How to Determine Your Dog’s Ideal Weight

by Mike Sagman
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Finding and maintaining your dog’s ideal weight can significantly extend your pet’s life.

A fourteen year landmark study confirms…

Dogs fed to ideal body condition lived 1.8 years longer than their overweight litter mates.1

That’s a bonus of nearly 2 extra years of life… just for keeping your dog close to his ideal body weight.

So, where do you go to find your dog’s ideal weight?

Where Not to Look for a Dog’s Ideal Weight

To get a ballpark idea of what your dog should weigh, you could simply look it up in a table of ideal pet weight ranges.

But that could present a problem.

Nearly every table (by necessity) provides this important value in a range of weights… and not a pinpoint number.

For example, the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention suggests a weight for Labrador Retrievers of 65 to 80 pounds. And that’s a significant spread… a difference of about 23%.

And that figure can vary even more simply depending upon whether your pet is a male or a female.

What If your Dog Isn’t a Pure Breed?

And what about mixed breeds… dogs like our Bailey? Where do you go to look up their ideal weights?

That’s the problem. There’s no clear reference for every individual dog. Because dogs come in so many builds, shapes and sizes… how could there be?

Yet you still need to have a target weight to shoot for.

The Ideal Dog Weight System
Used by Veterinarians

Here’s a solution that works for all dogs…

The very best way to determine your dog’s ideal weight is to use the exact same method used by veterinarians… the Purina Body Condition System2.

The Body Condition System uses two simple techniques to rate the state of your dog’s body…

  • Visual inspection
  • Palpation (using the sense of touch)

By using your senses of sight and touch, you assign your dog to one of three categories…

  • Too Thin
  • Ideal
  • Too Heavy

Your rating will be based upon comparing your dog’s appearance to a standardized diagram… and then palpating (feeling) for his ribs and frame.

The Bottom Line

Determining an ideal weight goal can make a real and measurable difference in how long your dog lives. And once you know that goal, it’s then important to serve the right amount each time you feed your pet

So be sure to estimate the right serving size for your dog. And be ready to change that amount whenever you switch to a different food.

Sure, it’s a little extra work. But if you love your dog as much as I do mine, maintaining your pet’s ideal weight can be a very worthy goal.

  1. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Vol. 220 No. 9, May 1, 2002, pp. 1315-1320 ↩
  2. Nestle Purina Pet Care Company, St. Louis, MO 63164 ↩
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  • Ed

    I got turned on to Darwins dog food..Maya was not happy with other food, from Costco, or any dry food, mighty dog, in cans, but Darwins is real meat and comes frozen. I give it to her cold or heat it up and she licks her bowl clean.. not enough time to determine if she is loosing weight yet. She was 87lbs last time i weighed here. going to weigh her to day. its been almost two weeks

  • Jan

    I have an 11 year old Sheltie/Collie cross breed (big for Sheltie/small for collie). She has had skin problems for several years now and 2 former vets only put her on Prednisone. She gained a lot of weight and it did nothing for her skin problem. My new traditional/holistic vet put Star on a temporary antibiotic and a holistic med to cool her down (summer only). Her skin has healed and her fur is coming back and she has lost weight on the starvation diet and now weighs about 60 lbs. with the goal being 55. Her arthritis is almost gone. Before I found the new vet I placed Star on Pinnacle Wild Duck holistic dry and canned because so many of your readers advised it was good. The vet has had me continue this food. That is all I give her, no treats.
    So, for all of you with dogs with skin problems, find a good vet. I can’t tell you if it is the Pinnacle or the vet, maybe both, but Star is better than she has been in about 3 years and many dollars later.

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Theresa… When it comes to weight loss, dogs are like us humans. It’s mostly a simple matter of calorie reduction. Smaller portions. And sometimes, using foods containing fewer calories per serving. Low fat can help, too.

    For more information, please see our FAQ page. Look for the topic, “Weight Loss for Dogs”. And be sure to follow the links there, too. Hope this helps.

  • Theresa Rafferty

    I have a 5 year old Miniature Poddle who has been neutered recently and he has put on a lot of weight.

    Should I try low fat food?

  • http://brotherscomplete.com Richard Darlington

    Melissa

    I completely agree with your assessment of the situation and your process.

    Steve -

    I would only add that a good rule of thumb to know when your dog has achieved it’s ideal weight is to look at the ribs – or rather feel them. They should be covered so you do not see obvious indentations but when you feel the ribs you should be able to distinguish them beneath the layer of skin and muscle/fat. If you’re feeling rolls of fat/skin instead of smooth tissue with slight bumps of ribs underneath then just keep up with Melissa recommendations.

