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Puppy half the size she should be??

5K views 40 replies 15 participants last post by  blackshep 
#1 ·
I have a full blood shepherd, female, born 8/22/2013. Weighed her today, she is 20.4lbs. Talked to two vets, one that I used to go to often with my other dogs, and a new one that she saw where I lived. They both said health wise she is great. Shes just so **** small. Got a pic from a friend who has her sister with him. She looks like she's pushing 40lbs. Is there something that could be wrong with her that I am missing? She was not at all the runt of the litter. Here are some recent pics.

First pic is of her this morning. Second and third are christmas, and fourth is of her next to her 85lb aunt.
 

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#3 ·
Breeder just thinks shes going to be small. She eats like a beast. Shes eating a balanced raw diet. 2lbs a day, with veggies added a little into each meal, eggs twice a week, and yogurt once a week. I thought she was at least 25lbs by now but checked at my petsmart banfield and shes only 20. Very stressed about it because I feel like I'm doing something wrong but idk what it could possibly be. She acts completely healthy and doesn't look underweight for her frame size. She just looks like shes still 12 weeks old.
 
#9 ·
You can always have her poop checked to make sure she doesn't have any creepy crawlies. But really, if she's active, alert, eating, pooping, sleeping, etc...all that normal puppy stuff I would not worry. Don't over feed her to gain weight. As she matures you will see what her "normal" is. My boy was still filling out at 3 years old.
 
#10 ·
Maybe shes just on the smaller size like her mom. Some dogs just take longer to grow into their adult sizes. When I first got my pup people told me he was small. His other 2 siblings where bigger and he looked like the runt. Hes now 30" and 90 pounds. Hes too big.
 
#11 ·
She is actually really good on her own about not over eating which is nice. But I always measure out her food. Everything she does is normal, no worms at all, have her on flea and tick medicine? Her and my other dogs are on Trifexis. Wonder if that could be causing it?
 
#12 ·
Everybody wants a big dog ... Why? Oversized are disqualified at shows. They are bulkier, havier, they cannot jump tall fences and generally they are slower than smaller ones when grown up. People, who want to compete in Agility always choose smaller GSD. She could be the last born in her litter, start feeding her raw if you want her to catch up with her sisters and brothers quickly.
 
#14 ·
including eggs
Don't feed her raw eggs! Read about bacteria called Salmonella, it's deadly. She doesn't need them, anuway. Instead, look through the web to order raw rabbit. Beef could be given twice a week only ( 200 gramms a day at her age) not to overload her liver, and chicken is low in nuitrition, while rabbit is the dog's favourite. And don't worry about her size before she is one year old.
 
#16 · (Edited)
And you think the raw rabbit or raw beef is pathogen free? Lol


I feed raw eggs about 2 times a week -shell and all. As well as all different kinds of meats and cuts that are sometimes well ripe.

Continue introducing new protein sources . I would see if she will self regulate. I know a lot of raw feeders who will let their puppies eat till they are full because they go through so many growth spurts where they may need to eat more or eat less.

And as long as she is still playful and all puppy energy I wouldn't worry. Perhaps, 20.4lbs is exactly what she should weight.
 
#15 ·
rabbit is a dog's favorite? Nobody told Jax that. She won't touch it.

If she's growing correctly, she may just be small. If 2 different vets aren't concerned and she's not underweight for her size then I wouldn't worry. Was she underweight when you got her at 8 weeks?

We have a Boxer who is only 42#. She was the runt, beat on by the other pups, not separated to ensure she was getting her nutrients. When we got her she was all skin and bones, full of worms and only 4# at 9 weeks. A truly pitiful sight.
 
#17 ·
Nobody told Jax that.
One of many reasons why we love to visit our parents at Christmas is that we can eat food which brings us back to childhood. Nothing tates better than mums cooking! The reason for that is that our stomach sets its tastes when we are still young. Native Chinese wouldn't survive in US without Chinese food stores, all of foreighners in the country are looking for "their" restaurants... Dogs fed kibble from times they were young refuse delicatessens. What is the main prey of the wolf? Rodents - mice and rabbits, big prey is rare, even in winter Canada wolves manage to detect a mouse under 8 feet deep snow. Rabbit is the most natural food for your dog: nuitritious and easy to digest it has perfect bones for chewing and digesting ( except tubular bones of the limbs). Create a healthy diet for your dog while he's little and try not to change it during his life, if there was a raw rabbit in it - he would still love it. I order 20 kg of frozen at once and Lucy chomps it with a great pleasure, I don't even bother to cut large bits. She spends a lot of energy every day, still has a fatty layer under skin but not overwaight, her coat is a brilliant gloss, and she is always in a good mood! Of course, I feed her not only that.
 
#23 ·
Your reasoning always baffles me.
Why should it? Raw rabbit meat is the most natural food for GSD as a straight descendant of the wolf, anybody doubts it? If your dog rejects it - that is because you didn't feed him rabbit when he was a puppy. But, many people in Britain and in US prefer to feed their dogs rabbit meat, many farms raise rabbits for meat, no problem to order whatsoever. The matter of ethics is a different matter. Rabbits are kept as pets by many.
 
#25 ·
I feed my dogs raw eggs and my family's fudge recipe includes raw egg. In like 50 years no one has ever gotten salmonella poisoning. It's not true that ALL raw eggs have salmonella. They can, but if they do, chances are if they are store-bought eggs they are already being recalled and the health dept. is looking into it. It's not common to get illnesses like that from properly processed and stored food. Not to mention that dogs can have salmonella in their gut. It doesn't effect them the way it does humans unless they are immune-compromised.

PS. My Chinese friends survive JUST fine without Chinese food stores, in fact as far as I know they only buy foods for their DOGS at local Chinese groceries.
 
#27 ·
#31 ·
Agreed!

I feed my dog eggs all the time. Many people do. I just read an article on eggs in Europe being safer than the US because of the way we wash them. It degrades the shell and allows bacteria in. The article said Europe doesn't wash the eggs and that is why they can keep their eggs unrefrigerated and we can't.
 
#30 ·
I will say that my dog has a higher chance of salmonella poisoning from kibble...even me if I don't wash my hands when handling it.
Yes, of course...But we are talking about a very young puppy. Death rate in puppies is much, much greater than in adult dogs. A story I heard was of a man who lost his puppy this summer and the vets couldnt say what it was, salmonella was one of their suspicions. That puppy had started with continuous diarrhoea and died of dehydration.
 
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