# 4.8 pounds at 10 weeks…



## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

Hello, we are looking to purchase a German Shepherd puppy who will grow to full size and be a personal protection dog. We have found a young boy but at 10 weeks he is only 4.8 pounds. If I'm not mistaken this is rather under-weight? Will he catch up or will he never grow to "full size"? The seller does not appear to be informing us that the puppy was the runt of the litter and is attempting to charge full price. How much would a puppy like this be expected to sell for usually?


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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

4.8 lbs at 10 weeks walk away from this breeder and don't look back. The pup is either not 10 weeks old or is likely unhealthy. Even a runt should be well more than that weight at 10 weeks. 
I'm going to go out on a limb and say this is likely a back yard breeder. If you are looking for a personal protection dog you would be better served to do a lot of research into respectable, reliable and known breeders that produce the type of pup you are looking for.


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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

I forgot so say Welcome to the forum! Search around there are many many discussions on what makes a reputable breeder.


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

Thank you very much. I shall definitely do my research and find a reputable breeder.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Oliverjbel said:


> Hello, we are looking to purchase a German Shepherd puppy who will grow to full size and be a personal protection dog. We have found a young boy but at 10 weeks he is only 4.8 pounds. If I'm not mistaken this is rather under-weight? Will he catch up or will he never grow to "full size"? The seller does not appear to be informing us that the puppy was the runt of the litter and is attempting to charge full price. How much would a puppy like this be expected to sell for usually?


I was noticing your location. Is the pup 4.8lbs or is that kilos? 
A runt may/should catch up just fine. Unless there are underlying issues, there is no reason for a runt to be lower priced. My Sabi girl was the runt and grew into a tank. She was much larger then her siblings that I found as an adult.
Shadow was desperately far behind as a pup but had caught up by about 4 months and weighs a respectable 55lbs as an adult.
If you have pictures of the pup that might help.


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

I'm afraid it's pounds not kg. He is very small for 10 weeks.


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

More photos


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## MineAreWorkingline (May 2, 2015)

How big was this puppy's parents? Did you see any of the siblings? Were they small too?


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## wolfstraum (May 2, 2003)

that does not look like a normal, healthy GSD puppy....I would wonder if it is a dwarf.....my pups at 8 weeks run anywhere from 14-17 pounds.....

Lee


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

MineAreWorkingline said:


> How big was this puppy's parents? Did you see any of the siblings? Were they small too?


Here are photos of the father, mother and sister.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

A true runt has medical reason to be undersized and should not go full price because the person giving the dog a home will most likely have to spend money for veterinary issues. A pup that is 5 pounds at 10 weeks, is way underweight. Ruling out worms, liver shunts are a possibility. There are probably many possibilities. Like MegaE. Even with a terrible start, a 8 week old puppy should make 8 pounds. This dog should be 16 or 20 pounds by now, and it is less than 5. It has something wrong with it, or it was severely neglected to the point where the lack of nutrition can cause problems down the road. At 12 weeks the pup they weighed in my litter was 24 pounds. The other males are not far behind him. The female is smallest.


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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

He's a cute little nugget but being that small at 10 weeks I would suspect he has some genetic health issue that will likely be costly and possibly shorten his life span greatly. 
I agree with Wolfstraum that he may be a dwarf. Something about the pointiness of his muzzle and overall body shape.

How old is his sister Remi? Is she from a different litter? Remi looks older than 10 weeks (could be camera angle though) but not full grown either. Wondering about back to back breeding??


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

Yes she's from a different litter. Here are his siblings. It was the mother's second litter, the first being 2.5 years ago. Interesting that his siblings are around the same size.


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## Oliverjbel (Dec 29, 2019)

wolfstraum said:


> that does not look like a normal, healthy GSD puppy....I would wonder if it is a dwarf.....my pups at 8 weeks run anywhere from 14-17 pounds.....
> 
> Lee


It could be that the breeder is lying about his age to get a quick sale near Christmas. Do you think he would look healthy and normal for a younger pup?


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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

Oliverjbel said:


> It could be that the breeder is lying about his age to get a quick sale near Christmas. Do you think he would look healthy and normal for a younger pup?


That would be my guess. 

My experience: Pup advertised as 8 weeks. But the purchase contract showed a birth date that calculated to put the pups at 7 weeks. Female was half the size of the others in the litter (6 males). She was 4.8 lbs and I would guess all the males were close to 8-10 lbs. So I would say at the very least the seller is likely not being truthful about age. 
Health testing the dam and sire is important. It's not a guarantee of health in the pup but it does stack the odds in the pups favor.Thoughtfulness in the breeding is very, very important. Proving breed worthiness through titles is a big plus. 

I know things are done differently in other countries but in the USA there are a lot of BYB's and the results of the quality and health of the pups are all over the place. Mostly not great results.

