His weight doesn't really have much to do with whether or not he's skinny - a larger puppy might be skinny at that weight, where a smaller puppy will be perfect. Does he look skinny to you?

 

don't worry about his weight. let him grow.

 

He looked ok to me I mean I could feel his ribs alittle but he is gaining weight he gained 4 poundd in 2 weeks not sure if that is normal or not

 

My two GSD puppies were 8 pounds each at 7 weeks old. One month later, they each were 18 pounds. Holy Cow, 10 pounds in one month.

10-12 pounds a month is not at all unusual at that age. You'll start to see that rapid growth of puppyhood slow down in a few months, but for now it's perfectly normal.

 

My two GSD puppies were 8 pounds each at 7 weeks old. One month later, they each were 18 pounds. Holy Cow, 10 pounds in one month.

 

LOL...Odin went to the vet last Saturday for a check up and shots. He was 14 weeks old and had gained 15 pounds in three weeks...he was at 40lbs. He is growing like a weed.


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I have a new puppy, at 7 weeks and a wfew days she was 12.1, today at 60 days on a different scale she is 15.6. She seems skinny too, she eats raw and I was worried she was not growing and bought a scale and she is definitely growing. Im open to advice if its too much ill feed less.

 

I have learned that even within the same litter there can be a significant difference in size. A couple of my boys littermates live close and we get together every so often. For a while the differences were astounding. The gaps have narrowed as they have gotten older but still there are definite differences.

 

I don't think there is anything to worry about at all. My boy was 7lbs at 8 weeks and 2 weeks later when we went back for the 2nd set of shots, he was 14lbs.

Now at 4 months, he's around 40lbs. Plenty of time to catch up! Mine was one of the smaller pups of a very large litter so I echo what the poster before said.

 

My girl is fat, bigger than the rest currently. Im gonna fast her for a day with just a spoon of tripe. Then im cutting her chicken legs and making two meals of a leg and a meal of necks for a trial. Then Ill give 10 percent of meals organs, randomly not mixing each meal. Thats some usda recommendation type stuff and you see what theyve done to america witth their horrible food triangle advice. I also bought some pup sup supplements, they look like they get great reviews on horses so they must have something going.

 

My German Shepherd puppy just turned 9wks yesterday on Christmas, and he weighed 21lbs at the vet 1 week ago. So at 8wks he was 21lbs, and doesn't have a fat belly or anything. He is very athletic, and a rambunctious puppy. I still believe that your pup is still within range though.

 

Try feeding him the canned Purina Pro lamb & rice puppy food mixed in with his dry food. That's what I do and he loves the mixture. I feed him that 4 times a day right now. I'll cut back to 3 times once he's about 12-14wks.

 

Please use body condition scoring (1-9 scale) for your individual puppies, ask the vet for her assessment/score of your dog from exam -- every time you take your puppies in for the puppy shots series (Distemper, Parvo; then Rabies) -- and focus on maintaining your puppies' weights at 4-5 body condition score EVERY WEEK.

https://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/sites/default/files/filesync/Purina-Body-Condition-System.pdf

If between vet visits, you are unsure of the body condition scoring you do yourself (Read the Guide.), take the weight and call it in to your vet.

You can do this by

1)holding your puppy and stepping on a home scale yourself, deducting your weight
2)stopping in for free at your vet's and saying you just want to get a weight on your dog
3)most Petsmarts with vets/hotel/daycare have a scale you can use there

If your puppy is too thin, add a little more food. If your puppy is questionably or clearly over a 5 MAX, decrease the food.

Studies on large breed dogs during growth support maintaining a puppy at a 4 as ideal.

These same studies show that puppies maintained at a 4 (lean) are less likely to have bone/joints developmental disorders, including hip and elbow dysplasia (or worse degrees of these conditions) when they reach adulthood.

 

Edit: Same comment as below, old post on a resurrected thread, poster long gone. My apologies to all for not catching that before!

I have a 9 week old shepherd that is 12 pounds .. wen I toke him to the vet she said he is a little skinny

I would listen to your vet, especially if your vet is experienced with GSDs.

I would ask the vet for the body condition score she gave your dog.

If she says a 4, don't worry too much; just increase the food somewhat. If she says a 3, well then that is far too thin. In that case, still aim for slow weight gain and gradual increase of food, but transition to a more significant increase of food. (Puppies can also get loose stools from too much food, too quickly increased portion, or different food.)

I ask every single time I bring my own puppy in.

I agree with CassidysMom that you cannot really compare to other GSD puppies, which may be larger or smaller framed and developing at different rates than your puppy.

