oh yes certainly mastifflover-  I did not mean giant breeds which are meant to be generally large  bulky dogs all over, I meant rotties & dobe's that size.
Just a question is it safe for a young giant breed though by young I mean under 12 months to be so heavy? when their bones are still growing or is that just exercise that can damage them for life ? My friend has a boxer of 18 months and I read somewhere that they should be no more than 28 kg for a male . When I went the vet the other day as my friend is heavily pregnant the vet weighted him and he was 33kg  but he still looks skinny- bones showing and very lean ?  

Sorry for being thick... what is a sibe? :)

siberian husky.

large/giant breeds should be kept trim in youth but there is a limit to what you can do as they simply are large. my boy is real big for a bully, but then we picked his line for this as we like ours bigger (given this taste i think my next choice of dog will be a mastiff). you do need to control the level of feeding they get to defend the hips, knees etc, but you've got to watch the excersize etc to. its a careful balance between fit and over worked.

in my experience large breeds don;t tend to really start to pick up their bulk till over a year, they have a funny lanky stage before that. after that in our bullies the back legs muscle up and the chest and neck start building, the head is larst to go 'breaking' at 18 months is (they have a strange tiny head bit for a while lol). they do mature slowly to accomadate the size difference.

Magica, I didn't take offence & I hope I didn't come accross as being off - I didn't mean too  :(

My pup is not too heavy for his age & breed, especially considering he is just over 29" tall (at the shoulders, you can add another 20" to the height at the bum, lol ;) ), but you go on the dogs frame rather than the average. He is a good/lean weight for his frame (even though a lot of them are heavier at that age :( ) and is starting to look a bit 'gangly' - I can't wait untill he fianally finishes growing, he always looks so odd, bum high, gangly, head looks to small.....

My sister has a Boxer and up untill she was 2 years old she looked very skinny (my sister constantly had to be convinced by the vet that she was feeding her enough food), but I understand that is how they look when young, between 18 months - 2 years she filled out more.

> is starting to look a bit 'gangly' - I can't wait untill he fianally finishes growing, he always looks so odd, bum high, gangly, head looks to small.....
>

perfectly  normal though! jsut like teenage boys!

> but you've got to watch the excersize etc to. its a careful balance between fit and over worked.

Or, in the case of a very LAZY dog, a balance between fit & UNDERworked :( I knew Mastiffs had a tendancy to be lazy, but wow - Buster is better at it than me ;)

as long as your keeping him light ish he'll be fine. maybe try and find another dog his size and approx age to tempt him to play? my oy goes mad for my sis's whippet (who apparently has no prob witht he size diff)

my seven month old Male Mastiff is going through a "stage" and now looks like a cross between a kangaroo anda hyena,i'm sooo ashamed hahahha
Wendy

it is kinda mortifying isn't it? you want to say to people, "no really, in a few months he'll be very impressive!"

hahahha he is uuuuuuuugly,but we love him so much,funny thing is he looks different almost on a daily basis,I am praying he looks as nice as his dad and grandad who I both own,and who both grew very evenly,not the rocking horse thing this one seems to be doing,
Wendy

well I was walking one of my apricot Mastiffs in the park,it was peeing down with rain,and there were some lads playing football,when one of them yelled "Watch out,there's a water buffalo" I am praying,just praying he meant the dog and not me,
I have had a few comments about people having rotts,who must be about the same size,heavier weights than my Mastiffs,and when asked if we can see this marvel,close up,they are normal sized for their breeds,and the owners are very sheepish afterwards
Wendy

This post has gone way off topic...............perhaps it should be locked now.