We didn't do our homework and find a reputable breeder. I had a weak moment and my husband didn't do what I told him. "Don't let me make a decision with my sympathetic heart". The above female I described came home with us as we wanted a female. She is a good family pet in general but she has weak nerve and has cost a fortune in health issues. She did grow to be full sized (78 lbs at almost 7 now) but she has food allergies, hip dysplasia and plasmona (an auto immune disease of the third eyelid) and pannus. She has noise phobias and anxiety. She gets stress cholitis often and doesn't eat if we travel with her. Because of her weak nerve she never became the therapy dog we wanted her to be. Her anxiety prevents her from being the go everywhere or anywhere with us dog as well. She is hard to travel with and can't be kenneled when we travel so our travel plans have been curtailed for the last 6 years and will continue to be as long as she lives. Don't get me wrong we love her to death but she will be our last dog. There's our horror story of what can happen when you don't research a breeder, the quality of their breeding program and their dogs. 

No one can say for sure that the pup you are looking at will or won't be a great dog as an adult. However, if the breeder is not being truthful about age of the pup right off the bat what else are they not being truthful about. Is that a risk you want to take with a pup that will be a commitment for the next 9-13 years. Rule with your brain here. 

I stand by my original post...walk away.


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## Kathrynil (Dec 2, 2019)

Wow. Yah, 4.8 lbs at ten weeks is quite fishy. He looks like he isn't ten weeks as well, but I don't really know. I would say just find a more reputable breeder. The parents don't look bad though, but it's better to find a different breeder than to take a chance of ending up with a malformed and unhealthy dog. 
We learned that the hard way, as Kias very unhealthy from the start. After a lot of recupe, trouble, money, and dedication, we were able to bring him back, but you don't want to have to do that. Just stick on the safe side.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Oliverjbel said:


> I'm afraid it's pounds not kg. He is very small for 10 weeks.


I just wanted to make sure that wasn't an error. That pup is cute as a button but looks neither healthy nor 10 weeks. I would keep looking.
If the breeder is lying about age, then what else. And if that pup is 10 weeks it's either seriously ill or not purebred.


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## BigOzzy2018 (Jan 27, 2018)

Litter looks unhealthy. Run don’t walk.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

They look four to five weeks old. Do they have papers? Usually it takes a week or two to get the papers especially if you do not expedite them, but that is no guaranty that the pups were born when the papers say. We can speculate all day why someone might lie on AKC paperwork, which if they are caught, will get them fined or suspended. Without AKC paperwork, they may just be lying about how old the puppies are because they want to get rid of them. Tired of cleaning up after them, or do not want to take care of them. Lots of reasons to let puppies go early. For one thing, people like a tiny, helpless looking puppy. They want the dog to be humongous when grown, but they want it to fit in the palm of their hand when they get it. Because people are stupid. They have no idea what they are getting into when they take a pup from its dam and litter too soon.


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## Nigel&Nala (Mar 14, 2019)

Last year we brought home brother (Nigel) and sister (Nala) gsd pups. Nigel was the runt. He was much smaller than his sister and I didn’t think he would survive. Today, they are 1 yr 3 months and Nigel is bigger than Nala. The pictures are of them at 2 months and 1 yr.


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## Kathrynil (Dec 2, 2019)

Nigel&Nala said:


> Last year we brought home brother (Nigel) and sister (Nala) gsd pups. Nigel was the runt. He was much smaller than his sister and I didn’t think he would survive. Today, they are 1 yr 3 months and Nigel is bigger than Nala. The pictures are of them at 2 months and 1 yr.


Beautiful dogs! They turned out great.


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## Jclapper (Nov 13, 2021)

Oliverjbel said:


> Hello, we are looking to purchase a German Shepherd puppy who will grow to full size and be a personal protection dog. We have found a young boy but at 10 weeks he is only 4.8 pounds. If I'm not mistaken this is rather under-weight? Will he catch up or will he never grow to "full size"? The seller does not appear to be informing us that the puppy was the runt of the litter and is attempting to charge full price. How much would a puppy like this be expected to sell for usually?


I was just curious did you ever get this puppy?


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

Jclapper said:


> I was just curious did you ever get this puppy?


@Jclapper the thread is 2 years old and the OP was never seen again here. They did reply that they were going to be looking for a reputable breeder instead.


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## Jclapper (Nov 13, 2021)

I see I was just curious cause I recently got a gs that was 3.8 lbs at 8weeks


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

Jclapper said:


> I see I was just curious cause I recently got a gs that was 3.8 lbs at 8weeks


Really?


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

Jclapper said:


> I see I was just curious cause I recently got a gs that was 3.8 lbs at 8weeks


What is the proof that the puppy was 8 weeks old? 
And purebred?
Were you aware of the litter when it was actually born? 
Is it a reputable breeder or back yard breeder/craigslist?


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## Jclapper (Nov 13, 2021)

I mean I have pictures of when she was born as soon as she came out and I have the akc litter certificate I wouldn’t call her a reputable breeder but not a backyard breeder either….


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## Jclapper (Nov 13, 2021)

I will add that she’s Just about doubled in size in the two weeks I’ve had her though


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