Is your pet at a healthy weight?
Score your pet like a vet does and get an estimated ideal weight.
Score your pet’s body condition
Look from above and from the side, and feel along the ribs. Compare your pet to the pictures, feel along the ribs, and move the slider until the description matches.
Each step on the scale is roughly 10% more body weight than the step before it.
How to score at home
Feel the ribs. Run your flat hands along your pet’s side. At an ideal weight, ribs feel like the back of your hand: easy to find under a thin layer. If they feel like your knuckles, your pet is too thin; if they feel like your palm, there’s too much padding. Look from above. You should see a waist, an inward curve behind the ribs. Look from the side. The belly should tuck up toward the hind legs (cats often have a small fat pad there, which is normal).
Why it matters
More than half of dogs and cats in the US are overweight, and most owners don’t realize it, because the scale doesn’t tell you what’s normal for your pet’s frame. In a lifelong study of Labrador retrievers, dogs kept lean lived about two years longer and developed arthritis later. Use the score with our feeding calculator to set the right daily calories.
Illustrations are original artwork created for Paw Priority. Scores follow the widely used 9-point body condition scale.
Common questions
What is a body condition score?
A 1 to 9 scale vets use to judge body fat by look and feel, independent of breed. A 4 or 5 is ideal. Each point above 5 is roughly 10% over ideal weight.
How do I know if my dog is overweight?
If you can’t easily feel the ribs, can’t see a waist from above, or the belly doesn’t tuck up from the side, your dog is likely overweight. Score them with the tool above.
My cat has a saggy belly. Is that fat?
Not always. Many cats have a “primordial pouch,” a flap of skin and fat on the lower belly that’s normal even in lean cats. Judge by the ribs and waist instead.
How can I help my pet lose weight safely?
Measure meals with a real measuring cup, keep treats under 10% of calories, and aim for slow loss: 1 to 2% of body weight per week for dogs, 0.5 to 1% for cats. Our feeding calculator has a weight-loss mode, and we can build a full plan.
Let us take a closer look.
Weight checks, nutrition plans, and honest advice. Exams $100. Paw Priority, 8020 Melrose Ave.
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