How to measure a dog’s height
A dog’s height is measured at the withers, the top of the shoulder blades, not at the head. Stand the dog square on a hard, level floor, lay a level or a ruler flat across the withers, and measure from the floor straight up to it.
1Stand your dog square on a level floor
Use a hard floor, not a rug or grass. Let the dog stand naturally with all four feet under its body and its head up, neither stretching nor crouching. A treat held at nose height helps, and a helper can steady the dog.
2Find the withers
Run your hand down the back of the neck to where it meets the back. The highest point of the shoulder blades is the withers. On a long-coated dog, part the fur and feel for the bone rather than the top of the coat.
3Measure from the floor to the withers
Lay a carpenter’s level, a ruler or a stiff book flat across the withers, level with the floor, and run a tape from the floor straight up to its underside. Read it to the nearest 1/4 in or half a centimetre, then measure once more.
Height is not head height or length
Breed standards and kennel clubs give a dog’s height at the withers. The head sits higher and moves, so a dog measured to the top of the head reads taller than its breed’s figure, and differently each time.
Length is a separate measurement along the body, from the front of the chest to the back of the thigh. A long, low dog and a tall, short-backed dog can share a height.
A dog that won’t stay still: use a wall
Stand your dog side on against a wall. Lay the level across the withers with one end touching the wall, hold it flat and mark the wall under that end. Let the dog go, then measure from the floor up to the mark.
A helper holding a treat at nose height keeps the head up and the feet square while you mark.
What the number is for
Kennel club standards and dog sports go by the height at the withers. In AKC agility’s Regular classes it sets how high a dog jumps: a dog 11 in or under at the withers jumps 8 in, 14 in or under 12 in, 18 in or under 16 in, 22 in or under 20 in, and a taller dog 24 in.
A crate is the exception. Crate makers size crates by the height to the top of the head with the dog standing, plus a few inches of room, so measure that as well before you buy one.
AKC agility jump height divisions · MidWest’s crate sizing guide
Compare with the breed
Each breed page on this site gives its standard’s height at the withers, for males and females where the standard splits them. A dog a little outside its breed’s range is common; the standard describes the breed, not every dog in it.
Measure the same way next time
Write down the date and how the dog stood. A dog that lowers its head, leans forward or sits back on its hind legs measures lower at the withers, so repeat the same setup when you compare two readings.
Try the same example
Draw a Labrador beside a person. The names, units and values carry into the editable chart.
For the arithmetic alone, use the height difference calculator. For a different unit, use the height converter.
The next useful step
Compare your reading with the standard: dog breeds by height, tallest first, each drawn beside a 5 ft 9 in person.
How the charts work explains the shared scale, source precision and custom inputs.