by Praneeth
(Colombo,Sri Lanka)
hello,
i have a male rottweiler imported from serbia, who is 2 years old at the moment. but i noticed that his chest is small. so i would like to work him out and get his chest broader.
i have tried walking him, hill climbing, running in the beach(started recently). could you please let me know what i should do about this?
thank you.
Hi Praneeth
The bone structure and bodily proportions of a dog are determined mainly by genetics. If you feel your dog has a chest that is narrow, or shallow, chances are it’s a trait he’s inherited from one, or both, or his parents.
I’d recommend that first you take a close look at photos of your dogs’ parents, and study their conformation. You will likely see that this is the case. Even if both parents have chests that are deeper than his, it’s still possible that this is something in his genes, perhaps from a grandparent.
Of course, exercise can help to build up the muscles and will eventually make some difference to the width/depth of a dogs chest, but not something extremely significant. With large breed dogs like Rottweilers, especially in hot climates, you need to be careful not to overexercise, or to cause strain on the joints/bones/ligaments or major organs such as the heart.
A good diet and regular exercise (within normal limits) is the best way to help your dog reach his maximum potential. At 2 years old he is likely almost finished growing in terms of height, but will probably continue to gain weight and muscle mass for at least another 6 months before he’s considered fully grown.
