Introducing Blue. Please note the perfect silhouette, how the belly tapers in, the beautiful body lines. This is a retriever that is in shape and actually looks ready to hunt. I doubt that Blue will ever have hip problems, there's no extra weight riding on his back half.

I can't tell you how many overweight Golden retrievers I've seen, most of which developed hip problems and needed expensive surgery to correct their limping. Let's be realistic - dogs love to eat and too many are under-exercised.  You need to resist the temptation to overfeed, an overweight dog is an unhealthy dog. If you can't feel the ribs of your dog, you're probably feeding him too much.

Blue is a perfect specimen of an appropriate weight for its breed. You may have a different breed, but the idea is that your dog should look lean and fit, like a well-honed athlete. Good work, Karissa!