Doberman puppy owners - track your weight gain here

[Oh Little Oji]

She is almost 7 months, been in two heats two months apart - both heats her urination increased but abated inbetween. She doesn't present with any thyroid symptoms so we haven't tested her. I am a SAHM now and not working anymore , so both samples were sent to lab [which is pretty much the standard in the practices in southern Westchester, (or was at least when i was working) unless they need results immediately, then it's done in-house] for O&P and giardia antigen, both negative. I think she is really just lean and over-active and i am being neurotic!
On a side note: So awesome to have another Tech here! I expect everyone will learn a wealth of information from you!!

Oji at 20 months and 3 weeks. Ribs a'plenty and 66 lbs. (male) at last weigh. These pics don't show his hip bones, but they show his spine just a bit. Just thought I'd show for comparison to Miescha (Prushank's girl). Miescha doesn't look bad, but yes a bit ribby.

 

[Prushanks]

@Oh Little Oji Oh Tad, he's so handsome!! I've never seen his face though, other than your profile pic which doesn't get that big on my ipad.. can you post one for me?? I see his ribs, but its harder to see the others. Just took these pics in the sun which show Miesha's shape better..

 

[Oh Little Oji]

@Oh Little Oji Oh Tad, he's so handsome!! I've never seen his face though, other than your profile pic which doesn't get that big on my ipad.. can you post one for me?? I see his ribs, but its harder to see the others. Just took these pics in the sun which show Miesha's shape better..
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Well thank you! As hard as I am on him for his looks (well I'm not actually hard on him) it does feel good to have someone compliment him.

I will post a pic in the "Random Photo Of The Day.,." thread that shows his face.

Miescha does look more ribby than I though there, btw.

 

[Prushanks]

Well thank you! As hard as I am on him for his looks (well I'm not actually hard on him) it does feel good to have someone compliment him.

I will post a pic in the "Random Photo Of The Day.,." thread that shows his face.

Miescha does look more ribby than I though there, btw.

The more i look at Miesha, the more concerned i got.. i even got some pics of her in the same position sunning herself like you did with Oji on the porch and it was a horrific sight. I mean, looking at it, i would call the ASPCA on myself if i didn't know better!!
I called my breeder talk to her about my concerns and gave her all of the pertinent info. So it turns out i have been underfeeding my poor little waif!! I have been going by a veterinary chart [attached below] of daily kcals per age/weight and feeding a little higher that. It isnt breed specific chart and probably doesn't account for the hundreds of boomerangs around my yard she does when "on patrol!" I looked at the back of the bag, and it says for puppies, feed up to 2 times the per pound amount which would equal between 6-7.5 cups and i've only been giving her 5 cups!!

No wonder she inhales her food, I should know better!! #WorstDoberMomInTheWorld
Hopfully upping her food will get her back on track, and where she should be!

 

[AresMyDobie]

The more i look at Miesha, the more concerned i got.. i even got some pics of her in the same position sunning herself like you did with Oji on the porch and it was a horrific sight. I mean, looking at it, i would call the ASPCA on myself if i didn't know better!!
I called my breeder talk to her about my concerns and gave her all of the pertinent info. So it turns out i have been underfeeding my poor little waif!! I have been going by a veterinary chart [attached below] of daily kcals per age/weight and feeding a little higher that. It isnt breed specific chart and probably doesn't account for the hundreds of boomerangs around my yard she does when "on patrol!" I looked at the back of the bag, and it says for puppies, feed up to 2 times the per pound amount which would equal between 6-7.5 cups and i've only been giving her 5 cups!!

No wonder she inhales her food, I should know better!! #WorstDoberMomInTheWorld
Hopfully upping her food will get her back on track, and where she should be!

I never went by the bag when I fed kibble I always go off the look of my dog, looks thin-increase amount looks chunky- decrease looks fine- stay the same lol

 

[JanS]

I go by looks too because every single dog varies depending on their metabolism and exercise. Prushanks, don't ever feel like a bad owner since you're just trying to do what's best and she doesn't look that bad. I'm guessing she was inhaling in the photo where you can see the ribs more, but @Rits posted a good chart about that not too long ago.

