At 18 months, Ruby-Doo is now just about the same size as Cassie the Corgi, who's about six years her senior. As of this evening, they each weigh exactly 21.8 pounds.

That's right at what the vet pegs as Cassie's ideal weight. Ruby looks a tiny bit shorter than Cassie, but I think that's because her coat is considerably thinner than Cassie's She's filling out: getting broader across the back and shoulders and thicker around the belly.

I'm thinking it's about time to cut back the puppy rations, a little at a time, lest Ruby start to get overweight.

Cassie has always eaten, ever since I got her at the age of two, about a half-pound of home-cooked meat/veggies/and starch a day: a quarter pound in the morning and another quarter-pound at night.

Ruby's been scarfing down a pound a day, to accommodate the higher caloric needs of puppyhood. She looks great -- they both do, come to think of it. And they're both energetic, alert, and happy. But now that she's taking on the look of a fully grown dog, I think pretty quick she'll be needing a little less chow.

So the plan is to cut her back a tiny bit at a time, until  her intake is closer to Cassie's. Keep weighing her every couple  of days, though, to be sure she doesn't start to lose.

They get bits of Wellness kibble as treats. I suspect that stuff is fairly caloric, since the recommended dose -- uhm, meal -- is not very much. So she certainly isn't going to starve to death.

Don't want either one of them to get too heavy!