Premier MannersMinder Instruction Manual page 12

Chapter 2: How Fido Learns
Body Condition
Dogs that are lean, athletic
To tell if your Fido's fat or whether he's closer to
and trim live two years longer
and develop diseases such as
that of the ideal athlete, look at his waist and feel
arthritis two years later than their
his backbone, hips, ribs and skin. From the top,
regular or overweight counterparts.
his waist should curve in like an hourglass right
after the rib cage and from the side you should
see a clear line where his last rib demarks the
start of his abdomen. On short-haired dogs, you
should even see the last one or two ribs. If you
put your hand on the rib cage and run them from
the shoulders towards his hind end, your fingers
should bump over his ribs. If you have to press to
feel the ribs you know that there's a layer of fat
under the skin. In general, skin is not very thick.
Any increased thickness is due to fat.
You should easily be able to feel the spine and hips too and even see them. But if they jut
out or you notice a loss of muscle mass, then your dog is probably too thin.
If you're unsure, have your veterinarian help you determine your dog's body condition.
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