How Big is Your Cairn?

[calypso]

Isobel is on the plus side of 16 pounds. Her vet says her weight is perfect for her frame, so she's not overweight. Since she's a working girl, we're not sorry she's got a bit of size when she's out hunting for gophers, but I do notice every ounce when I need to carry her in the Sherpa bag.

[Nikki]

my cairns are still pups but the female is 7 months old at 8.5lbs and the male at 5 months granted that he is a bit fat but hes 12.5lbs

[Janet]

Gem weighs in at 16.5lbs and looks perfect.

Everyone comments on what great shape she is in

[Tracy A.]

Mett & Bratt got the frist weigh in, in over a year. By the way, the Vet put both of them on a diet!

Metty 23 lbs

Bratty 22lbs

:ninja: (Steve has a tendency to get them a hamburger to split when i'm not around)

I've got them both switched over to Canidae diet forumula

[bradl]

Echo (5) just went in for a 'booster' vacc yesterday and weighed 12.4 lbs on their scale. I think I'd like to use their scale in the morning; it seems more optimistic than mine

[TheWolf]

When you are showing a Cairn and told that one that is the ideal "standard" size is too small, it is confusing. But as a pet or working Cairn the variations in size, weight, and proportion can work to our advantage. I have never seen one, but I have heard of rare litters having one puppy that would mature at about 6 lbs! Pocket Cairns !

[Cairn Luvr]

Mett & Bratt got the frist weigh in, in over a year. By the way, the Vet put both of them on a diet!

Metty 23 lbs

Bratty 22lbs

This made me feel better!!! My Baxter is 23 lbs and just a big build, compared to Gracie Mae at 14.5 lbs. I do cook their food - but he's just HUGE. I am working on his weight and see what happens!

[kcsdogs]

Seasaidh is a tiny little 13 pounder

Kipper is about 15 lbs

Montrose is about 16.5 lbs

[Will&Grace]

Well, I have one of the big boys.... Will is one year old today and weighs in at 22 lbs. He isn't chubby though - just a big, solid boy. He of course will have a 1 year check up at the vet soon so I will get another opinion as to whether he is chubby or not My last cairn Mr Mack (rainbow bridge) was ever only 15 or 16 lbs, and I can sure tell the extra 7 lbs when carrying Will.

He doesn't over eat I don't think - he get 1/3 c. canidae in the a.m., and 1/3 c. canidae p.m.. He also get 2-3 small treats a day. He would of course eat probably at least 2x that much if given the opportunity!

[Toby23]

Good topic for me. I keep wondering what weight Toby is going to top out at. At 7 months he is weighing in at 15.5 lbs. At work we have sensitive scales for weighing metal, the sales guys put him on the scales at least once a week. They've tried to get me on them too, but I think not ! Any ideas from where he is now as to what he will weigh as a full grown guy ?

[Will&Grace]

If I remember correctly, Will was about 15 lbs @ 7 months. I would expect that he'll be real close to what Will is. I have read a variety of posts on here regarding weight & growth and I am sure it varies but as to how much they grow at various ages but I am putting my money on him being somewhere over 20. There's another little guy on here - Gus who is same age as Will (by a day) and every bit as big.

[Toby23]

I'd love it if Toby gets to be 20 lb. or even a bit bigger. I doubt if it he's going to get much taller, which makes it funny when I look for him. I'm used to big dogs, and Toby can be right under me and I don't look "down" enough to see hime !

[Will&Grace]

Seems like quite a few Cairns get up to the 20 lbs, at least as I have read on the forum over the last 10 months. I actually recently heard of one that is 30lbs. Now if Will got to thirty he would be a little barrel. Will's sister is a 70 lb shep/husk mix so even at 22 lbs he still looks pretty little to me. I would say Will is probably 2-4 lbs heavier than he should be. We have had a very cold, snowy, windy winter thus far and haven't gone out walking or to the dog park even 10% as often as we had up until about the 2nd week in Dec. If we do go for walks they are way shorter (I'm always afraid of slipping on the ice). You'll have to be sure an post his weight when he reaches a year.

[Cairnmania]

Both of my Cairns if left to their own devices would be hittting the 30 lb mark by now!

[Amber and the zoo]

Ellie is a HUGE 7.5 lbs at 4 months She's so active, I don't know how she WOULD gain weight!

[meandzax]

So, Amber, if I call you Amy again, please correct me. Anyhoo..............Maisy is around 17 pounds. Seeing all the responses, I am no longer worried about her weight. I had heard the breed standard was around 13 for the gals. And I love the name Bratwurst!!! So cute.

