# Should I Be Concerned?



## Chuck94! (Feb 8, 2018)

Random thought: Rollo is a very big dog - 105 lbs or 110lbs @ 16 months old. I know we want to keep our dogs lean and extra weight can be problematic. I just don't know if I should be worried because he is much heavier than most other GSDs & taller too. 

a1 by Chuck Marquardt, on Flickr

rollo_hay_bale by Chuck Marquardt, on Flickr


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

He doesn't look overweight, but he shouldn't be heavier. I kept Bud extremely lean, because he had injuries as a pup(previous owners got mad and ran him over with a quad) and had a thing for hurdling 6 foot fences at a dead run I was always worried about added strain on his joints. And he was smaller and stockier then your guy.
I would keep him on a healthy diet, limit any strain on his joints at least until he is done filling out and make sure he maintains correct weight. Also keep him active and fit. Never underestimate the power of muscles and ligaments.


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

Genetics are what they are, all you can do on your end is keep him lean and fit.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Chuck what is Rollo's pedigree? Were his parents also oversized or he just an anomaly?


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## CometDog (Aug 22, 2017)

Do you know his pedigree? How tall is tall? Valor is 27.5 inches and as of this week 98lbs. His sire is big but within standard..his mom I am not sure her size..maybe tall? 

From your pic he looks nice and lean. The 2nd pic is an older one from my memory, I believe you posted it a while ago. Your dad, right?

And by the WAY you do know Rollo is on a forum about humans for dogs posting pics of you to see if you are too tall or heavy lol


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## Chuck94! (Feb 8, 2018)

Rollos dad is about 115 lbs & his mom is around 85 I believe!


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## CometDog (Aug 22, 2017)

So he sounds like he will be his sire's size which is expected  

He has white on his chest? Don't remember seeing that in other photos. Or is it snow ?lol


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## clipke (Nov 14, 2017)

Jax is 15ish lbs heavier and hasn't had any issues yet. He just turned 2 a few weeks ago. As long as he's visibly lean, active, and not showing any signs of joint issues, I wouldn't be super concerned about it.


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## Jenny720 (Nov 21, 2014)

My male now and my last male both large dogs. My male now is tall and super agile he loves darting and trees and sharp turns it has not slowed him down. My last male not as tall but built like a brick house. His eyes were the size of a horse it was how big his head was. I felt he did start to see signs of arthritis around 8. He did live till 12 and was why we had to put him down-arthritis. Making sure extra weight does not creep on is very important. When they are young and fit there is not challenge but when they age it can be a challenge intact or not.
Some breeders breed to the standard and still get very large males and some don’t breed to the standard and very large males are expected.


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## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

As we’ve all discussed before, sometimes looks are deceiving. I used to have people guess that Russ was 100 lbs. Russell is a moose, but he only weighs 89 lbs.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

People used to tell me all the time that Bud was 120. I weighed him all the time. Heaviest he ever was was 96. He was just built like a tank.


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## Kyrielle (Jun 28, 2016)

Chuck94! said:


> Rollos dad is about 115 lbs & his mom is around 85 I believe!


Sounds like he took after the sire.

Jack's sire was 135 pounds and his dam 95 pounds. He took after his dam, and I think his brother took after his sire.

Yay genetics!


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## MineAreWorkingline (May 2, 2015)

Neutering before the growth plates close between 18-24 months will cause the long bones to grow longer than normal. It also can change the angle of the joints and create problems. I would be less concerned about weight and more concerned about that but there is nothing you can do about that now that it has been done.


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## cliffson1 (Sep 2, 2006)

He looks happy and healthy, life is good.


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## Pipper (Jul 27, 2018)

105-110lbs is really very strong for a 4-month puppy. Probably it's caused by genetics? You should ask your vet for a healthy and balanced diet


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## Chip Blasiole (May 3, 2013)

I think larger GSDs fair better if they have strong pelvic muscle mass. This is something you can recognize just by looking. Large, strong haunches and a thick tail set. Also agile and powerful, fast movers.


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## gsdoglife (Apr 15, 2018)

CometDog said:


> And by the way you do know Rollo is on a forum about humans for dogs posting pics of you to see if you are too tall or heavy lol


CometDog this is the best thing I have read all day :laugh:


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

All the above plus don't let him jump off that hay bale or from pickup beds to protect his joints. By the way, it looks like you are doing the fetching!


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

I just have to say I want pics of all these huge dogs, because my Sabi girl happily chowing down for her last six months was hard pressed to get to 95 and she looked like a whale when I put her down(long story) and she was a moose of a girl to start with. Bud who people swore was 120 struggled to hit 95 for most of his life. 
I have seen exactly one 135lb Shepherd in my life. I am 5'8" and his head came up to my chest. No clue where he was from but he was a big dog!


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## clipke (Nov 14, 2017)

Sabis mom said:


> I just have to say I want pics of all these huge dogs, because my Sabi girl happily chowing down for her last six months was hard pressed to get to 95 and she looked like a whale when I put her down(long story) and she was a moose of a girl to start with. Bud who people swore was 120 struggled to hit 95 for most of his life.
> I have seen exactly one 135lb Shepherd in my life. I am 5'8" and his head came up to my chest. No clue where he was from but he was a big dog!


Jax was a year and a half here, maybe 115-120lbs. I'm 5'11 255lbs. https://www.instagram.com/p/BouV7DfgqpH/


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## Chuck94! (Feb 8, 2018)

CometDog said:


> So he sounds like he will be his sire's size which is expected
> 
> He has white on his chest? Don't remember seeing that in other photos. Or is it snow ?lol


He does have a small white patch on his chest lol


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## Chuck94! (Feb 8, 2018)

Sabis mom said:


> I just have to say I want pics of all these huge dogs, because my Sabi girl happily chowing down for her last six months was hard pressed to get to 95 and she looked like a whale when I put her down(long story) and she was a moose of a girl to start with. Bud who people swore was 120 struggled to hit 95 for most of his life.
> I have seen exactly one 135lb Shepherd in my life. I am 5'8" and his head came up to my chest. No clue where he was from but he was a big dog!


So that is my dad in the pic with Rollo on the bale of hay - my dad is about my height 6'7 or 6'8 for reference!


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## Bebe (Apr 17, 2011)

My vet gave me this rule of thumb. Feel you dogs rib section. If you can feel his ribs easily that's good. If you can rub around the skin(fat) around he is over weight. It has worked for me.

Remember you dog is large. He may have been putting on muscle at 16 mos. He's not fully grown. You can feel that extra weight in his ribs toward the back end of the dog.

Also, dog food producers tell you how much to feed your dog on the bag. They are notorious telling you too much. If you are feeling fat on his rubs, cut him back 1/2 cup for a bit. If you don't see enough progress, cut him back another 1/2 cut.

My male has a problem with his pancreas not absorbing nutrients from his food. He is a long haired German Shepherd so we really didn't notice it at first. When we did he had dropped a lot of weight. When he went on his medication he stared to gain his weight back. We went back to his 4 cups vs. 6 we were giving him before diagnosed. He gained too much weight. We had to cut him back to 3 12 cups. 

As we have had a hellacious winter he hasn't had the normal exercise for the season. I expected him to have a bit more weight but we have an open and long house so we do play fetch through the house. (I know.) I took him to the vets today to have his teeth cleaned. Vet said he is heavier than she would like but his normal walks in spring should put him back where he should be. We'll probably keep him at current level of food. He is best at 87-89 pounds. He was 91.3 so she wants him a littler leaner.


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