# Extremely small 6 month old



## Edpez (Dec 20, 2017)

Hello all! I’m new to the forum and have been digging around and can’t quite find anyone else in my situation. I am very worried about my pup. His name is Bandit and is just over 6 months. I believe he is bi-color but correct me if I’m wrong. He hit 33 pounds as a 5 month old and has only gained 2 pounds since. I’m having second thoughts about his vet saying this is normal. From what I’ve seen this is definitely not normal. There are a few owners on here worried about their 50 pound pup that’s the same age! I switched vet and he says that he’s normal weight for his age. I’m not gonna stand there and argue with someone who specializes in this but my concerns are only growing. I’m looking for advise, past experiences or someone going through a similar situation. Forgot to mention his parents were both over 90 pounds and he is pure bred. Thanks for any information!:frown2:


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## Apex1 (May 19, 2017)

Looks healthy and happy to me. Is the pup is energetic, playful, eating well and healthy? If yes then I would not worry. Big things can come in small packages, speed and agility to name two. She will be growing for a long time to come. I have seen a large variation in size of GSDs on this forum and in life.

FWIW I think you have nice looking pup.


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## Seer (May 24, 2011)

Judging by the feet and frame your not going see close to 90 here. For me I would find different food if you feeding the recommended amount. I feed raw, recommend raw. Adding in some additional calories and upping the protein should add some more mass. One of the dangers to the philosophy that low protein diets like adult food are better for a growing puppy is the building blocks Amino Acids are thus shorted. I feed my puppies well over 40% protein often and have for over decade. Its extremely rare I see any growing pains and have never experianced problems associated with very high protein diet during those first 24 months.


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## dogbyte (Apr 5, 2002)

hard to tell from that picture, but he doesn't look thin to me.. You don't want him over weight and growing too fast. He will get to his adult weight and height growing slower. And will be a much healthier pup/adult because of it. I have had dogs that didn't get finished growing until they were over 3 years old. He does appear to be a finer boned dog..love him for who he is and when you have to lift him into a vehicle or on to the table at the vets, be thankful he is not 90lb, which is over standard size.. He's adorable.


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

He’s got a very sweet, innocent and youthful look. I would not guess 6 months, nor purebred, and possibly not a bi either.

Do you have photos of the parents and/or littermates?


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## Edpez (Dec 20, 2017)

Thanks for the replies! Bandit is very energetic and playful. He is currently on Blue Buffalo Wilderness Large Breed Puppy Chicken Formula. I don’t have any pictures of parents or litter mates handy but the mother was solid black and sire was a saddleback Black and Tan. We love him regardless of size it’s just the size seems very abnormal. It’s funny you mentioned his face and eyes those are my wife’s and I favorite feature. He has a soft look in his eyes. Here’s a picture from another angle so you can correct me on what type of coat Bandit might have.


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## thegooseman90 (Feb 24, 2017)

Your pup could be a late grower. I wouldnt worry about his weight as long as he's in good condition and healthy. Also I wouldn't expect or hope for 90 lbs. Are you just guessing at parents weight? 90lbs is a good bit over standard for a female, but it is hard to judge weight just based on the eye. Lots of randoms think my pup is 90-100 lbs and he's mid 70's. If your dog ends up mid 70's that's perfect, considering a gsd is supposed to be a medium sized dog anyway.


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

yes I wouldn't guess 6 months old from that photo but I wouldn't necessarily guess abnormal or medical issue either because he looks in good condition.


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## CometDog (Aug 22, 2017)

My last GSD male was about 45 pounds at almost 7 months and I use to be concerned too. He was a slow grower. He hit 83 pounds during his 3rd year in life. He was under 75 his whole 2nd year almost. I'd lose the Blue. Too many recalls and ingredient fudging accusations for my comfort level. There are a lot of better premium kibbles out there. Like Orijen. Or, Taste Of The Wild use to be high rated and very affordable. I have only fed raw for the last 4 years (with intermittent Wellness when I could not do raw) ...so if anything has changed with TOW I would not know. The feeding boards here are excellent though.


