A general “rant” of mine is dog size. There is such a huge machismo type thing about how much your dog weighs, people always bragging about their GSD’S or Labs or what-have-you being 100lbs or more. First of all, I honestly find that hard to believe. Second of all, very few breeds are supposed to be 100lbs or more, FFS.
My 11.5mo Pyrenees/Anatolian is 70lbs right now, and while he could use some more muscle, is just about right if you ask me (and his young joints). At this stage I’m uncertain if he will top out at 100lbs or more when he’s fully mature, and that’s totally fine by me. But someone looking at him, just his sheer size and floof, would guess he weighs that now. 
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Don’t get me started on my neighbor’s 100 lb pit mix. Nice dog, but he should weigh 80 lbs. He’s fat.
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I joined a FB group called “No, it’s not starving - dedicated to fit, healthy dogs” and it is so refreshing to just be able to scroll and see good-looking pups and no Flabs etc.
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Nice to know there is such a thing! Having Whippets, I need to join it 
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Yes, lots of Whippets posted!
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It goes the other way too. Why do we have to have miniature versions of already small-to-midsized breeds?
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My 15 month old male GSD weighs 72 lbs and I have people stopping me and saying he must be 90+ lbs. No, no he doesn’t weigh that much. He will fill out and probably end up around 78-80 lbs by the time he is done.
It is the popular image of the breed that makes people do this. Nobody stops me with my Toy Poodle and tells me how much he weighs.
Sheilah
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Hear hear! I saw the fattest lab at the vet recently–it’s thighs had ROLLS. Seriously, I didn’t even know dogs could get rolls of fat like that. I always wonder…beyond all of the other reasons to keep a dog leaner…isn’t it expensive to overfeed your dog THAT much? 
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Not a Lab. Lol!
Seriously, they are the air ferns of the dog world.
To keep mine in good weight I have to monitor their food and exercise regimen and find the balance between the two.
Yes, it is. Not only in food but in medical expenses as a consequence of the morbid obesity.
My kid sister has had a series of Labs, and her DVM is always dragging new staff members into the exam room to proclaim, “See? This is what a Lab is supposed to look like!”
Hers have always been fit.
Not overfed, and she takes them running with her.
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A year ago during one of my dogs annual wellness checks the vet remarked that my older dog was in decent weight but given his age could probably stand to lose a few pounds to preserve his health in his later years. He was 12. At that appt Oliver weighed 77 pounds. He’s A ditch dog that looks like a lab boxer mix. Fast forward a year and at this appt the vet came in the room with a look of concern. She said…” do you know Oliver has lost 7 pounds in the past year ? “ I told her “ well yes I thought that’s what you wanted. We go on long walks everyday and I measure his food.” She laughed and was so pleased. She said “ it’s rare people take my advice about weight loss. Good job!”
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Ditto. And gets asked if he’ll hit 100 lbs. Better not, he’s not bred to be that heavy. Some of the European ones are heavier boned, but 100 is still a bit much.
Neeko is probably 65-ish now, WAG. He was 58 at his last vaccines about 2 months ago. His gaining has slowed a lot, as it should. He should only mature at 75-80 lbs
He loves the pool, the weirdo (for a GSD)
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Oh…and I have a toy poodle too
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This was my Schutzhund/IGP competition male in his prime (6y/o).
I constantly had people inferring he must be 100+ lbs.
Most “pet people” didn’t buy it that he wasn’t some high 100++ weight. 
He typically weighed in at a lean, well muscled 80#
I am 5’3” 140#, for reference on how big he looked.
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My guy is a sable, too!
Sheilah
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Putting on flame-suit and offering the disclaimer that I’ve never owned a dog and am much more of a cat person than a dog person. But I enjoy a nice well trained dog and have attended some big dog shows purely as a spectator and to support a friend who was showing her English Mastiffs at the time.
I shudder at the hand-scrawled road signs for any dogs- be it AKC this or that or a Doodle This or that. It just Smacks if pumping out puppies in your back yard for cash.
That said, I’ve seen some of these “designer” dogs be perfect combos of the breeds in their lineage.
My friend had a Pomeranian, but after that dog passed away she wanted something a little bigger who could keep up with her now pre-teen son on jogs for soccer training while still being well suited to life in a small 2 bedroom apartment. They got a (gasp) pomski, and that dog is absolutely perfect for them. Just big and active enough, but still house-pet enough for small living space and younger kids. He holds his training much better than the Pom, and has a generally calmer demeanor.
I went to the breeder website and it it was actually a good, thoughtful and informative website. The breeder conducts genetic and health testing on any breeding animal, and has a written Code of ethics, owner screening process and a 2 year health guarantee.
I’m not sure what is standard in the dog world, but in my admittedly limited experience, this particular designer dog breeder is indeed attractive to me. Maybe this dog is just a good egg and a suitable match for his family, but it’s possible that there are good breeders who are establishing sound breeding programs and not just catering to whims and trends.
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They got lucky. There a tons of breeds that may have suited. American Eskimo, German Spitz, Japanese Spitz, Shiba Inu, Keeshond… and that’s just off the top of my head.
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I know of 2 Pomskis and don’t know a lot about them, other than that they seem to be good enough pets. One is just a puppy, the other is about 2.
I’d be curious to know which health tests this breeder conducts prior to breeding, and what other selection methods are used. E.g. what dog would not be bred? (Why do their breeding dogs merit being bred?) Hopefully it’s not “we breed these two (3 or 4) because they are the only dogs we own” …but "these particular dogs were selected for specific traits (hopefully physical, temperament and heatlh).
I am also curious why anyone sees a Pomeranian as a natural mix for a Husky, other than spitz ears and coat type?
What about these breeds make sense to combine to form a “new” breed - especially when there are a variety of other medium sized, double-coated, spitz type breeds?
If those questions are answered on the website, I’m not 100% against breeding for pets. I personally see no need to create a new mixed breed to do this, but I am willing to be convinced. I do know of a couple of purpose-bred mixes that make sense from a function perspective.
Generally I do not condone cross-breeding because it’s a fine line between creating a “purpose bred mix” and adding “just enough” of another breed to a breeding program but not identify it as such. This is rampant in my breed with “just a touch” of another breed to affect size and performance…aka cheating.
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That’s the challenge of an F1 cross, some DO have the desirable traits of both. Some. Not all. Not most. In every other universe we call the rest of them culls, and they have long been discarded (ethically or otherwise) while the ones with desirable traits were kept as the foundation for whatever new breed was being thoughtfully (one hopes) developed.
I suppose the good thing about the American F1 breeder is that they generally sell the culls for top dollar rather than dump them, but I’m pretty sure when it comes to the puppy mill designer breeders, they are culling dogs that don’t meet the desired look (it’s a given they don’t care about temperament).
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This is Scout, my basic American mutt. He’s a big dog and people constantly estimate his weight at around 100 pounds. The reality: he’s always weighed in at the vet at 55-57 pounds, although he’s 13 now and his weight has gone up to 60-62.
My takeaway is that people in general are really bad at estimating height (as evidenced by horse ads) and weight and these pronouncements should never be trusted! 
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