Body Condition Score for Dogs

What is Your Dog’s Body Condition Score, and how you can check it at home?

The Body Condition Score is an international scale, widely used to assess whether or not a dog is under weight, over weight, or at an ideal level. In this post, we talk you though the scale, from 1-9, and with the help of Veterinarian Carol Doyle, show you how you can assess your dog’s Body Condition Score at home.

The Body Condition Score is the first assessment to be carried out to determine if your dog is at a healthy size, and is used in conjunction with regular weight checks to monitor changes in your dog’s size.

Check out how to assess your cat’s BCS score here.

Body Condition Score Explained

1. Before the Assessment

Before you begin, give your dog lots of love and affection to help them to relax. Once your dog is comfortable, you can start to assess your dog’s health and their body condition. Include lots of gentle strokes along the way, and your pet may not even notice that they’re having a check-up!

2. Profile Check

Look at your standing dog from a side-on angle, when level with them. This will help you to get a good view of their tummy, limbs, and posture.

3. Overhead check

Look down at your standing dog from overhead. This will give you a good view of their waist and lumbar area (back).

I’ve Checked my Dog’s BCS, What Should I do Next?

If your dog is registering as a 3 or 6, you will be able to correct his BCS with some adjustments to his diet and exercise. Petmania’s pet care advisors are available 7 days a week to help you with this. Visit your local store today.

If your dog is registering as a 4-5 he is currently as his ideal size. We now need to help you to keep him there. Monitoring his diet and ensuring regular exercise is the best way to do this. Read our blog post on how to prevent your dog from gaining excess weight here.

If your dog is in the 1-2 or over 7, please make an appointment to visit his veterinarian as soon as possible.