Pet Weighing Scales: All You Need to Know

It’s important to regularly check your pet’s weight to make sure the animal is healthy and fit. Every animal is different, and while weight charts provide general guidelines, the figures might not apply to all animals. That’s why it’s a good idea to weigh pets frequently using accurate pet weighing scales.

What is the difference between a pet weighing scale and a standard digital scale?

Pet scales are designed to weigh a variety of household pets, from large dogs to small reptiles and insects. If you’ve ever tried to weigh a moving animal, you know how difficult it is. The movement prevents the scale from showing a stable, consistent weight. To overcome this problem, specialist pet scales contain an animal/dynamic weighing mode. Dynamic weighing allows the scale to come up with an average weight based on the force exerted by the animal over an extended period of time.

In addition to weighing pets, these scales can be used to measure other animal-related items, including feed bags, food portions, and bedding materials.

When are pet scales used?

A mentioned previously, pet scales are used for much more than simply weighing pets, therefore they are often used in any environment that provides products or services for pets, from pet food stores to professional veterinary practices, groomers and breeders. These scales can also be used personally around the home for monitoring the weight of your pet, and are also used in pageants and competitions.

Vets

Veterinarians require accurate animal weighing scales to monitor the weight of animals in their care. This helps them keep track of any major fluctuations in animal weight, which can indicate illness. Using this information, vets decide how much food, water and medicine to administer, as well as the amount of exercise each animal should be getting.

Home Use

Using scales at home allows you to keep track of your pet’s weight. Smaller compact scales can be used to measure accurate portions of dog biscuits, grains for hamsters or guinea pigs, and meal-worm for aquarium fish and larger pond fish. Hanging scales can be used to lift and weigh feed bags for larger animals such as horses and livestock on farms.

Competitions

Competition entrants and animal pageants require accurate approved animal scales to weigh pets to ensure that they are a healthy weight for their breed. Some animal competitions use weight class to sort competitors into categories.

How to match a weighing scale with your pet

The ideal pet scale is generally based on the size and type of the animal. Here we have matched a few of our recommended scale types with common household pets:

Small pets, reptiles and birds | Compact & Bench Scales

Compact bench scales are generally used on worktops or benches. They offer small to medium pan sizes and certain models can be customised with scoops, stands and other accessories to improve weighing performance.

Tips for reptile owners:

Small containers can be placed on top of bench scales and tared to remove their weight value. By taring the scale, the user can place animals such as snakes into a container and set it on the weighing platform to get an accurate weight. This minimises harm to the animal, and it allows the user to move the animal around more easily whilst restricting the animal’s movement to achieve more accurate weight readings.

Large Pets & dogs | Platform & floor scales

Platform floor scales make excellent dog scales with sturdy construction, large pan sizes and a wide variety of weighing applications. Due to their size, platform scales for pets are typically used in animal shelters and veterinary settings.

How to weigh your dog with Adam platform scales:

Adam platform scales can be customised with GK weight and counting indicators for increased weighing functionality. We also recommend using the CPWplus rubber mat accessory for optimum results.

• Before weighing ensure that you have set the dynamic/ animal weighing mode on the GK indicator and that you have placed the scale on a flat, secure surface
• Once set, allow your dog to stand or walk across the scale weighing platform.
• Press tare to store the weight value or use the hold function to show the average weight value on the display.
• Connect the scale to a printer or computer with an RS-232 cable to record the results.

Insects & arachnids | Precision & analytical balances

Precision and analytical balances can weigh tiny animals with a high level of precision up to 0.0001g. Portable precision balances such as Adam’s Highland HCB or Core CQT feature draft shields, which help minimise the effects of breezes that could affect results. These versatile weighing machines can be stored, packed and transported easily.

Due to their speed and small size, spiders and insects are notoriously difficult to weigh with a typical weighing scale. Some precision balances provide enclosed weighing chambers that allow exceptionally light pets to be weighed accurately without the risk of escape.

Inscale’s recommended scales for pet

Many of these balances and scales can be used with an RS-232 cable, allowing users to record results and send them to printers or computers.

MTB Animal Weighing Scale – Adam Equipment

Adam's MTB animal scale has been specifically designed for weighing small animals and pets. The MTB comes complete with a smooth, comfortable cradle attachment as well as a non-slip rubber mat for stable weighing results. Ideal for cats, small reptiles and pets.

DE-D Platform Scale – Kern

Kern's popular DE-D platform scale provides a versatile, flat weighing surface for easy and accessible weighing in vets and animal shelters. The scale base features a strong, stainless steel top pan that can be easily cleaned after use. With weight capacities up to 300kg, this scale is ideal for weighing dogs and larger pets.

CPWplus Dog Weighing Scale – Adam Equipment

The CPWplus dog weighing scale is an Adam Equipment product that is perfect for weighing larger dogs. CPWplus scales include flat, stainless steel top pans and come in a variety of platform sizes suitable for weighing almost animal. These versatile platform scales are particularly useful in animal shelters, veterinary practices and certain competitions.

Highland HCB Portable Precision Balance – Adam Equipment

Adam's Highland HCB precision balance is a highly popular product used for high-resolution weighing. The Highland range allows you to choose from a variety of models for measuring the weight of small insects and pets.

Please contact us for more information on our selection of dog weighing scales. Our phonelines are 01908972660 or Get In Touch.

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