    I also think you will also begin to see a marked improvement in activity levels.

    It”s funny, but people as so used to overweight dogs these days that after putting their dogs of a good grain / potato free food they often come into our store to show us how the dog is ‘too’ skinny. 99 out of a 100 times the dog looks GREAT but they’ve gotten used to seeing fat versions of their dog all over the place.

    Look at wolves. They are always lean and ready to chase down a meal. Look at people who live the longest – doesn’t it seem like they are always on the thin side? Extra weight is not great on your dog – they’re much happier when sleek I think – so you’re doing the best thing.

  • melissa

    Steve-

    When we take in a dog that is visually overweight, but we are not sure what weight the dog SHOULD be ideally, we estimate, and readjust our though process until visually things look great.

    With bone structure etc, what one dog should weigh, may not be what another should weigh, and even when you ask the vet “what should my dog weigh” its a guess-

    Take your 62 lb dog-she might need to weigh 50 lbs or she might look best at 55-you don’t really know until you get some of the weight off. What we do is this-pick a conservative number- (or ask your vet how much they think she needs to loose) If the answer is 5-10 lbs, then we pick a number in the middle, feed to that specification, and keep reweighing the dog. If the ’7″lbs we picked is not enough when the dog reaches that number, we refigure the ideal weight(typically in 5 lb increments) and go from there. As you get some of it off, you should be able to better judge what she should weigh. You may find she doesn’t need to loose as much as you thought to look and be healthy, or she might need to loose a whole lot more than you thought.

    The key is to keep monitoring and weighing the dog so that you do not take too much off too quickly, or so that you take enough off. Unfortuently, there are no easy answers.

  • Lebb

    I have four dogs. Two are overweight. Your dog food calculator has been a Godsend. Thank you! After using it to figure out how many calories to feed my dogs, I’m so pleased to report that one of my dogs has lost seven pounds and one has lost five pounds. They have about four or five more pounds each to lose. It has been a nice, slow, gradual process, and I am very happy with the results thus far. My dogs are all happy. The two that lost weight have noticably more energy than they did when they were heavier, and they’re running and playing more, which is an absolute joy to witness. Measuring the food is definitely very important. Please don’t ever take this site down!

  • Steve

    Thank you Mike,

    My challenge is the dogs have been fed exclusively Wellness Dry, and I am shifting to a combination of canned and other low cal hi volume foods ex: meal = 1/2 of a 12.5oz can Wellness, 1/2c dry wellness (till it’s gone), 1c green beans, 10 baby carrot, +- 1/2c light-cook meats, so I’m juggling caloric content and balancing proteins trying to minimize carbs… but struggle to find a target weight to equate with daily caloric needs for a sedentary dog.

    I will look at the references you gave. Again, thanks much.

    Steve

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Steve… You’re making a great choice to help your dog lose weight.

    After reading this article, if you still find it difficult to come to an exact “ideal weight” for your dog, you’re not alone. In any case, since each dog has its own unique energy requirements (just like people), there’s no way to reliably predict the exact serving size that’s right for each pet. No matter which method you use.

    So, I’d suggest starting with the package’s feeding instructions. Or use our dog food calculator. Always measure the food with a real measuring cup. Not a scoop. Never guess. Keep an accurate record of how much you’re feeding.

    Be sure to weigh your dog periodically (every few weeks or so). Then, simply adjust (titrate) that serving size up or down to establish and maintain your pet’s ideal weight.

    You may also visit our FAQ page. And look for the topic, “Weight Loss for Dogs”.

    Hope this helps.

  • Steve

    Could you please clarify ref: The Ideal Dog Weight System… I already know my 12.5 yo Lab Mix is overweight. It’s obvious to the eye. It’s also obvious at 48 and 62 pounds yet only 22-24″ shoulder height/torso length respectively, she and her littermate are MUCH smaller than a purebread Lab. I need to know what her ideal weight is, rather than just that she’s overweight. That’s the only way I can feed her to her ideal weight. Vet is not helpful in getting at that number. Just wants to sell Weight Loss Diet food from her shelves. Needless to say I’m looking for a new vet. Any help greatly appreciated.

    Steve

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Jason… There are hundreds of great foods rated here. Just look through the 3, 4 and 5-star dog foods and find a good food that looks interesting and give it a try. Unfortunately, due to the biological uniqueness of each pet, I cannot provide customized product recommendations for each reader. For more help, please check out my reviews and visit our FAQ page. Look for the topic, “Help Me Choose a Dog Food”. Or check back for a possible response from one of our other readers.

