BMRanch

Conspire against the humans... They're too cold to notice.

This is not meant to be taken offensively in any way, but is he overweight? I see a lot of dogs at work with arthritis that end up worse off when their weight is an issue and I've seen it cause a wide variety of limb deformities and swelling. You should be able to feel a dogs ribs by lightly touching the sides, they shouldn't be entirely visible by looking at a pet, but you shouldn't have to push through a layer of fat to feel them either, there also should be a noticeable waistline from above and a slight tuck up when looking at the side. (I know this may be more difficult on a full coated dog.) Most vets don't bring up the weight issues unless they are asked because we in the pet industry have been verbally abused by customers more times tan not who think it's acceptable for a pet to be overweight even though we are seeing signs of concern.

This is not meant to be taken offensively in any way, but is he overweight? I see a lot of dogs at work with arthritis that end up worse off when their weight is an issue and I've seen it cause a wide variety of limb deformities and swelling. You should be able to feel a dogs ribs by lightly touching the sides, they shouldn't be entirely visible by looking at a pet, but you shouldn't have to push through a layer of fat to feel them either, there also should be a noticeable waistline from above and a slight tuck up when looking at the side. (I know this may be more difficult on a full coated dog.) Most vets don't bring up the weight issues unless they are asked because we in the pet industry have been verbally abused by customers more times tan not who think it's acceptable for a pet to be overweight even though we are seeing signs of concern.