What should he weigh

C

coopersmom

Forums Enthusiast
Let me begin by saying my two previous shelties were big boys, 17" or so. Therefore I am not sure what my little guy should weigh, as I've only had oversized shelties. Casey weighs 19 lbs and he will be six months old on 10/11. I guess he's around 13 inches right now. He is not big built by any means. Breeder says he'll top out around 14 inches.

I'm thinking he should be under 25 lbs as an adult.
 
Height and weight of a sheltie are extremely difficult to predict. Every dog is built differently. Two shelties can be the same height, neither overweight and one will weigh 16 pounds and the other 26.

My girl is 13 7/8 inches and she weighs 13.5 pounds. She was a little over 14 pounds at some point. So if your breeder's prediction is correct, he'll be around my dog's height, maybe a little taller and he's already 5 pounds heavier than her. Basically, his adult weight is anybody's guess.

If you concerned about what he should weigh right now or you think he might be overweight, your vet is your best source for that. No one can tell you that information without getting their hands on him. Someone needs to be able to feel him. This is especially true for shelties because they have so much fur. You can't always tell if they're all fluff or all fat without touching them.
 
Ditto what the above poster said, but if you're looking to collect a sampling of dogs that are in that range, I'll chime in with Honey, who falls just under 14 at her shoulder. She's at 23lbs, maybe 24 and the vet feels she's at a healthy weight. I do think she could trim a pound or two however, as before going on forced cage rest she hovered right at 20lbs. (plus she's been sneaking the neighbors cat food a few times a week :rolleyes2:)
 
Shelby is 16" at her shoulders and weighs 25lbs. Vet says she is not overweight. Hollie was about 12" and should have weighed about 16lbs. But Hollie became quite overweight once she dislocated her shoulder, was in a cast for 4 weeks, and was no longer allowed to run or jump. She was 26lbs before we knew it. After putting her on a diet we got her down to 19lbs. Now I am very vigilant in watching Shelby's weight. It is very hard to take it off.
 
I think any in-size sheltie, meaning under 16" tall should weigh no more then 19-20lbs. Max would be 21lbs. A 14" dog should certainly not weigh more then 19lbs.
 
missjenneygirl said:
I think any in-size sheltie, meaning under 16" tall should weigh no more then 19-20lbs. Max would be 21lbs. A 14" dog should certainly not weigh more then 19lbs.
Click to expand...
Holy moly. My girl would be starving. Weight depends on a lot, but you said he wasn't big boned (which my male is) Most shelties definitely should be 25 pounds or under. My female is 15 1/2" and weighs 27.. she's a little overweight right now, but her ideal weight is 23. Don't worry so much about weight, but about if you can feel his ribs. If you can easily feel his ribs through his hair, he's fine. :smile2:
 
My Fergus is 13" and his weight hovers around 14# give or take a little. I think his weight is perfect for him and so does my vet. He is very small boned. He did weigh 16# a couple of years ago and that was a bit heavy for him.
 
Ida is just shy of 14" and weighs 12.2lbs. She's at a very heathy weight for her size, in fact if she gained anything she'd be a little on the heavy side.

Jody is about 16 1/4" and weighs about 20lbs. I've been told that he's too skinny and needs some more meat on his bones, and I agree. F-kap is also 16 1/4" but weighs 25lbs, and is overweight. F-kap and Jody are the same hight with only a 5lbs difference. One is overweight (F-kap) the other isn't. One has a big build (F-kap again) the other doesn't. Strangely enough though, they'll probably both end up being about 23lbs. Weird, I know, but that's my boys!:rolleyes2:
 
When my female retired from the ring, she weighed 19 pounds. the first time I took her to the vet, he thought I was starving her. She now weighs 24 and her current vet (who I like much more) says she is not overweight, but will be if she gains any.
 
As Randi and others said, there is no definitive answer.

Height is one consideration but bone structure and body length must be considered. Both my boys are approx the same height. But Indy is finer boned, shorter neck and body. They weigh about the same but Indy needs to lose about 5 lbs and Bacca is about perfect.

The real test is: Run your hands over rib cage. You should be just able to feel the ribs (without hard protrusions). Look at your dog from the top. Can you see a waistline? Similarly, there should be a fairly defined arch from the rib to the groin.

Generally speaking, I think 25 lb for a 14" dog seems heavy. I would start monitoring weight. My guys are 17-18" and weigh about 30 lb.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top