[GSDluver4lyfe]

My puppy Mace will be 5 months on May 9th and I am concerned about his weight currently he weighs 26#. At first it wasnt a big deal but as the weeks go on he's just not growing. He eats quite alot about 4 cups a day plus canned food and treats when training. Also when he eats his stomach gets really big like he's bloating.

Should I be concerned?

 

[ldpeterson]

If the pup has checked out healthy by the vet then no I would not be concerned. Puppies grow at different rates. Annabelle was 33 lbs. at that age and it took her 2 years to grow into the 72 lb. female that she is. I think at 1 year she was still weighing 58 lbs. She just grew really really slow, which is exactly what you want.

 

[BowWowMeow]

26 pounds is very small for a 5 month old male gsd. Is he a purebred gsd? What does your vet say? Have you taken in a fecal sample recently? What are his poops like? What kind of food are you feeding?

I would get him into the vet for a work up.

 

[GSDluver4lyfe]

Thanks for the replies!

Mace is a purebred GSD. The vet said he was healthy the last time I took him in. But he doesnt really take the time to explain things, kinda like get in get out. I'm thinking of switching vets. Right now I have him on natural choice large breed puppy (switching him to Canidae once his bag is almost gone). His poop looks normal, no loose stool blood or anything.

Someone mentioned dwarfism to me, and now I am very concerned, I am all for slow-growth but this seems a little too slow. I will make a vet appointment for as soon as possible.

 

[BowWowMeow]

I doubt he's a dwarf. They are really small and look very different. There is someone on this board who has a dwarf and I think she is about 13 pounds now! Here is a site on dwarf gsds: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/6074/

He could just be a really slow grower. How big were his parents?

 

[ldpeterson]

Ha! The first vet I ever took Annabelle to said she was a dwarf because she was so small. She said she should weigh AT LEAST 50 lbs. at 5 months and there she was tipping the scales at 33. The vet even brought some of the techs in the room to see the GSD dwarf puppy.

Needless to say I didn't take her back to that office and she certainly isn't a dwarf now!

If the puppy is gaining weight and healthy otherwise again, I wouldn't worry. Perhaps he will not be a super huge GSD but still within the standard.

Annabelle gained about 2 lbs. a week until she was 8 months old. If your boy did that he would be about 46 lbs. at 8 months, add another 10 lbs. until a year (56 lbs.) and then another 15 lbs. filling out would put him around 70 lbs. as an adult. Perfectly within the GSD weight range.

That's just a guess and that's how Annabelle gained but just an example of how it can all work out in the end.

Of course he may just sprout up another 20 lb. within the next month or so. You never can tell.

 

[Catu]

This thread is reassuring to me, since I have the same concern, but since there are several cases like us that later reach the standard then we have to just forget about scales and concentrate in that our pups are otherwise healthy.

Diabla is 15 kg (about 33 pounds) at 5,5 months old, with 51 cms, at the shoulders (20,07 in.) and the standard says 55-60 cms. so she's not so below it. Both fathers are within standard, being the mother even in the big side of it. Which is the height of Mace? I tend to thrust more in that than in weight with fat dogs as much into fashion than even vets tend to forget what a lean dog is.

She must have gone through a sprout this last week, since she got suddenly a bit skinny for my taste so I hope to put at least 1 more kg. on her in the next days adjusting his ration and adding some eggs. She used to have lose stools but I finally found a food that suits her and now they couldn't be firmer. We had a vet appointment last week and she is in perfect health.

At the age of your pup she got into her food bag (again) and you should have seen her belly... she looked like a donkey

 

[JeanKBBMMMAAN]

You could also ask the breeder?

 

[Smithie86]

You could check into whether or not he is a developmentally delayed GSD. If I remember correctly, there are one or two people (one a breeder) that can speak to that on this board.

 

[nitetrane98]

I guess it really boils down to the size of the dog and proportion. Mack was 44lbs at his last checkup a few weeks ago. He was a little over 4 months then. He is about 20 in. at the shoulders. If he weighed 26lbs he would look positively emaciated. With gentle pressure I can feel his ribs. Does your's feel skinny and boney? Do his front legs look like two Louisville Sluggers?

Kind of sounds like a case of worms. When they check for them at the vet's it's not always guaranteed that the little pooper scooper will bring out an egg or segment of worm. Check his stool really close.

If he seems proportional to his size, I guess you can put him in the slow grower category and not worry as much. Otherwise, I think something is amiss and would be concerned.

 

[Catu]

Originally Posted By: Smithie86You could check into whether or not he is a developmentally delayed GSD. If I remember correctly, there are one or two people (one a breeder) that can speak to that on this board.

What is that? I tried to google it, but didn't find results.

 

[GSDluver4lyfe]

I have been trying to come in contact with the breeder but have not heard back from her.

Mace is very skinny, all bones are practicall visible. His structure is not small or fragile, and he looks like an average 4 month old puppy, just not putting aby weight on, so he's becoming more and more skinny, as his weight isnt keeping up with his body. Also he is very short (lenght wise), I dont kow if that could affect his weight (he's almost square). I really dont care about how big he gets (within standard would be nice) and would prefer 70-80# full grown.

What does developmentally delayed mean? Does it affect health in any way?

 

[BowWowMeow]

Originally Posted By: GSDluver4lyfeI have been trying to come in contact with the breeder but have not heard back from her.

Mace is very skinny, all bones are practicall visible. His structure is not small or fragile, and he looks like an average 4 month old puppy, just not putting aby weight on, so he's becoming more and more skinny, as his weight isnt keeping up with his body. Also he is very short (lenght wise), I dont kow if that could affect his weight (he's almost square). I really dont care about how big he gets (within standard would be nice) and would prefer 70-80# full grown.

I don't think you answered my question earlier: Have you had a fecal done lately? Worms could be the answer. Given the amount he eats and your description of his physique he could also have a medical condition that makes it difficult to gain weight like EPI. Can you post a picture of him?

 

[GSDluver4lyfe]

I'm sorry, I must have missed that question. No, I havent done a fecal lately. I will drop some off at the vet tomorrow. I'm trying to upload some recent pics to photobucket, but my computer is SOOO slow. I will post a pic as soon as they are uploaded.

 

[GSDluver4lyfe]

Here are some recent pics of Mace (please excuse my disgusting backyard that the dogs decided to ruin).

 

[BowWowMeow]

My backyard looks like that too right now. It's the joy of having a young dog with lots of energy to burn!

He does look very skinny and little. If he has a bad case of worms then that would stunt his growth and make it difficult for his body to keep nutrients.
Here is some information about worms: http://www.canismajor.com/dog/worms.html

Hopefully that's what it is because that is easy to treat. When was the last time he was wormed?

If he tests negative for worms then I would suspect EPI or something else that would hinder his ability to digest and properly use the nutrients in his food. If the stool sample is negative we'll have to get the attention of some of the health experts on this board to see what you should test for.

 

[GSDluver4lyfe]

I hope it is worms and nothing major. He hasnt been wormed since he left the breeders at 13 weeks I believe (she said he was UTD wormed ect and all he needed was his rabies, which I am waiting about another month or so before I do that). We will be going to the vets tomorrow and see what might be wrong with him.

 

[Cooper&me]

He does look on the skinny side but very cute.
Hope it is just worms.

 

[scannergirl]

Yes- lovely pup. Keep us posted.

 

[BucksMom]

Mace is a beautiful boy, please keep us posted on what you find
out at the vets.