  • Jason

    Hi – Since having unexpectedly lost my 10 yr old golden retriever from stomach cancer, I have learned a great deal about wholesome dog foods. I have a 2 yr old yellow lab that has been on Orijen / Acana grain free since I adopted him, now eating 1600 cal/day (just shy of 2 cups twice a day). He is a house dog, but I take him running 3-4 times a week for about 30 min each outing. He now weighs 100 pounds and sometimes eats his feces (among other house hold items) – gross I know. He always seems hungry. The vet has told me he needs to lose 10 pounds, which I agree. The vet recommended a high fiber food with fillers (so he feels full without reducing the quantity of food) and subsequently recommended the Purina OM variety. This appears to be a very low quality 1* food. What recommendations would you give so that I continue providing a high quality food that can help keep him feeling full and lose weight? Acana Light and Fit came to mind. Any other recommendations? Thanks!

  • Karyn Dossenback

    I have an American Bulldog, and according to the rescue we got her from she is supposed to be a pure breed. She had 11 litter mates but 2 died and we got her at 6 weeks of age. She is now 3 and a half years old. Her weight shot up to a little over 90lbs and I have been working very hard to get her to lose weight and she has lost about 15 lbs. She looks much thinner now and you can see her waist but I have no idea what her ideal weight should be – do you know how I can figure this out so I can be sure I am feeding her the correct amount?

  • Cathy

    Chris, One of the benefits of a raw diet is better weight management, per Mike Sagman’s information at this link: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/best-dog-foods/raw-dog-food/
    Dogs are simply not genetically optimized to consume the fifty percent carbohydrate content of today’s commercial kibbles.
    The Benefits of a Raw Diet
    Feeding a raw dog food diet has many notable benefits…
    • Improved digestion
    • Healthier skin and coat
    • Firmer (less smelly) stools
    • Reduced allergy symptoms
    • Better weight management

  • Jonathan

    Feeding him raw or kibble, it still comes down to calories in versus calories out. If you have the time and money for the raw diet, than you need to know the calories of raw meat and bones. Otherwise, with kibble, just review the calories per cup, check out Mike’s dog food calculator, and godspeed. :-)

  • Chris Esposito

    Hi, I have a 5 year old rat terrier who used to weigh in at a really nice 13.5 – 14#. Now he weighs in at 17.5#. I have exercised him and exercised him till he can’t anymore and he is also in agility. The vet I go to has told me to cut his food intake about 25% and see what happens. I have been feeding him 1/3 cup 2x daily. I would like to feed him a mix of Orijen Sr. and raw food. Is that something I should not do or do you think he would just do better with the kibble for right now and leave the raw until he is better fit?

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Ni… Unfortunately, other than the information contained in this article, I cannot answer your question with confidence. You’ll probably do better to consult with an expert on Afghans. Sorry I can’t be more help.

  • Ni

    I have a female afghan. The examples for checking weight by feeling won’t work. She is 1.5 years old, and we feed her a cup of dry mixed with a 1/3 of soft food twice a day. She is very active, but naturally boney, so not sure if we should be feeding her more.

  • Meagan

    Ok great that makes sense.
    Thanks Mike!

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Yvonne… I’m a whiz at dog food labels but I know nothing about what a 14 month old male Maltese should weigh. I’ll leave that specialized information to a Maltese owner.

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Meagan… If I understand your question, you just measure 1/3 cup and place it on a plate. Then divide that into fourths. Hope this helps.

  • Meagan

    My little mix gained about two pounds from last fall, but she looks like she has gained more thatn that. I am amazed at what just 2 pounds will make a difference. Anyway she was getting 1/2 cup morning and evening. Now I have put her down to 1/3 cup morning and evening. I will be transitioning their food soon and I wasn’t sure how I will do that when she gets so little. I know its 25%-20% but how in the world will I get that from her already getting so little of the old food?

  • Yvonne McK

    What should my 14month old Male Maltese Terrier weigh??

  • Jonathan

    Yeah, Yvonne, please take a look at Mike’s review of Purina’s various products… only 1 variety (pro plan selects) even merritts 3 stars… And I personaly think of it as a 2+ (animal fat and synthetic vit. k? eww). the rest are 1 star trash.

  • Bob K

    Hi Yvonne – Now that you have found this website, Why do you continue to feed your dog Purina?

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Yvonne… The answer to your question can be found on our FAQ page regarding the topic, “How to Feed a Dog”.

  • Yvonne

    I have a 8 month old bull terrier male and I want to know how much he must eat daily, he is very active and always hungry, he is on Purina.