Official Zaphod Picture/Update Thread
- Thread starter RD
- Start date
great job RD. Looking forward to hearing how his training is going!
Verde sure does remind me of Zaphod in the face... Any idea how tall she is, or how much she weighs? I seriously have no clue what this boy is either. Doberman seems to be a popular guess, but I just don't know. He's not nearly as leggy as I thought he was, now that he's put on the weight he needed.
Wow he looks amazing RD I'm actually kinda jealous of how white his teeth are? Question about the flat footed thing, I've never heard about that before. Is it because of his time in the shelter, or just the way he's built? Is it inherently a bad thing? Sorry to sound so ignorant for some reason I'm really curious about this.
I've seen this a lot on dogs that have been malnourished - it can be a sign of poor diet. Good diet and a good dose of vitamin C brings them back up on their toes in no time.
In many breeds, it's a bad thing. IMO the tighter the foot, the easier it is to keep the foot healthy and well cared for - nails stay shorter, the foot absorbs more of the shock when running, less of a chance for toe injury (in my experience), etc. For instance - Ilsa's feet are looser than Ronin's, and in the wintertime she always gets bloody feet when she runs on icy snow for a long time. Ronin has very tight, compact, well arched cat feet and his feet are fine on any terrain.
But, sighthounds have "hare feet" which I believe aid them in getting up to high speeds and keeping themselves from toppling over. Sighthound people may have to correct me on that one though!
In many breeds, it's a bad thing. IMO the tighter the foot, the easier it is to keep the foot healthy and well cared for - nails stay shorter, the foot absorbs more of the shock when running, less of a chance for toe injury (in my experience), etc. For instance - Ilsa's feet are looser than Ronin's, and in the wintertime she always gets bloody feet when she runs on icy snow for a long time. Ronin has very tight, compact, well arched cat feet and his feet are fine on any terrain.
But, sighthounds have "hare feet" which I believe aid them in getting up to high speeds and keeping themselves from toppling over. Sighthound people may have to correct me on that one though!
OMG this picture IS Max's face I mean, that pic is IDENTICAL to Max when he wanted something or you were petting him. You would never be able to tell from Max's pictures but if I didn't know any better this picture would have made me think it was Max. In all the other pictures he doesn't look like Max other than what I think is some dane in him but this face is just so Max.
She and Zaphod are about the same size, then. He's still got a bit of growing to do, though.
Anna, Sizzle hit the nail on the head. Zaphod is probably naturally rather flat-footed. (not badly, but not high on his feet like a Doberman would be.. for an example, Leah could you post a pic of Ilsa or Ronin's feet so Anna can see?) But he is going to come up on his feet a LOT with a better diet. I think the reason right now that they're so awful is because he spent so much time on a concrete floor, jumping up and down and putting a ton of impact on those feet. Now that he has a soft crate to rest in and sand to run on, his feet are way better.
Another thought on feet. I find that dogs who need to be able to move at great speeds and turn quickly have somewhat looser feet. Eve, for example, has pretty average rear feet, but looser (not splayed, just longer toed) front feet and flexible pasterns. Like a built in shock absorber.
Anna, Sizzle hit the nail on the head. Zaphod is probably naturally rather flat-footed. (not badly, but not high on his feet like a Doberman would be.. for an example, Leah could you post a pic of Ilsa or Ronin's feet so Anna can see?) But he is going to come up on his feet a LOT with a better diet. I think the reason right now that they're so awful is because he spent so much time on a concrete floor, jumping up and down and putting a ton of impact on those feet. Now that he has a soft crate to rest in and sand to run on, his feet are way better.
Another thought on feet. I find that dogs who need to be able to move at great speeds and turn quickly have somewhat looser feet. Eve, for example, has pretty average rear feet, but looser (not splayed, just longer toed) front feet and flexible pasterns. Like a built in shock absorber.