# Is there a Height X Weight GSD growth chart?



## lone Ranger

Caesar, Black Shepherd Working Dog type, flat back, big rear hips standing over legs, is 12 weeks old tomorrow. I do not remember my other two Shepherds being this big at 12 weeks, but it has been 7-10 years sooooo.....

12 weeks tomorrow: He is 17" tall at the withers, best I can measure, and about 29 lbs. Is that normal GSD or oversized compared to AKC Show dog stuff???

Thanks in advance, lone Ranger in Australia


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## Odin&Storm

My vet/breeder told me a safe estimate for adult weight is:
Weigh pup at 14 weeks. Multiply weight x 2 and add ten pounds. This is roughly what your pup will weigh when mature.

If that is the case, Odin should weigh 110 lbs.


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## Mary Beth

Yes, I agree. You've got yourself a nice big pup who will be a nice big dog. I should know. You'll get used to it gradually - when he hits the 100 lb. mark, you won't even notice it not until other people remark on his size. It is temperament that is important not the size. Enjoy!


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## Raffilr

My sable gsd is 8.5 moths old and weight 82 pound hes akc register. The vet said that he would be around 120 is that to big and he's in perfect shape and a big baby lol



























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## lone Ranger

Mary Beth said:


> Yes, I agree. You've got yourself a nice big pup who will be a nice big dog. I should know. You'll get used to it gradually - when he hits the 100 lb. mark, you won't even notice it not until other people remark on his size. It is temperament that is important not the size. Enjoy!


Thank you Mary Beth, very kind comment... Yes, larger than Show Size was what I am looking for. I was wondering if there was a chart showing Weight X Height looking for a larger Dog.. He is my third Shepherd. 

My Show Dog (did not know better) Alpha Male Dakota is 10 now and failing a bit. I am putting him on a Raw diet and he is improving but the damage is probably done.. I am not knocking Show Dogs, I just need a little stronger, large boned, flat back, and got unlucky with drop hip roached back Show Dog GSD traits.. I really need a herding working dog sort.. He is about 50 mm over Show AKC size. I need the larger dog size for intimidation value as somewhat of a PPD when I am on the road with horses, but also he might be called on to protecting calves and cattle from a pack of wild dogs or dingos... I would not risk him, but it could happen by accident, and again intimidation as in "Size Matters". In my experience it works with dogs to on many occassions, when they "size him up" they are a little hesitant to proceed. In 10 years, there has never been a fight that drew blood...

P.S. I'm not a real Cowboy, it is what I do for fun, raising/training/competing horses. But on a spooky night, waaaay out Bush, in a country where Interstate we cannot carry a gun as the penalties are too severe and you lose your license and all you guns... Size does matter... IMO>. Two dingos might try and take down a smaller Shepherd. Not likely to try on a big one..


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## Mary Beth

Yes, I agree size is respected by animals and people. My Sting is 130 lbs. 32 inches high and friendly. He was the biggest (twice as big) in the litter but the friendliest. Someone told me, "of course, he is friendly - he's so big, he isn't afraid of anyone else". But for the work ethic, well, Sting reminds me of my Aussie who was oversize 85 lbs and was given to me because Chance's idea was that if given enough time the sheep would find their own way back to the barn. A rancher when he saw Chance who was a beautiful merle, and he looked at his young Aussie in the back of his pickup - just shuddered and told me, "mine better not get that big, I want a worker." A lady from Germany, who saw my Sting, said he was exactly like the GSD she grew up with on the farm. The dog was not used for herding, but was a guardian. But since you are not really wanting a serious herding dog, you'll have a delightful faithful naturally protective companion in your big GSD. I did a quick google search - I think if you enlarge these, you'll get the chart you want:

height weight chart german sheperds - Bing Images


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## Cassidy's Mom

Here is a height/weight chart for the German standard: German Shepherd Weight Chart and Height

Adult:


> German Shepherd Dog Height and Weight Standard
> Males:
> 
> Height at the wither 60 cm to 65 cm (23.62 inches - 25.59 inches)
> Weight 30 kg to 40 kg. (66.14 pounds - 88.18 pounds; Midrange = 77 pounds)
> Females:
> 
> Height at the wither 55 cm to 60 cm (21.65 inches - 23.62 inches)
> Weight 22 kg - 32 kg (48.5 pounds - 70.55 pounds; Midrange = 59.5 pounds)
> (Length of torso exceeds height at the withers by 10 to 17%.)


