# Confused and a bit insulted



## SusiQ (Jul 27, 2007)

I went to watch a show put on by our local Ohio German Shepherd Club - it was held 5 minutes from my home and I was simply interested in watching. I was appalled at what I saw - dogs with EVERY and I mean EVERY rib sticking out - like the starving dogs I've seen on Petfinder. I admit I do not show my dogs - they are family pets only - but it was pitiful. I had my Raven with me to watch - she is definitely not overweight - and I had some lady tell me that she was "too big" because her ribs were not sticking out.

Raven's father was a champion, but I never had any desire to have her be anything but a pet. This same lady told me that if she can't see all her dog's ribs - she simply withholds the food - poor dog! It might have been "the standard," but it made me sick. I guess that scene would definitely not be for me. I'm still shocked at what I saw.


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## Branca's Mom (Mar 26, 2003)

I <u>want</u> to see the last couple ribs on my dogs and I want to see a nice tuck up. I think that if all the ribs are prominently sticking out that is not good. However, seeing the ribs slightly while the dog is in motion is not a bad thing. Most people keep their dogs WAY overweight.


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## Keegan62 (Aug 17, 2008)

thats disgusting I like to see a little meat on mine and mine is a pet also... I would report them


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## allieg (Nov 4, 2008)

I like them to be rib free.I think that can be accomplished without the dog being over weight.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

it's happening all over. You should have seen some of the horses yesterday at the show. I would have been embarrassed to even think about taking a horse with bones showing in public but not these ppl.


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## ArmyGSD (Apr 27, 2009)

A few lower/end ribs are ok on movement like Branca's Mom said, but to see them all is just malnutrition. I feel for those poor dogs.


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## crackem (Mar 29, 2006)

i'm sorry, if I can't see the ribs of my dogs when they're moving around I withold some food too. I expect to be able to see my ribs as well and can withhold food from myself as well. you should be able to see some ribs even if the dog is standing still.

I'm no fan of Purina, but there dog food study does show some impt things. If a group of dogs fed amounts to maintain an "ideal" standard lived on average almost 2 years LESS than another large group of dogs fed 25% less, I'd say less is more and most owners are killing their dogs prematurely. Other changes noted were

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11991...Pubmed_RVDocSum

"Compared with control dogs, food-restricted dogs weighed less and had lower body fat content and lower serum triglycerides, triiodothyronine, insulin, and glucose concentrations. Median life span was significantly longer for dogs in which food was restricted. The onset of clinical signs of chronic disease generally was delayed for food-restricted dogs. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results suggest that 25% restriction in food intake increased median life span and delayed the onset of signs of chronic disease in these dogs."


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## Sashmom (Jun 5, 2002)

eee gads, now we have anorexic dog look, too

a lean dog is nice but not every rib showing no no and NO


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## crackem (Mar 29, 2006)

a lean shepherd when moving around will show a lot of ribs and the type coat makes a big difference too.


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## SusiQ (Jul 27, 2007)

Believe me, this dog had PROTRUDING ribs - it reminded me of patients we dealt with at the hospital (I am a dietitian) that had anorexia or bulemia. That poor dog's head looked too large for its body because the body fat % was so low. Look on Petfinder for the dogs that have been starved - that is exactly what I saw.


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## Branca's Mom (Mar 26, 2003)

Well that's a shame. I have noticed at the specialty shows that the dogs seem to be more extreme....


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I don't mind ribs but when a dog is out of condition and/or starving it will also appear so, no muscle, poor coat, hips and vertebrae protruding. 

I can see my own ribs and I'm not starving or anorexic.


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## ArmyGSD (Apr 27, 2009)

Poor dog. Are human standards of top models now coming down to our dogs? What a shame that this perosn believes that every rib must be prodominant in showing. Maybe someone needs to take away all of her food untill we can see all of her ribs. (No offense Liesje) This lady definately does not know how to care for an animal.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

You should not be seeing all of the ribs on a dog, especially a dog that is just standing still, and you should not be seeing the vertebrae of the spine or the hip bones protruding a whole lot.

However, it's perfectly fine and healthy to see the last one or two ribs on a dog, especially when the dog is moving or panting hard. That is actually preferable to having a dog where you cannot see any of the ribs or where you can't see a clear tuck of the stomach or, when looking from above, a "waist" between the ribcage and hips.

Some of it also has to do with the dog's coat. Sables, for example, tend to look a lot ribbier than they are, because their fur coloration makes every contour show just so much more. And dogs with thick, fluffy coats tend to look heavier than they actually are.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: MP's GSDPoor dog. Are human standards of top models now coming down to our dogs? What a shame that this perosn believes that every rib must be prodominant in showing. Maybe someone needs to take away all of her food untill we can see all of her ribs. (No offense Liesje) This lady definately does not know how to care for an animal.


