us ????

If it's an exercise issue you you not walk them together and take your Rottie back to the house and than continue with the Staffy?

That being said if you can see the last two ribs that is perfect if you can easily fell them that is okay as well

They're all different. The breed standard says maximum 15 kilos for a bitch, but if you ahve a large bitch then she'll weigh more than that!

There are two ways to get the weight off her
1. reduce treats/food
2. more exercise

I've always preferred the more exercise choice, but there are times when that isn't practical! If you have to reduce her food, start with the 'extras' - treats, tid-bits etc. Cut out all human food & reduce treats - maybe get low fat treats instead. If that doesn't make a difference then reduce her food slightly, just a few grams at a time until she reaches her optimum weight. You'll then need to increase slightly to maintain that weght.

Good luck!

Also you can use vegetables as treats as they are low cal

Can you feel her ribs without pressing down? Does she go in at the waist? If so shes not overweight just big built. My boys like 24kg and people are telling me he looks fat in photos, well I wish these people would meet him in rl because hes completely rock hard muscle, he has a lot of loose skin that makes him look bigger. I've never had anyone else accuse him of being overweight and the vet thinks he looks fantastic-did your vet comment at all?
What I suggest if she is is that you play fetch with her on walks, if she doesn't like fetch then try her with a flirt pole. You can tie the rottie up while you play with her (sounds a bit mean now!) or you can drop her at home first.

Exersize is key if your worried. Mines anywhere between 19-21kg, but she hasn't an ounce of fat on her

My Ty is betwwen 17-18.5kg and he is a lean mucseled machine lol kaos is anywhere between 22-24kg and is a tad on the "chunkier side" lol

Caryll wrote:They're all different. The breed standard says maximum 15 kilos for a bitch, but if you ahve a large bitch then she'll weigh more than that!

There are two ways to get the weight off her
1. reduce treats/food
2. more exercise

I've always preferred the more exercise choice, but there are times when that isn't practical! If you have to reduce her food, start with the 'extras' - treats, tid-bits etc. Cut out all human food & reduce treats - maybe get low fat treats instead. If that doesn't make a difference then reduce her food slightly, just a few grams at a time until she reaches her optimum weight. You'll then need to increase slightly to maintain that weght.

Good luck!

Thanks for that. She is on low fat treats and I do not give her human food BUT my fiance admitted to me this morning that he would sneak her food because he thought she deserved treats !!!! and then the kids admitted "dropping food" so the dogs got some.

I can feel her ribs quite easily but they are not visible, is it true with dogs like it is with humans and muscle weighs more than fat?? I know when I had her weighed before she looked fat and could not feel her ribs at all.

shakespearesdog wrote:Can you feel her ribs without pressing down? Does she go in at the waist? If so shes not overweight just big built. My boys like 24kg and people are telling me he looks fat in photos, well I wish these people would meet him in rl because hes completely rock hard muscle, he has a lot of loose skin that makes him look bigger. I've never had anyone else accuse him of being overweight and the vet thinks he looks fantastic-did your vet comment at all?
What I suggest if she is is that you play fetch with her on walks, if she doesn't like fetch then try her with a flirt pole. You can tie the rottie up while you play with her (sounds a bit mean now!) or you can drop her at home first.

I have tried those and she has no interest at all ( she has 0 prey drive, which is good seeing how i have kids!). It was the vet nurse that said the diet was not working because her weight had increased. No one else has said shes fat and I can feel her ribs without pressing down. She has a waist more than she did now and unlike alot of staffys around my area which look eithe fat or amaciated she looks athletic, She was spayed so has loose skin on her underbelly. She walks normally and does not waddle

a vet once told me that if your dog needs to lose weight , take away a third of what you would normally feed them, and make up the rest with grated carrot..fills them up but no calories!

also a raw carrot makes a great snack instead of a biscuit or bone.

