Could anyone tell me what a 17month old westie should look like as i have one and the more i see other westies and there are a lot were i am living, the less i believe he is a true breed,although he was sold as one ,bobby is small for a dog! and has long thin legs,small feet,thinish body and small thin head,he has the westie facial characteristics,ie black nose,dark eye's and black lip line his skin is turning from pink to a blacker colour,but he has developed a brown patch of hair on his tail,and a definite dorsal stripe of darker hair,he has been a slight worry to us since a pup as his digestive system has been on and off for the duration! we have tried several foods non alergy gluton free wheat free you name it we have tried it,the vet has been cosulted and there advice followed,finally we think we have solved it,give him the same as his playmate Jock,and let nature get on with it!!,he also has a problem with licking his legs and feet and under side,i must be the only dog owner to have a white/pink dog,his lower legs and feet are turning from a pink to a deep brown colour,we have taken him to the vet's and he has had a cousre of tablets powder and antibacterial shampoo,at more cost than i would spend on a top hotel for the evening,the vet's around me are on the same wages as premier footballers im sure they are!!,being on a tight budget,i have to watch the costs as i have finished working through ill health,after we had the pups may i add!,Bobby in himself is alert active and happy little dog who has daily walks in the park and is let off to enjoy himself,he has a wonderfull dispersition with people and other dogs and gets on well with his playmate jock,but when people stop and remark about how well jock look's he is a scottie and a gorgious specimin from the same breeder and one day younger than bobby,it makes you stop and think ? is bobby a true breed or have we been sold a sub standard dog? dont get it wrong we love Bobby very much,and wouldent be without him although he is hard work to keep clean and healthy,he also suffers from body odour quite quickly after baths, i have tried dry powder cleaning but it seem's to iratate him afterwards,i do hope someone could advise me in the questions i have asked .
                               Many thanks
                                                   steverobo

Hi steverobo,

I don't own a Westie so am no expect on the breed, I'm sure lots of Westie owners will be on here soon to advise, but my twopennyworth would be that having seen many Westies I can understand your confusion, only at a show where the standards and sizes are set have I seen Westie's of similar build, I personally have seen Westie's of all shapes, sizes cuts and variations some very tiny, some complete monsters! 

A lot is to do with the breeder, some breed large, some small.

The standard Westie should be as follows:
25-28 cm
7-10kgs
pigmentation should be black,
head slightly domed,
ears small and errect,
front legs short, muscular and straight,
hind legs short, muscular and sinewy,
front feet larger than hind feet,

Westie's do have a pengent towards skin ailments, just make sure you are on one of the dearer health insurances that will cover an ailment for more than 12 months. It will cost approx £15- £20 a month but in the long run will pay off.

If you can get a photo on photobucket and add the link for us to have a look at your dog those who show and own Westies will be able to give a good idea as to whether you have been duped or not, I take it your dog is kc reg, that you met the parents etc. and saw all health certifcates, if that is the case then if your dog is a pet I would not fret, if it is not the case, you can always have a DNA profile done to confirm your dog is all Westie, but as I said they do come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, only if required as a show specimen do you need to nit pick.

I'm sure everything is perfectly fine, most dogs I see around nowadays of all breeds are not true to the written show standards, that does not make them substandard or not pedigree dogs, just lovely pets.

Do you have any pictures? From the description he doesn't sound the way i would describe a westie.

I wouldnt worry about how your westie looks, since owning a westie I now realise how different they all look, before I owned one I thought that they all looked the same. Many I see are quite small and with thin legs. They perhaps weren't bred from the best of stock but if yours is a pet does it really matter? I used to worry that mine was too big as at 13 months he is chunkier than nearly every westie I have met!! Mine also has the bit of brown on the tail, it is apparently quite common to have this mark. I know that westies can get a stained brown area around their mouth which my groomer says is saliva, so if yours is always licking his legs perhaps the brown is similar staining - but I am not an expert. You sound like you have a delightful well balanced dog and that is the importent thing. Do you have a good groomer? A good westie style can improve appearances a lot. My friend has hers thinned with sissors, this gives a smoother look then clipping (and is better for their skin) and makes him look a bit chunkier.