# Puppy underweight



## cjmills7277 (May 3, 2014)

So my husband took our new puppy Jax to the vet yesterday and they said he was too skinny. He is 10 weeks and weighed 13 pounds. I had concerns about this as well. The breeder wormed him at 6 weeks and we wormed him again at 8 weeks. The vet wormed him again because he still had roundworms. We were feeding him 1 1/4 cups twice a day. The vet said that you really couldn't over feed a GSD puppy. She didn't give us an exact amount to feed but definitley said he needed more and that you shouldn't go off feeding instructions on bag. I was already feedin more than bag advised. I am now feeding him 1.5 cups twice a day. We are feeding TOTW High Pairie puppy food. My adult GSDs only eat 4 cups daily. 3 cups a day seems like lot. I am worried that I am feeding too much and he just isn't absorbing the nutrients. He always seems hungry. But If I free fed him he would probably eat until he exploded. The vet said he was healthly besides weight issue. Any advice?


----------



## SkoobyDoo (Oct 7, 2014)

3 cups a day seems like a LOT for a 10 week old puppy! I have adult dog who is around 70lb that eats that much!
Maybe change foods? A large breed puppy formulation might be better!

A thought; if his poops are good and not runny or loose it's probably okay for him but you might want to switch before panicking he's not getting the nutrients.

Do you have a pic of him you could share?


----------



## cjmills7277 (May 3, 2014)

His poop is great. Here are pictures.


----------



## N Smith (Aug 25, 2011)

Your puppy is gorgeous and looks totally fine in the weight department. You do not want a chubby puppy, especially with large breeds. Being 13 lbs and a correct weight for build is WAY different than being 13 lbs and emaciated/underweight. Don't go by the number, go by the build of the dog. 

Even in my puppies I want to see an obvious waist line and feel ribs easily. Some vets can get very used to seeing very fat dogs or HUGE Shepherds, your pup looks great. I would go back down to what you were feeding before and increase as you the dogs need increase.

I had a litter of Shepherds last year, the smallest at 6.5 weeks was 13 lbs, the largest 18 lbs ALL were healthy, just different builds.


----------



## wick (Mar 7, 2015)

Your puppy doesn't look underweight at all in these photos IMO.


----------



## cjmills7277 (May 3, 2014)

Thanks! I thought he looked a little small in the rear area but not too bad. Vet told husband she shouldn't be able to feel ribs so easily and he was underweight. :rolleyes


----------



## N Smith (Aug 25, 2011)

Gah! Well, at least now you know. Before I found my current vet, whom I ADORE, I did have the same comments - "She's too skinny", "Shepherds should be bigger"...

When I brought my dog into my current vet for the first time she was like "WOW, how nice to see a well built Shepherd who is fit and athletic! Oh you feed raw, awesome!" I nearly bowed to her LOL!

Enjoy your pup, he is a cute little devil I'm sure.


----------



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

He doesn't look skinny to me either. Roundworms can stunt his growth, but I'm pretty sure that's temporary. Roundworm Infection in Dogs | VCA Animal Hospitals

Once it's cleared up, he should continue growing just fine, and make up for any slow down in growth. Keefer had some digestive difficulties when he was a puppy, and at 6 months old he weighed 7 pounds less than his half sister Dena did at the same age. As an adult he's well within the standard for a male at about 80 pounds. He ended up almost 10 pounds more than she was as an adult, so he made up for that slower growth early on over the long run.

I always feed to body condition rather than the weight of the puppy, and especially not how hungry it seems! I have dogs that would eat until they explode too, lol. I use the feeding guide on the bag as a rough place to start, and then adjust from there as necessary. It will seem like he's eating a lot considering how much smaller he is than your adult dog, but puppies need as much as twice the nutrition as an adult dog of the same weight, so that's normal. As he matures his growth will slow, and his caloric needs will be reduced.


----------



## Debanneball (Aug 28, 2014)

What a sweet pup! He looks fine, just like people, dogs come in different sizes. My boy was the runt, but, boy, did he catch up! Yours will too. Enjoy


----------



## cjmills7277 (May 3, 2014)

Here are by adult babies. Tori 1 yr. 3 months and Gretta 1 yr. 9 months.


----------