 

Keep in mind that BCS charts are designed for adult dogs. I would never want a 9 week old at a 4. They're babies…. with baby puppy bodies, softer muscles, etc.

 

That may be, but there is also research supporting maintaining large breed puppies at a 4 through growth, specifically using the scale for their orthopedic health and development in growth.

My vet has been using the scale for my puppy, and it's working well for us. Puppy has been 5, then 4, then 5 thus far.

 

Edit: Good grief, I didn't catch when first responding that the newest replies were current, but early ones including volcano's (whom I also responded to here) were from 10 yrs ago on this forum!!!

Oh well, others with puppies can perhaps still benefit from the reply.

I have a new puppy, at 7 weeks and a wfew days she was 12.1, today at 60 days on a different scale she is 15.6.

Sounds pretty normal and healthy, maybe a little closer to male weight at 8 weeks.

Ideal depends on her frame and rate of growth and development.

She seems skinny too, she eats raw and I was worried she was not growing and bought a scale and she is definitely growing. Im open to advice if its too much ill feed less.

volcano,

Shoot for a body condition score of 4-5. Make sure her diet is a fully balanced one for puppy development and also growth of large breed puppies. If she is in fact too skinny, work on ensuring she's receiving enough calories.

Many raw feeders do state that they have trouble keeping enough weight on their dogs. But it can be done. Just work with your vet to maintain a good weight and steady, sufficient rate of growth.

You might wish to use one of the commercial raw diets that has been through feeding trials, as well as meets AAFCO nutrition profiles. Instinct is one, and also employs full time a veterinarian board certified in nutrition.

 

Jennifer Larsen, DVM, PhD, DACVN
University of California, Davis
Contributed by The American College of Veterinary Nutrition
"Focus on Nutrition: Feeding Large Breed Puppies"
Compendium of Continuing Education for Veterinarians
May 2010

https://vetfolio-vetstreet.s3.amazonaws.com/mmah/e6/72e6a0e04344e1a1036fa4f52e03ee/filePV0510_Nutrition.pdf

An excerpt:

"The goal is to keep growing puppies at a BCS of 4 on a 9-point scale and to maintain this leanness throughout life to promote health and longevity. The owner should assess the body condition regularly, and the amount of food being offered should be adjusted accordingly."

More resources on growth rate and feeding large breed puppies for slow, controlled growth as optimal:

Large Breed Puppies: Rapid Growth Is Not Optimal Growth

Controlling the growth rate of large and giant breed puppies is critical for their long-term skeletal health.

www.purinainstitute.com

 

My German Shepherd puppy just turned 9wks yesterday on Christmas, and he weighed 21lbs at the vet 1 week ago. So at 8wks he was 21lbs, and doesn't have a fat belly or anything.

Oh, mine totally did at 8 wks!

It was cute, furless and pink little belly, just a kind of a slightly rounder puppy tummy, vs a little older as a (still young) puppy now or an adult. You could see it when I was holding him in my arms.

Not too roly-poly fat puppy, just right, and not wormy or anything (thankfully, as breeder had wormed and I continued to do so, just in case).

I feed him that 4 times a day right now. I'll cut back to 3 times once he's about 12-14wks.

That's exactly what I did. Now we've been at 3 x day, until we move to 2 x day for life.

I read that that was best, checked it with my vet, and stuck with the plan.

One of my breeder acquaintances was all "I don't have time for that (nonsense). My puppies get fed 2 x day, because I'm busy and I've gotta go to work!"

 

Deborah E. Linder, DVM, DACVN
"Diets for Each Life Stage," 2017 (Peer Reviewed)

https://assets.ctfassets.net/4dmg3l1sxd6g/5TdeBJDyBuGCEs4e4symva/fa4edd4684429e11b1e8f8ccb2f2b55d/ask_diets-for-each-life-stages-33981-article.pdf

It discusses proper feeding and nutrition in large breed puppies, as well as use of body condition scoring throughout puppy growth and into adulthood, with the current recommendation of BCS of 4 during growth of large breed puppies.

 

@TreasureGSDs my response was a general statement in addition to, not contrary to yours which is why i didn’t quote your text. a vet is able to score a puppy taking into account the puppies age as well as breed. without that in person assessment - a layman simply pulling up a chart online which likely shows a drawing of an adult labrador and only illustrating every other number, then aiming for a 4-5 without guidance can be unhealthy.

a chubby puppy up to about 3.5 months is not the end of the world. and beyond that there are many awkward stages where they may not chart/score perfectly.

again, just my personal opinion and what i’ve observed during puppy exams with the vets that i work with. insisting on a waist or passing off a couple of ribs shouldn’t apply to baby pups.

editing to add. vets will also assign bcs scores to pregnant moms… context matters.