Lean and lanky Cavalier question

I would love some feedback on a 1-year-old Cavalier we met today that is available. She is same age as Gracie but is taller and thinner. It is a lankier physique than I have seen before but I have not seen dozens of Cavs either. She does not seem to be underweight though....no ribs showing and coat is good. She just seems to have taller legs and narrower frame. Reminded me a bit of a colt who still has long legs but has not filled in fully. Even her face is a bit narrow in proportion. She has lots of energy and is good eater. All to ask.. Should this physique be a major concern or do some Cavs come that way? I am not looking to show the dog so not concerned about appearance, but if this sets off health alarms please let me know. I thought she was healthy looking but hubby wanted some input from our friends here. Thanks for any help you can provide.

I don't think that that type of physique indicates any particular health concerns. We had a tallish, leanish male, which had been castrated rather early, at 8 weeks (not by us), and he ended up a bit taller than average and somewhat leaner, but his only health problem, apart from late onset MVD, was a questionable hip. He competed in AKC agility, obtaining a couple of championships in that arena, and lived to the age of 14 years.

Can you share a photo or picture?

Either way though, I probably wouldn't be too worried. When he joined our household at 8 weeks, he was chock-full of puppyfat, but he quickly went into his 'awkward' phase when he started growing horizontally faster than vertically as he approached his 1st birthday. He's 2 tomorrow, and nicely filled out now. :smile:

No health issues would be connected to that build -- if anything I actually think lanky has a lot of positives. My Jaspar has that build and is a fantastic and athletic dog for agility etc -- he can do things my shorter legged dogs cannot. I actually prefer a little more leg.

That said puppies are often lean and lanky at age 1 and she is likely to continue to fill out a bit for many months yet.

yes if they are spayed or neutered early that affects growth and especially in the bigger breeds can actually cause some skeletal issues as the bones grow longer than they should do otherwise. In the old days in the Italian choirs the men were actually castrated to keep their voices from breaking and they all grew very tall with large rib cages! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castrato for some info

You can usually tell a dog that has been dressed early.

They do fill out in their 2nd year, mine actually put on almost 1kg in weight [but are not fat] , they were just later maturing. That does happen in some lines.

If she is fit and healthy other than that I can't see there are any issues. Could you arrange for her to come over for at least an afternoon and see how they get on in your home?

Thanks all!!!!

This is pretty well what I assumed....but good to see that her physique alone is not a problem. Certainly there are no assurances about health issues showing up later. Her parents were MRIed and were clear of SM but one offspring has mild CM and so far no SM. She and Gracie just loved playing together. They immediately hit it off and stayed together. She had been sold but was returned due to unexpected death in family of the income provider. The breeder also is selling a male dog who is beautiful and very sweet boy...he is 2. But is not into the other dogs at all....just the humans. I do not know if he would be more playful if in a different situation or not. We live about 3 hours from breeder but discussed bringing one home and seeing how it goes for a few weeks. We have up to a year to get refund....but I know that it would be very hard to return one after they have been in the home. So have to commit to strong resolve if it does not work out.

My Murphy is tall and lanky, I call him my "sausage" because of it. We were out walking by the river the other night, and a few trees had come down due to high winds. Murphy took them like a champion hurdler, it made me wish we had started agility with him.

He is now five and has no health issues. The senior vet at out practice loves him. The first time he met Murphy he said "this dog must run everywhere he has great leg muscles". I used to be concerned because he doesn't have a "waist" but he's just to slim to have one. He weighs 11.8kg, but you wouldn't think it to look at him.

Sounds like my Micah...we refer to him as our "cat" He is long and lanky....built like a cat. At 18 months it's interesting to see how he's changed since 14 weeks. I'll be even more curious to see what he looks like at closer to 2 years. It sounds like this dog just has that particular build, nothing to be concerned about IMHO.

I have a lanky one myself - it's very good for him as he has a bad heart (not anything to do with his physique i must say)

The vet said he is fab and he is as tall as Ruby who weighs 10kg (not fat by anymeans) but he only weighs 7.5kg)

He reminds me of a fox when he trots about but he is a fabulous Agility dog! I did worry like you though when I first got him but I've soon realsied that it is just the way he is




this is prob the best photo i have of his frame

I was sppeaking to my vet not that long ago about the different shapes and sizes of Cavaliers and he said it is one of the more varied breeds he sees (size wise)

Thanks for photo above!!

Your Charlie looks a lot like the doggy we met yesterday! I think they are a lovely build. I bet both are fast!

He is really really fast!!!

The last agility show we went away for he was keeping up with a friends 2 whippetXpointers when we went for our walk on the beach!


I do get comments when we are out walking sometimes from people who mention how skinny he is but like my vet said, obese or over weight dogs are so common place that when you get a nice lean dog people think its under weight!

Go Charlie go!!!!

He is really moving! What a pretty boy!

I love his expression!! You can see he really enjoys doing what he's doing!

LOVE those pics!! Rose is also one with a lean/lanky build. When I went to my first dog show, I was surprised at how "plushy" they all were compared to Rose . But a breeder friend said that she still had some time to fill out and get her coat, and while she will not be a "plushy faced" show dog, she is starting to fill out and get a little more of that look. Rose would probably do well in agility too, but they would have to let me toss a ball over and through the course to get her to go, lol.

I'll be looking to see more about this little girl! I hope she works out for you, sounds like so far, so good!

My Claire is that long lanky build. She is fairly small, at about 11 1/2 lbs. But she is thin and lanky. I really should consider agility for her as she can jump and leap over things like they don't exist. My Vet said she is perfect, and Cav's come in all shapes and sizes.