# Is my puppy chunky?



## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Hello all, after browsing the forums I’ve begun wondering if my seven month old male pup is too chunky? I am not sure how tall he is, how can I measure him at home? He was 60 lbs a month ago but not 100% on what he is now as I do not have a scale. His sire is a WGSL and his dam a Czech/DDR, both were around the 80 lbs range.

He is otherwise a very happy, playful and active puppy. He gets a couple hours of exercise roaming my mountainous back yard almost every day. He has very thick bone also! I feed him four cups a day plus fresh toppers. I just want to do right by him, thank you in advance.


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## Gregc (Aug 10, 2012)

Looks big, but not too heavy, to my eye.


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## Darius Castillo (Nov 15, 2018)

looks pretty average weight to me. As long as he gets his exercise in. He will poop out a majority of the food. 

I run my puppy 5month old 4-5 miles on soft dirt, every other day. She's working towards being able to do 8-10 mile runs beside me on workout days, and eventually the elite 15-20 miles.


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

He's heavier than I like to keep mine, but not obese by any means. When they're young and still developing is the most important time to keep them on the lean side! You should see a very definite tummy tuck near the hind quarters, and I like to see at least a couple of ribs in the back part of the rib cage when viewed in motion from the side. If it were me, I'd cut back a little on his daily caloric intake...


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## clipke (Nov 14, 2017)

There's several users here with above breed standard GSDs. It's not uncommon. My dog for example, as well as Chuck's dog Rollo. I think as long as you can see a few ribs, he's not having any mobility issues, and he appears to be healthy, you don't really have anything to worry about. He'll likely be 10-15lbs above standard at adult weight, but you should indeed focus on trying to keep him lean for his joints sake. Jax is floating around 125lbs right now, but more than half of his ribs are visible. Just don't want any excess weight to tax his joints. He's likely eating a bit too much though. My dogs are 120+ and eat 4-5 cups daily of high protein food. They're a good 50-60lbs heavier, so you might want to cut back on at least half a cup to a cup. If I were you, I'd aim for higher quality protein as puppies tend to need more, but cut down on the overall calories.


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## Mei (Mar 30, 2018)

atomic said:


> I am not sure how tall he is, how can I measure him at home?


Dont quote me on this but I think you're supposed to stand him up next to a wall and measure max height from the withers. Which I think is the very tip top of the front leg shoulder blade bone. Dont measure from top of his head. 

I give my girl 3 cups of kibble a day with about a 1/4th serving of your standard sized wet food. She's on the smaller side, which I really like! Only 60lbs at a year now. Yours being DDR lineage I'm sure will be much larger at maturity. What others have said about ribs and what not is great advice. 

Hows his temperament? DDRs are so chill and relaxed. Nothing phases them!


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## Jenny720 (Nov 21, 2014)

He looks real good it’s kind of hard to see. Beautiful photos! The rule I think as mentioned to see or easily feel the last two ribs. Taking a photo at level and one standing above the dog to see the waist. Weight varies on height , confirmation , bone. My asl male a is 4 years old and is 84lbs or maybe even more very tall muscular he is neutered. He was 70lbs at seven months. Then weight to put on slowed down - it was 10lbs per month until then. I feed him three cups a day either Fromm or victor with toppers. My wgsl female is two years old 65lbs and eats the same. Both in great shape- my female still has the lanky teenage body. With almost two acres to run on daily which they do tire each other out on a daily steady basis and that is not including my outings which are not always daily. My ddr gsd had thick bone -massive giant head and yes he was super steady calm. he put on weight very easily and was intact his confirmation was different - more stockier type of gsd his healthy weight was 90lbs he could easily creep up and had to 100lb if not careful as he aged.


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## dojoson41 (Oct 14, 2018)

one very fine pup


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## McGloomy (Mar 13, 2018)

He's a big boy, but definitely not obese.


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## Elisabeth Ann Parent (Dec 1, 2016)

I would not say obese but I do think he looks a tad heavy. 

I like to allow my pups to self condition a bit at this age because its not good for joints to be training hard but.... I also like to keep weight off them to help with those growing joints too. 

I hike and let my pups chase my other dogs but also do some low impact excerises to keep them trim.


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## Katsugsd (Jul 7, 2018)

He's not overweight, but he could definitely stand to lose 1-2 lbs. I'm going through a similar thing with my 6 month old, Steel. You can see his ribs when he runs and turns, but can't see those last two like my girl. We just switched to a higher calorie food and I'm still trying to get the serving size right. I've cut him back by half a cup to see if it helps thin him out a bit. That would be my suggestion - remove 1/2 cup of food you usually give for about a week and see if it makes a difference.


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## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Thank you everyone for the insight! I will cut off a half cup and see how that works for him. And I measured him via the pencil on the wall method (just like when we were kids! Hehe) and he is almost an even 25”. I do not ever force exercise and definitely not on pavement, but I live on 25 acres and about 22 of it is mountain. I hike up there with the dogs and they run, jump and explore to their own comfort and will, me huffing and puffing along behind them LOL. If any of them get tired they plop down in some leaves and we rest for a few minutes before continuing on. In the other seasons there’s a couple ponds we visit for swimming, which is IMO the best exercise available. 

Also, he is very chill! He is my first GSD and he is amazing. I can literally do anything with him and he is crazy smart, he learned how to sit, down, and paw in about five minutes when he was ten weeks old. I can take him anywhere and nothing phases him, I’ve taken him squirrel hunting with me and he acts like he doesn’t even hear the shotgun go off. I can also take him downtown and he just politely watches everything that’s going on. I can’t say enough good things about him and he is SO sweet and loves to cuddle! He’s always bringing me toys just because he’s a darling.


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## Miykael81 (Feb 7, 2019)

My boy is 7 months old and only 57 lbs. He appears to be normal height but just doesn't seem to want to put much weight on. I think he looks good, but i'm no expert.


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## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Hey guys! I followed your advice and cut Rios food from four cups to three/three and a half plus he gets a healthy portion of fresh toppers including (but not limited to) chicken, ground beef, duck eggs, peanut butter and fish. I think he has cut a few pounds and is looking more svelte!


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## Judy Untamed (Oct 26, 2018)

He looks fantastic! What a handsome boy!


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

He looks perfect!


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## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Thank you both!! I love this puppy so much! He is definitely “my” dog, he’s such a doll


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## MrGSD (Dec 7, 2018)

I don't know if the angle of the pic or his stance in the 1st pic contributed to how he looked, but your last one shows a big improvement. I can actually see the curvature which is what I always focus on. I agree he looks fantastic!


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## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Thank you! I love him so very much and want to do what’s best, I’m also happy with his shape!


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## Paigika (Feb 5, 2019)

You have a beautiful dog. I am excited for the day I can take my pup to the woods.


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## atomic (Mar 28, 2016)

Thank you Paigika! I am fortunate enough to live on 25 acres out in nowhere South Carolina  the dogs (and myself) just love it out here. My backyard is a mountain that borders 20,000 acres of watershed property so we literally never run out of places to explore without even leaving the homestead. Going up and down the mountain is phenomenal exercise for everyone involved lol


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