Is Reuben a Giant?

[Louise Perry]

Hello again and just for fun but is my dog a giant, haha. Reuben is nearly 7 months old and weighs 25kg and measures 25 inches (floor to middle of back). Everyone comments about his size but I think most Irish Setters are tall anyway. 

When do they stop growing? Do I need to get a horse box!!!!

[Sue and Cash]

Too funny Louise. I think at that age they seem very leggy don't they? I am worried here because my Cash seems like a little hotdog with legs. He just grew like overnight in length and looks so funny. Do you recall around how much Rueben weighed at 12 weeks? Mine is 11 weeks and is 15lbs. It seems like since he elongated his hip bones really show now and his ribs. He isn't an enthusiastic eater by any means more, it's an after thought to playtime or napping. I love thin, lanky setters anyway, so I am sort of glad he isn't living to eat, but can't find any info online about what his weight range should be at this point. I am sure Reuben is adorable at his leggy height! One of the threads here talked about how strange they can look at times during the first year.

[Louise Perry]

Well at 11 weeks Reuben was 21Ibs and at 12 weeks 23Ilb something!!! Reuben has seemed to be always just legs but is now filling out a bit and very strong! How is little Cash doing otherwise, behaving?
Reuben is my first setter and a lovely boy but does drive me bonkers too. haha Reuben never use to want to eat a lot but now he is a food monster and is on the scrounge all the time. I make him sit away from table etc but he is constantly jumping up on work surfaces looking for food. I have requested when out on walks that people dont give him treats as this makes him worse. He is obviously doing some serious growing I think!

[Sue and Cash]

Okay so now I am thinking Cash is a peewee! He is just 15 lbs at 11 weeks. That seems like a big difference from Reuben doesn't it? Yes IS do drive me crazy when young, I find that tiring them out is the key to happiness. It is so cold out that Cash and I have to find a different pet store everyday to visit and have nice walks indoors. He sits at the door wanting to get out. But can't only handle about 10 minutes outside before he is shaking again. I figure if I find enough stores, I will have one to visit each day of the week and once warmer out, we can get back to outdoor time. That counter surfing wasn't a problem with my first two setters but my last one Dublin was the worst with it. If I went out he just slept and never did that. Only when I was home.

[Louise Perry]

arrh, no Cash isn't a peewee (love the word), I think Reuben is just big! Yes Reuben has a good morning walk and meets other dogs to play with and then approx 30 mins at school pick up time but not always. I play with him but what usually happens is he gets too excited and wants to hump and jump, so i have to stop it quickly and sometimes reluctantly put him in crate for 5 mins to calm down. My poor 5 yr old! But they say not to castrate a IS, so how do people manage, does it calm down.
I bet Cash loves pet shop visiting as they usually get a treat in them too. Reuben loves our local one and tries to drag me in!

[Sue and Cash]

Cash has a stuffed bear, quite large that he has an affair with daily. I have to take it away because he humps the poor thing to death. He does try to hump my 16 yr old son and nipping is becoming painful now. My son just tells him no and stands up and walks away. They have to learn that humping isn't acceptable and it means the fun stops immediately. I had a setter years ago when my son was 3 and that dog humped him everytime he got out of the bathtub. It was a race to see who could get to the poor boy first. I guess the clean soap smell turned Casey on! I know that in Europe and even here in the US, show people do not approve of neutering. I nuetered my last two setters and my brittany. I will be doing it to Cash as well. He is a pet, and if it means he turns out a bit leggier or his coat isn't perfection I will have to live with that decision. I hope to wait till he is at least 8 months old but his behavior will dictate when. Our vet said to wait till his growth plates close and that would be about 8-9 months but she could be wrong about IS. Either way our social structure and friends all have neutered/spayed dogs and unaltered causes issues with other males we encounter. I do not want to live with that concern. I want him safe and secure! My friend Gordon Setter gets messed with all the time because he is intact. I keep telling her why they pick on him but she won't do it. So she goes to run him at the woods at quietier times when the others aren't there. I want the freedom to go whenever I want. I feel you should do what you feel is best for your family and your dog. It seems like all the IS rescue's I see have been neurtered here in the US and they don't have bad coats in my opinion but then again I am just a novice pet owner, not an expert. Just don't feel pressured to not do what you feel you want to do. Rueben will calm down in the months to come and you will miss this puppiness in him.;

[Louise Perry]

Thanks Susan for the info and your experiences it is a great help. I am keeping an open mind about neutering and see how Reuben developes (well he definitely has developed in that region, as he often shows me when asleep with all four paws in the air and exposing himself, hee, hee). I have read and seen about unwanted attention from other male dogs too. He is a pet and will never be a show dog due to his ongoing cough/chest investigations. And yes I am sure I will miss the puppiness in him as though tough going at times is also very funny and endearing. And even the verbal answering back makes me smile but of course i don't let Reuben see that!
I find that with Reuben any furry turns him on esp dressing gowns and a furry throw that I have now had to hide. I am just glad he hasn't tried the cat! Perhaps he needs a stuffed bear like Cash...

[Sue and Cash]

Louise you just made me remember that same setter Casey who had a thing for my grandma's fur coat. When she would visit she would put it on our bed. I came in the room and found my dog in lust with that innocent coat. I tell you everytime Grandma had that coat on (for years) my husband and I would die laughing. I never told her! When she died she had left me all her things. Well that coat was one of them. Sad as it was, I am not into fur and donated the coat. Poor Casey lost his girlfriend to a needy soul.

[Louise Perry]

haha, love it!!!

[Jo Ottinger]

Hi, Hawk is 14months and he is at 62 lbs. I have never had a problem with humping with either Hawk or Scout. From my understanding the growth plates are still growing until the age of two. If you are doing agility you can not compete here in the US until your dog is two for this reason. Hawk will not be neutered unless for health reasons but he is show quality. I worry to much about AI diseases and it is one of the reasons I do not think I will. I did have a poodle mix that humped when he was young but he grew out of it.