[sheila and Misty]

Misty just turned 6 months feb.13th,and is weighing in at 16 lbs. The vet said she is not overweight and believes she may get to be 25lbs. The picture displayed is right after her bath so thats her now ,not her hair..probably why she doesnt look too Cairn like. Shes all wet!Didnt measure her but compared to my last Cairn, she has at least 3 inches more on her legs.

[katymcf]

Ernie is 17 lbs and 5 years old. When we got him, he was just over 1 year old and 15 lbs. The vet is not worried about his weight, but I think he could stand to lose 1-2 lbs.

[Amber and the zoo]

Well Ellie is about 15 lbs now at 9 months. We took her to her first "show" and tell...Basically just a practice show to find out how to do it, etc. We got some very goods critiques. Of course, Ellie just wanted to lick the judges when they were trying to look at her teeth........:/

Gracie is 7 month old and weighs, on a heavy day, 5 pounds. She is very petite. I still say she is half chihuauha...(spelling?!?!)...She is just such a dainty girl I was actually worried about her because she is so small, but the vet checked her out and said she is perfect, just small.

Roscoe is 4 months and at his last check up he was around 7 pounds. He looks like such a brut...all buff and stuff! lol. It could be because he eats EVERYTHING in his sight. We had a scare yesterday because I was giving their heartworm pills and he gobbled his down and literally stole Gracie's out of her mouth! Luckily he was fine and I guess now he's just extra protected. lol. I learned my lesson there...give pills in seperate rooms with the door shut!

Amber

[Brianne_Kathrine]

Benny is a big boy at 22 pounds. But Benny is not at all fat...just very large. My mom has a Cairn named Ricki who is 16 pounds and such a pretty girl. Once I figure out how to put pictures on here I'll put pictures of them both.

[Brianne_Kathrine]

I miss weighed Benny. I used a friends bathroom scale and came up with 22 pounds. That is wrong. He went to the vet today and is actually 17 pounds. That is quite a difference!

[Hagar]

I have lurked on this topic for awhile without commenting. When I started seeing frequent references to 20 pound plus Cairns, my first thought was that there are a bunch of "Chubby" Cairns out there. Last year, at a little over 1 year, Renny weighed 16.3 pounds and the Vet said he was healthy and not the least bit overweight.

I took him in for shots and a checkup yesterday and was rather surprised that his weight was up to 21.7 pounds!! The Vet noticed his weight and checked him over pretty closely. He is very healthy and is very muscular with no excess fat anywhere on him. I guess he is just a BIG boy.

We do walk about three miles daily, and the exercise apparently keeps him muscular without being fat. After all, muscle is heavier than fat.

By the way, my Vet says that he very seldom sees an overweight Terrier of any kind, with one exception. It seems that Scotties owned by the stereotypical "Little old Lady" tend to be "Tubby Terriers"

[Cairnmania]

Muscle or no muscle, if you cannot feel a Cairn's ribs when you run your hands down their sides (very light pressure just so you can feel flesh and not just hair) they are too heavy.

My two started on a diet - just reducing food intake a bit -- a couple of days ago. I can feel their ribs, but just and with a bit too much pressure.

No vet has ever said they are too heavy - I think they tend to reserve those comments only for dogs that are seriously on the pudgy side.

Oh, except for a vet that I saw only once at a new clinic where I took Abby for a booster shot. He said Abby had luxating patella in one leg, should lose weight because of it, and suggested surgery. (Since then I have had her examined by two different vets who said their was nothing wrong with her legs and no indication of luxating patella whatsoever. ) But I rambling ... remembering it just gets me irked!

[Emmadilemma]

Oscar is 10 months old and is 17 pounds...I'm relieved to read this thread as someone suggested to us that he was overweight. He was the fattest in his litter but he lost the puppy fat at around 5 months...now I think he's just a big boy, but not fat. I will however do the rib test tonight. Will have to avoid that ticklish spot..the one that makes him let out the hilarious sqeaky wail.

We don't feed him a lot - half a cup in the morning and half in the evening of good quality small dog food...not a huge amount of treats, maybe 5 or 6 tiny ones day. He likes a bit of carrot as a treat best of all man does he go nuts for that carrot. I only have to just say carrot now and he will lick his chops and rush to the fridge.

[Jessica H]

Scooter just weighed in at about 21 pounds and Sadie about 14. They are both in great shape and pass the rib test. Scooter is a big boy but not fat at all. He gets lots of exercise, including lots of hiking. Muscle ways more than fat...

Emma, my two LOVE carrots and always have. They get lots because they have no calories or fat. I also only have to say the word carrot and they go running to the fridge. It is actually my trick to get them to come in when they want to stay outside (like when need to leave for work). I yell carrot and they come across my HUGE yard at about 100 miles an hour.