Pet Weight and Body Condition Chart

Who this is for

A weight record that shows the direction of travel. Every weighing goes in with the date, the figure and where it was taken, and the change column subtracts the previous reading so a slow drift is visible before anyone notices it by eye.

Owners of a pet on a weight plan agreed with the vet, anyone watching weight through an illness or old age, and multi-person households where the animal is weighed by whoever is at the practice that week.

What this helps you track

• Weight at each weighing, with the date and the scales used
• The change since the previous weighing, worked out for you
• The body condition score your vet gave, and who gave it
• The overall change across the whole record
• A chart your vet can look at instead of asking you to remember

How to use it

1. Write the animal's details and the unit you are weighing in at the top, and keep to that one unit all the way down.
2. Weigh on the same scales where you can — the practice's floor scales, your own, or a set of baby scales for a small animal — and say which in the row.
3. Enter the date and the weight; the change column subtracts the previous row on screen and in the workbook. On paper, do the subtraction yourself.
4. Write the body condition score only if your vet or nurse gave you one, and record the scale they used in the field at the top.
5. Use the notes column for anything that would explain a change — a coat clip, a course of treatment, a change of food agreed with the vet.
6. Take it to the next weigh-in appointment.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

What should my pet weigh?

That is a question for your vet, and the sheet deliberately carries no target weight, no range and no condition scale of its own. There is a field for the target your vet sets, if they set one.

What is a body condition score?

A hands-on assessment a vet or nurse makes, using a scale their practice works to. Write down the score and the scale they used; the sheet supplies neither, because several different scales are in use.

How often should I weigh?

Whatever your practice suggests. Weighing far more often than the animal can change mostly records the scales rather than the pet.

Why does my first row show no change?

There is no previous reading to subtract from. The change column starts working at the second weighing.

Can I use it for a rabbit, a ferret or a bird?

Yes, in whatever unit suits — grams for a small animal, kilograms or pounds for a larger one. Keep one sheet per animal and one unit per sheet.