# 17 Week Old German Shepherd Pup



## Trey Twilligear (Apr 5, 2017)

I have a 17 week old German shepherd puppy who is well trained and very smart. But he is only 21lbs. I am currently feeding him three times a day of 3/4 per meal. His brother is about 36 lbs. Do I need to start feeding my pup more or is he just a late bloomer?


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Is he skinny, or just smaller than his littermate?


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## Trey Twilligear (Apr 5, 2017)

I have been feeding him Victor dog food the Beef Meal. He was probably on the average to small side of the litter. He is lean and I want him to grow slower to avoid hip dysphasia. But he just seems really small. You can't see his ribs but he is lean enough to wear you can feel them easily.


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## Dracovich (Feb 24, 2017)

Larger breeds have an issue where they can grow too fast as puppies. This does not effect their adult size, you can't feed a puppy into being a larger adult. You want your puppy to grow SLOW.Here is a link with some information regarding fast growth issues: https://msu.edu/~silvar/hips.htm

Solution to this is a proper diet specifically for large breed puppies, which is more important than how much you feed. I have always free fed my dogs until 1 year of age, I like my puppies a little chubby until 5-6 months and they naturally slim down around then, if not I would probably start measuring food because excess weight can damage joints.

Fromm is a pretty popular dog food, here is there large breed puppy formula: https://frommfamily.com/products/gold/dog/dry/large-breed-puppy-gold/

Your pup's littermate might be fed the wrong food and is growing unhealthily fast.


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## Nikki Bear (Apr 5, 2017)

My puppy was about 30 lbs at 6 months. I was very concerned that she would end up being small, but she constantly ate and it was a good quality food and she is now 74 lbs at 1 year old. She is very tall and skinny. So don't worry, some GSDs just grow slower.


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## jeepactivities (Sep 17, 2016)

There are different size lines.The military likes the smaller sized ones.Parentage size should be a good indicator.My pup at 10 weeks old was only 11 pounds,even the vet thought he was a little malnourished.The breeeder was only feeding them once a day since she worked!!! Well, this pup was putting on about a pound a week till about 5-6 months old.His sire was 11 pounds, dam 90 pounds .That little 11 pound pup at 9 months has to be at least 90 pounds by now.I started with feeding the measured guideline amount on Purina Smartsource large puppy formula.It is certainly amazing when you start looking at feeding, you will find all kinds of advise.I don't get the raw meat thing at all.They are omnivorous ,not wolves.Protein ,yes but not only meat.


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## np307 (Feb 22, 2017)

jeepactivities said:


> There are different size lines.The military likes the smaller sized ones.Parentage size should be a good indicator.My pup at 10 weeks old was only 11 pounds,even the vet thought he was a little malnourished.The breeeder was only feeding them once a day since she worked!!! Well, this pup was putting on about a pound a week till about 5-6 months old.His sire was 11 pounds, dam 90 pounds .That little 11 pound pup at 9 months has to be at least 90 pounds by now.I started with feeding the measured guideline amount on Purina Smartsource large puppy formula.It is certainly amazing when you start looking at feeding, you will find all kinds of advise.I don't get the raw meat thing at all.They are omnivorous ,not wolves.Protein ,yes but not only meat.


They're omnivores because we make them omnivores. Opportunistic wild canines will eat berries and such, but usually it's more common among the smaller ones. I can't remember the last time I've come across coyote scat and found berry seeds. Where do you think the modern dogs came from? I don't feed raw, but I have considered it. 

And I would take a good look at the ingredients on your Purina. It might surprise you to learn how little of it is good for nutrition. 

Not only does the military like smaller dogs (compared to the 100+ pound ones), the breed standard is actually for the smaller dogs.


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## Raul (Jan 12, 2020)

Hi I have a 17 week old White Shepard and I’ve always fed her puppy food. But today she didint eat that so I copped up some carrots and apples but she didint eat that either she would only eat bits of ham. What should I do??


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

Raul said:


> Hi I have a 17 week old White Shepard and I’ve always fed her puppy food. But today she didint eat that so I copped up some carrots and apples but she didint eat that either she would only eat bits of ham. What should I do??


All puppies have off days. My advice would be don't make a fuss or feed anything different, just wait it out. Unless the puppy is not drinking, or acting lethargic or feverish...when those signs show up it's vet time! But an occasional lack of apatite is nothing to be concerned about!


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