sheltie size

Question
QUESTION: I purchased a sable sheltie in May of this year. He was born in January 07. It is now mid July and he stands 16" tall and weighs 22 lbs- with a wonderful temperment. At what point will he stop growing? How big can as sheltie get?

ANSWER: Steven,

Right now your boy is still within the correct sizing range but he still might grow taller.  Recent champs have been on the top ends of the AKC standard acceptable breed range in the high 30lb range at 16".  I have seen poorly bred shelties who are just as big as a collie.  

Below 8" are bad, over 16" are bad.  

Hopefully his body won't grow much taller but should bulk up.  Then his coat will grow out and you will have a good looking Sheltie.  However if you are measuring correctly, there is a good chance he hasn't stopped growing in height and will exceed the standard.  It's close.  Keep your paws crossed.

Dave



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: My sheltie is now 7 mnths old , I purchased him when he was 5 mnths. I have followed the breeders instructions and fed him a combination of the Purina Pro-Plan Sensitive Skin and Stomach with the Pro-Plan Chicken and Rice for puppies which he has done well on. I was away for a week and left him with the breeder who fed him just the Pro-Plan for Sensitive Skin and Stomach , which I followed with when I got him home. His coat is shiny and he looks good- in fact he seems to maybe have settled down a bit since he os off the puppy version-but I notice that he passes gas, which maybe due to the full servings of the sensitive skin and stomach formula. Is there any benefit if I was to now add the adult chicken and rice in combination with the Sensitive Skin and Stomach formula?

Answer
Food results can vary by individual dog.  The rule of thumb I use is to buy the higher quality grade dry food with meat as the primary ingredient and don't over feed.  If the dog eats it and has the good health there isn't much else to worry about.  

You seem to have an excellent handle on the food situation compared to 98% of the other dog owners in the world!

For your specific question I would say try it and see what the results are.  If his stool is consistent and he keeps his energy and sheen then by all means keep up with the blend.  We usually wean off of puppy formula at about 10-12 months by blending the foods and gradually reducing the puppy food portion of the mix as the last bag is dwindling.  This helps keep them from being too gassy or sick as their diet content changes gradually.

Dave