Dogs - Down sizing??

[crash325]

I recently went to the pound (Dog Jail) & most of the dogs that should be quite large were 1/3 or even smaller that they should have been.

That includes Mastiffs, German Sheppard's, Rottweiler's & so on.

Anyone have an idea why???:confused3:

 

[Deerherd]

Dogs that are spayed and neutered before 12-14 months will be much taller than their unneutered litter mates. Too many vets spay and neuter animals WAY too young, which causes leg, hip, joint and tendon problems.

My dog, an unneutered male English golden retriever was in a three year study with his litter mates. He is 4-5 inches shorter, but has a larger head and chest circumference than his spayed and neutered siblings. He is also heavier.

Bone growth rates are severely altered from early spaying and neutering but does create much more money in a vets future, but is bad for your dog. Any vet who recommends early spaying or neutering should be fired.

Tall dogs come from early spaying and neutering, shorter dogs are normal.

 

[AaronS]

I would wager a guess that most animals that are in that predicament have not lived the greatest lives and have not always had the best food, and not enough of it.

 

[randy41]

the dogs you saw were probably not pure bred.

 

[arrow]

Dogs that people understand now of a certain size, were bred for size increases by the dog show people. Dogs you see today were never this big with the exceptions of some mastiffs and German shepards. Once you start "intermixing" breeding, dogs then tend to revert to original sizing. Mr. Doberman for instance never intended for his breeding to be the behemoth dobermans you see today. Pitbulls were supposed to be small so they could be carried underarm from city to city. Not more than 30lbs back then as opposed to some of the 70-100 lb dogs one sees today. I once saw a female bull mastiff no higher than 18" at the shoulder and 70 lbs. Now these dogs are approaching the sizes of their mastiff brethren.