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## konathegsd (Dec 3, 2016)

Looks just like my pup...she was about the same weight too. Your pup looks like. Blanket back black/tan not a bi


This was around 7 months or so


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## Armistice (Oct 12, 2017)

Wow, I thought my pup was small!

It seems your pup is happy and looks healthy. If that's the case, then feed the puppy in front of you. Sounds like you may end up with a fun sized GSD 

Most GSD's don't reach final size until 1.5yrs-2yrs


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

OP, you have a very good looking and bright eyed pup. The weight of his parents doesn't tell you a whole lot as genetics can play weird tricks or maybe they were just overweight? Enjoy your pup; he might be the most agile GSD that ever lived. Do you have papers on him that proof his age? Did he shed all his puppy teeth? His new ones at this age should be all present and some maybe not fully emerged to their permanent size, yet should be present.
My dog is also on the smaller size and is dwarfed by many GSDs, including her litter brothers. Yet, she is fast and agile, and her smaller size makes her less injury prone.
Another good thing about the smaller size is that he probably won't be suffering from Pano. I wouldn't feed him more to just gain weight as he might get too fat. Small or not, pups should be lean.


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## Edpez (Dec 20, 2017)

Yes he has most if not all his adult teeth. His documents say he was born June 15th 2017. Thanks everyone for your replies. I feel a little more at ease with all your inputs. My wife and I will love him no different if he were to stay that size or be a enormous size. With that being said he needs to watch it as he gets very jealous of our newer pup Duke and swipes and hides anything Duke touches. Duke is 10 weeks today and a hefty 20 pounds.


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## jonsie (May 12, 2017)

Yikes! Maybe you overlooked that cord plugged into the wall right by the pups bed...but I would run, not walk, to unplug that and remove it and any others the pups have access to. Puppies will chew on anything and you don’t want an electrocution because of negligence. Sorry to be the obnoxious person posting warnings when seeing a pic.


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## Edpez (Dec 20, 2017)

Sorry forgot to mention I just plugged that in to take a quick pick and unplugged right after. Lighting sucks in our room! Appreciate the concern though! Should have mentioned that in my last post sorry


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## jonsie (May 12, 2017)

Yes, I thought maybe it was a light for the pic, lol. Anyway, I think your pup might be a tiny bit on the small side, but nothing to worry about. GSD’s grow in funny ways...and not evenly. So they will go through awkwardness. I would just make sure that my calcium - phosphorous is correct when feeding. Too much calcium will make the bones grow too quickly, and too little may stunt. The ratio should be around 1.2 to 1
Lots of premade dog foods do not list this info. Just a meat diet is too heavy in phosphorous and needs more bone which adds more calcium. But you will find more info on that in a food thread probably. Especially from raw feeding groups. Very nice looking pup!


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## Joys (Nov 6, 2017)

What a beautiful face!!! 
My puppy is on the smaller side. 40 pounds at 5 months. I’m really okay if she’s not a monstrous size. 

I read somewhere that a lot of GSDs with a working line pedigree tend to be lighter than the bulky showlines. It may be true. I’ve watched showlines doing IPO work and it seems like their bulky weight is a disadvantage. They don’t appear to be as quick or agile as the leaner dogs.


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## Jbrennin (Oct 28, 2020)

Edpez said:


> Hello all! I’m new to the forum and have been digging around and can’t quite find anyone else in my situation. I am very worried about my pup. His name is Bandit and is just over 6 months. I believe he is bi-color but correct me if I’m wrong. He hit 33 pounds as a 5 month old and has only gained 2 pounds since. I’m having second thoughts about his vet saying this is normal. From what I’ve seen this is definitely not normal. There are a few owners on here worried about their 50 pound pup that’s the same age! I switched vet and he says that he’s normal weight for his age. I’m not gonna stand there and argue with someone who specializes in this but my concerns are only growing. I’m looking for advise, past experiences or someone going through a similar situation. Forgot to mention his parents were both over 90 pounds and he is pure bred. Thanks for any information!:frown2:
> View attachment 468082


I was worried with my 6 month old German as well I thought he was too small and he is papered but my vet told me he was healthy so


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