 

[Rits]

@Oh Little Oji Oh Tad, he's so handsome!! I've never seen his face though, other than your profile pic which doesn't get that big on my ipad.. can you post one for me?? I see his ribs, but its harder to see the others. Just took these pics in the sun which show Miesha's shape better..
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Don't feel bad! You are a very caring owner and just worried about your girl. Off of your most recent pics I agree she could use a little more food and pounds on her but it isn't too bad. The sun really exaggerates how our dogs look with harsh shadows but her waist is a little narrow. Thats ok. My dogs fluctuate all the time based on their activities. Just increase her food a bit and always go off by looks because the nutrition needs can vary by the week. It isn't like it is hurting her, because you will adjust her food as needed.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

The more i look at Miesha, the more concerned i got.. i even got some pics of her in the same position sunning herself like you did with Oji on the porch and it was a horrific sight. I mean, looking at it, i would call the ASPCA on myself if i didn't know better!!
I called my breeder talk to her about my concerns and gave her all of the pertinent info. So it turns out i have been underfeeding my poor little waif!! I have been going by a veterinary chart [attached below] of daily kcals per age/weight and feeding a little higher that. It isnt breed specific chart and probably doesn't account for the hundreds of boomerangs around my yard she does when "on patrol!" I looked at the back of the bag, and it says for puppies, feed up to 2 times the per pound amount which would equal between 6-7.5 cups and i've only been giving her 5 cups!!

No wonder she inhales her food, I should know better!! #WorstDoberMomInTheWorld
Hopfully upping her food will get her back on track, and where she should be!

Well, rejoice! At least you don't have the problem that Oji has which is that his digestive system is so flawed that he cannot handle the nutrition he needs.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

The more i look at Miesha, the more concerned i got.. i even got some pics of her in the same position sunning herself like you did with Oji on the porch and it was a horrific sight. I mean, looking at it, i would call the ASPCA on myself if i didn't know better!!
I called my breeder talk to her about my concerns and gave her all of the pertinent info. So it turns out i have been underfeeding my poor little waif!! I have been going by a veterinary chart [attached below] of daily kcals per age/weight and feeding a little higher that. It isnt breed specific chart and probably doesn't account for the hundreds of boomerangs around my yard she does when "on patrol!" I looked at the back of the bag, and it says for puppies, feed up to 2 times the per pound amount which would equal between 6-7.5 cups and i've only been giving her 5 cups!!

No wonder she inhales her food, I should know better!! #WorstDoberMomInTheWorld
Hopfully upping her food will get her back on track, and where she should be!

Miescha does not look more skinny than Oji. I'd say about the same. Oji has protruding spine and hip bones. The hip bones I think are exaggerated due to his unfortunate angulation of the pelvis. Rounded croup, tail set-on low, peeing on front legs. I've even seen him pee on his own chest.

 

[Drogon]

I looked at the back of the bag, and it says for puppies, feed up to 2 times the per pound amount which would equal between 6-7.5 cups and i've only been giving her 5 cups!!

Someone's going to be a happy puppy.
One of the people I train with is a Vet and a Doberman breeder and some of her dogs look thinner than Miesha. I would think she wouldn't keep them so slim if there were any health reasons not to. So don't feel bad you haven't done any harm.
Some feeding charts go by current weight and others go by 'adult weight' that can be confusing. Either way it should just be a guide. If your dog appears to thin on the recommended the feed more - or if appears heavy feed less. For a puppy if you feed too much more or less than the recommended then you need to be careful about the other nutrient values. For example feeding more can increase the calcium / phosphorus and too much calcium as a puppy can increase the likely hood of HD later in life.

 

[Prushanks]

Born 9/18/15
9wks 3days: 22.8lbs
11wks [12/4/15]: 27.2lbs
12 wks [12/11/15] 30.5 lbs
13 wks [12/18/15] 34.4 lbs & 19 in
14 wks [12/25/15] 36.0 lbs & 19.5 in
15 wks [1/1/16] 37.6lbs & 20 in
16 wks [1/8/16] 41lbs & 20.75 in
17 wks [1/15/16] 43.2 lbs & 21"
18 wks [1/22/16] 44.4 lbs & 21.75"
19 wks [1/29/16] 45.4 lbs & 22"
20 wks [2/5/16] 45 lbs & 22.75"
21 wks [2/12/16] 46 lbs & 23.25"
22 wks -or- 5 Calendar Months [2/19/16] 49 lbs & 23.5"
23 wks [2/26/16] 50.2 lbs & 23.5"
24 wks -or- 5.5 Calendar Months [3/4/16] 52.8 lbs & 24"
25 wks [3/11/16] 53.8 lbs & ~ 24"
26 wks -or- 6 Calendar Months [3/18/16] 54.6lbs & ~24.5"

7 Months [4/18/16] 59lbs & ~25.75"

As of yesterday, i upped her food to 3 cups twice a day with 1 cup ground turkey mixed in. She was 57 yesterday morning [after eating] [as well as the last week or two] and now she's up to exactly 59! That's after a 6:30am breakfast and post BM!! That, gives me hope!