No offense taken, but we didn't see what the OP saw so maybe we are being overly critical. People have made similar comments about my dogs and you cannot see ALL the ribs on any of them, nor their backbones or hips. Some people see a little rib and their mind exaggerates.

Also the coat type should be taken into account. Coke was at one point my thinnest dog but he has a huge, fluffy coat. We thought he weighed 85lbs and were absolutely astonished when the vet said 65lbs. The first time he went swimming and got wet I saw how thin he was, even though people always called him "wide" because of his structure and coat. Kenya on the other hand is a short, very tight coated sable and shows more rib even when she weighs more than Coke (and she is smaller than him by several inches). She also has a real GSD barrel chest, look at her from the top and her chest sticks out wider than Coke or my male GSD puppy and yet she often is showing rib.

There's nothing inherently unhealthy about a little rib, in dogs and humans. There's also nothing inherently unhealthy about not seeing rib. We can't expect all dogs to be within a 5 pound range to be healthy. I like to see a little rib in motion, but my dogs do performance events and it IS unhealth to be jumping, running, and turning with unnecessary weight.


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## Xeph (Jun 19, 2005)

And did you attend an all breed show or a specialty? Specialty dogs tend to be much thinner, both in build and in the way they are fed. They tend towards lacking chest, and thus have no "body"


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Was it the show in N. Ridgeville? I was there. Some pretty skinny dog won something, and I said, that skinny dog won??? 

My friend hushed me though. 

I did not think most of them were way underweight though. 

If I see a rib or two, good. If I see more than that I start worrying. When I worry I try to feed more. When I feed more poo gets runny. When poo is runny, they get skinnier!!! When poo is runny, I back down on food and poo gets better. 

I have tested Ms. Whitney for thyroid and EPI and she has neither. She is just plain skinny. Do not call animal control on me. I am doing everything in my power to put weight on her. The idea of showing her like that is kind of embarrasing.










When she moves I can see every rib


















I am not sure if you can see by these pictures though. 

However, my dogs generally have rib cages that turn out, some of the specialty dogs seem slab sided and do not have much width to them, for a dog whose rib cage is rather flat to be showing rib sounds pretty gruesome.


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## Branca's Mom (Mar 26, 2003)

I sure don't consider that dog pictured too thin, not at all....


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## Doc (Jan 13, 2009)

Ribs or no ribs, Ms. Whitney is a babe!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Thanks, but I should get a shot from the top maybe. Her hip bones on her back can be easily felt, but not her spinal column. I just do not like seeing as much rib as I have been seeing. 

My vet assures me that he will go up to bat for me with the dog warden if they lodge a complaint on her. Fat chance anyway.

Around here, though, people do tend to let their dogs be fat. The dogs waddle into the vet's office and it makes me sad. Maybe being fat makes me not want my dogs to suffer from the effects. I am not talking about ribs not showing, I am talking about no waistline at all, actually very few difining features of the dog. My vets tell me that it is much better for the dogs to be on the skinny side that overweight at all.


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## SusiQ (Jul 27, 2007)

The show was in North Ridgeville. Not all the dogs were skinny - I was referring to the dog owned by the lady who made comments to me about my dog. Her dog looked starved, even when standing still - she said smething about him needing to look like a "picket fence" at all times. Well, he looked like a fence - but not a healthy dog. Her attitude reminded me of a canine "stage mom."

A friend of mine who breeds and shows was there - she is a member of the club - she told me that there are always a few "know it alls." I was more concerned about the poor dog.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

> Quote: I guess that scene would definitely not be for me.





> Quote:Not all the dogs were skinny - I was referring to the dog owned by the lady who made comments to me about my dog. [....] there are always a few "know it alls."


Tis true (that last comment). Don't let one person get you down. She is definitely not a representation of the "scene".


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

There were two different clubs having shows in N. Ridgeville that day. I am a member of the club that had the earlier show. I agree with there being a few dogs there that were skinny. The one was a K9, but he had just been diagnosed with a problem -- I talked with his handler a bit. The other I was a bit surprised by, but my comments were hushed by a friend and older member of the club than me. 

If you were around for a while, I was the one with the two crazy puppies in the back of my vehicle that barked every time someone with a dog walked by. The puppies are going to protect my belongings from dogs anyway. 

I am glad that you came to the show. Don't let it get you down. Dog people are a weird breed.


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