I have tried those and she has no interest at all ( she has 0 prey drive, which is good seeing how i have kids!). It was the vet nurse that said the diet was not working because her weight had increased. No one else has said shes fat and I can feel her ribs without pressing down. She has a waist more than she did now and unlike alot of staffys around my area which look eithe fat or amaciated she looks athletic, She was spayed so has loose skin on her underbelly. She walks normally and does not waddle

I suggest instead of buying treats for her you get her raw bones to gnaw on, these are low fat and she'll still enjoy them. Try and walk her more then your rotty if you have the time. Some dogs are bigger then others, personally I think staffies should be stocky and muscular and not sinewy and lean, thats apbt. How tall is she?

My girl is a stocky 20kg but she is not fat she's all muscle

I am starting to think that she's just built this way. She's not the shortest staff I have seen but not the tallest either. She won't let me measure her for some strange reason. I would guess she's about 17 inches.

I cut her food down when I first got her weighed I just think that maybe it's converted to muscle so is a bit heavier ( I hope anyway ) I might try the grated carrot though seeing how she used to steal my pony's carrotts out of his feeds

well scarlett went to vets today she is 11 weeks and weighs 40.3 ounche (which apperently is perfect) and you can she her ribs but she eats her meals and shes never hungry

I have just taken mine to the vet because i though she was ill because she looked really thin to me. He said that i was probably just used to her being overweight and thought that is how she should be when in actual fact she is better NOW than she was. He said that she could do with a 1/2 kg more on her cause she lost weight when we were on holiday (pining i assume) but when sh has that weight on her she will be up to 17kg which for her size will be ideal.

It depends what type of Staffy she is:

The breed standard can be found here (EDIT: Link removed, another staffy website) which says bitches 11- 15.4 kgs (24 - 34 lbs).

But if she's one of the larger types then obviously she will be weightier.

I have just had a dog overweight. To get her down I changed her diet to Science Plan Light. No 'children' treats (which meant I had to have serious words with the children explaining how 'treating' her was in fact harming her). For treats she gets the odd apple or carrot.

You'll get the 'melting eyes' when on a diet that say 'give me more food' but stay strong its for her benefit. Measure her food out exactly.

I increased her exercise to 3 and then 5 miles a day and she does 2 miles on the treadmill.

Not only has her weight dropped but she is far more agile than she was, lively and happy.

She continues to be on a diet until we reach the ideal weight for her size and then I will readjust the diet accordingly.

Give your dog more protein, less carbs and more exercise. You will need to adapt the routine. That was a good idea above. Take them both out but return earlier than normal drop the Rotty off and carry on with your Staffy.

[quote="Orange"]It depends what type of Staffy she is:

The breed standard can be found here (EDIT: Link removed, another staffy website) which says bitches 11- 15.4 kgs (24 - 34 lbs).

But if she's one of the larger types then obviously she will be weightier.

I have just had a dog overweight. To get her down I changed her diet to Science Plan Light. No 'children' treats (which meant I had to have serious words with the children explaining how 'treating' her was in fact harming her). For treats she gets the odd apple or carrot.

You'll get the 'melting eyes' when on a diet that say 'give me more food' but stay strong its for her benefit. Measure her food out exactly.

I increased her exercise to 3 and then 5 miles a day and she does 2 miles on the treadmill.

Not only has her weight dropped but she is far more agile than she was, lively and happy.

She continues to be on a diet until we reach the ideal weight for her size and then I will readjust the diet accordingly.

Give your dog more protein, less carbs and more exercise. You will need to adapt the routine. That was a good idea above. Take them both out but return earlier than normal drop the Rotty off and carry on with your Staffy. [/I love the idea of a treadmill as Roxie never tires, even if she has 10 miles a day ]

What you have to remember is that the height of a dog will increase the optimum weight.

Tilly is quite small and weighs in at 17kg at the moment vet thinks 16.6 is good for her but she is stocky, although nothing like some that I've seen , she's more like a slightly athletic tank than a bruiser