If you scroll down on the first link it shows weight from 1 month to 12 months, but keep in mind that those are averages. Obviously, a puppy who will end up on the larger end of the standard as an adult, (or will be oversized) will be larger at other stages of development as well. And puppies don't all grow at the same rate either, so dogs who weigh the same as adults might not have weighed the same at 3 months or 6 months or 9 months or a year.


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## lone Ranger

Thank you both, he seemed large for his age, but then again I have not had a GSD puppy for 6-7 years, 10 for a male...

I do think he is smarter and more well mannered than any pup I have ever had. Further, a young steer got out, twice last week, and he exhibited natural herding instincts on a lead. Today was Australia Day, sort of 4th of July in America, and he spent the whole day socializing with kids and dogs in a crowd park setting.. Perfect behavior..

I really love this pup, never had one with that much personality, strong bones, flat back, big hips standing over his legs.. I think the Lord is Smiling down on me with this one. On the eve of his 12th week birthday, he is 17" on the wither and 14 kg. We will see. Bigger the better, as in defending my calves if he gets loose against dingos or wild dogs, size can end the fight before it starts... Hoping anyway. It has worked with Cody.. He is about 50mm taller than Show maximums for a Show dog, he bluffs well, and never had blood been drawn in 10 years. 

Thanks again, from Australia


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## vixen

i am glad someone has asked this question.my husband bakes 10 pounds of chicken every two days and feeds it to the dogs.we also have a pomchi and my daughters terrier so our sheppard (samson) gets 4 pounds and the other is split for the other dogs.we do not give them the bones.he also eats dry dog food and at the table when we eat we feed himsome of what we are eating but he is skinny looking.my husband is driving hisself nuts trying to put weight on samson.i do not want him to be heavy since sheppards are prone to have hip problems.i have a pic of him.does he look to skinny to yall.


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## lone Ranger

Vixen,
He looks just like Dakota, (Cody), a ten year old Show Dog. He does not have much meat cover over his hips, same colouring only Cody... 

Yes, to me unless they have more cover over their hips, if you can see their ribs, then they are too thin. I cannot tell from the photo, but it looks like outline of the ribs. I would switch him over to a raw diet and see if he picks up... Cody at ten was dying on me, with a host of problems. I would swear now on this, the third week of his raw diet, that he is picking up and the bones of his hips are getting filled in a bit. The dry kibble is just not good for them. He seems to have stopped shedding so badly, ears and skin better, and he smells better.

You might give it a try.

Kind regards, lone Ranger in Australia


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## Grayfoxx

I'm wondering what people think about the chart listed here. This is the only weight/age chart I've really been able to find out there. However, I've been told that GSD's will grow in size up to 2 yrs old and then fill out until around 3yrs. This chart shows full weight at 1yr. For you owners out there would you say that 3 yrs to grow full size is closer than the one year shown on this chart?

My new baby, Kaizer, is about 20lbs at 12 weeks but he has a nice belly on him and eats very well. I can feel ribs but they aren't visible, really. He eats about 1 to 1-1/2 cups of good natural kibble 3 times a day. Sometimes he doesn't finish but comes back later to clean up. He also gets lots of carrots for training and spinach in his kibble at times. His father is barely 2 yrs and weights just over 100lbs. Mom is just under 100. According to the chart Kaiser is under weight but with the size of his parents and his health I'm concerned the chart is a joke.

Thoughts?


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## NinaYDana

Weight charts are a joke, especially considering that American GSDs are WAY too big if you ask a good European breeder... Here a 120lb GSD is virtually unheard of. That being said I wouldn't pay much attention to such charts, your dog's genes dictate its growth, use the ribs test as a better measure of whether doggie is eating well enough...


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