 

[PandoraB]

Speaking of bad owners, I just realized I missed Luna's 8 month "birthday" yesterday. I just caught myself when I almost referred her to as 7 months on another thread. And she's still skinny. She has seen a vet 3 times in the past month (3 different vets) for unrelated issues and the vets said she's healthy and not to worry, she will fill out. She weighed 50.5 lbs when she got her lyme booster shot last Saturday which is a whopping 1 lb gain since her first lyme shot 3 weeks ago (or .5 lb gain in the last month if my home weigh ins were accurate). Although she's eating a little better with the toppers the problem continues to be lack of interest in food. I haven't measured her recently but she was tall at 26 inches at around 7 months so she's at least that now and so she still looks like a gangly giraffe.

Born: August 19, 2015
13 weeks - 22 lbs
14 weeks - 23.5 lbs
16 weeks - 28 lbs
17 weeks - 32.5 lb 20.5 inches
18 weeks - 34 lbs - 21.5 inches
20 weeks - 38 lbs
21 weeks - 40 lbs
5 months - 47 lbs
6 months - 48 lbs - 25 inches
6 mths, 2 weeks - 50 lbs
7 mths, 6 days - 49.5 lbs - 26 inches
8 mths - 50.5 lbs

 

[TheDoctor'sMom]

@PandoraB Dont feel bad! I got Doctor's birthday mixed up one month and I haven't weighed him since January, lol! I have just been estimating his weight based upon how he feels when I hold him compared to holding one of my kids. He won't be still long enough for my scales to read, but I figure he is between 80-85lbs. I'll have him weighed in June at the vet

 

[Oh Little Oji]

Sheesh. We've got at least three Dobes on the forum currently that are substantially too skinny. Is there something going on with the breed? I shared in the chat box that my vet's scale has my 20 month old male at 60 1/2 pounds.

 

[PandoraB]

Sheesh. We've got at least three Dobes on the forum currently that are substantially too skinny. Is there something going on with the breed? I shared in the chat box that my vet's scale has my 20 month old male at 60 1/2 pounds.

Good question.

I assumed that the vets scales would be more accurate. We were at 2 different vets (because I have one where I live in Canada and also 1 in Michigan where I have my cottage) and they were virtually the same a week apart.

Luna's mother is only 60 lbs but her sire is 90 lbs. At 60 pounds mum is shorter. I assumed with Luna's height she would be taking more after her strong Euro daddy. If she was shorter her weight would look ok.

I know they say you can never be too rich or too thin but geeeezzzzeeee.

 

[JanS]

Our vets walk on scale was something like 3# off so they adjusted for that. They also have a table scale with a regular dial and they said that one is much more accurate.

 

[Prushanks]

Speaking of bad owners, I just realized I missed Luna's 8 month "birthday" yesterday. I just caught myself when I almost referred her to as 7 months on another thread. And she's still skinny. She has seen a vet 3 times in the past month (3 different vets) for unrelated issues and the vets said she's healthy and not to worry, she will fill out. She weighed 50.5 lbs when she got her lyme booster shot last Saturday which is a whopping 1 lb gain since her first lyme shot 3 weeks ago (or .5 lb gain in the last month if my home weigh ins were accurate). Although she's eating a little better with the toppers the problem continues to be lack of interest in food. I haven't measured her recently but she was tall at 26 inches at around 7 months so she's at least that now and so she still looks like a gangly giraffe.

Born: August 19, 2015
13 weeks - 22 lbs
14 weeks - 23.5 lbs
16 weeks - 28 lbs
17 weeks - 32.5 lb 20.5 inches
18 weeks - 34 lbs - 21.5 inches
20 weeks - 38 lbs
21 weeks - 40 lbs
5 months - 47 lbs
6 months - 48 lbs - 25 inches
6 mths, 2 weeks - 50 lbs
7 mths, 6 days - 49.5 lbs - 26 inches
8 mths - 50.5 lbs

1- You are the furthest thing from a "bad owner"... at least you didn't starve your girl to the point that where Sarah Mclaughlin herself would probably come knocking down my door in song wearing her ASPCA shirt...
And 2- that is the prettiest darned Galgly Giraffe i ever did see.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

Well, I can tell you this: The feeding guide on the bag of food calls for an 8 - 12 month old that weighs about 60 lbs. to be getting 3 - 4 cups of food daily. It's so weird that our young Dobes seem to need so much more than that.

I'm giving Oji 4 cups now and that keeps his stools fairly firm. He needs more, I suspect, but you know my story.

 

[pcasey84]

33.4 lbs @ 14 weeks

 

[PandoraB]

In between postings tonight (still trying to summon the strength to post after a long stressful day) - her 8 month pic: