[vluna]

Hi everyone. Just wanted to know if anyone could tell me how much weight a Rottie puppy should gain each month? I've searched everywhere for answers but no luck. Even my vet couldn't give me a straight answer. Please help me.:confused:

[AKaeTrue]

Is it that you think your dog is gaining weight to quickly? Or are you afraid he's not gaining enough?
I'm surprised a vet wouldn't know this kind of stuff. It may benefit you and your dog to find a vet that is familiar and has more knowledge on large breed dogs for future visits.
Here is a rough estimate on the average growth rate of a Rottweiler.
Weight Increment
Age /
Weeks / grams,g / pounds, lbs
1... 650-900 g... 1-2 lbs
2... 900-1400 g... 2-3 lbs
3... 1300-1900 g... 3-4 lbs
4... 2100-2900 g... 5-7 lbs
5... 3000-4000 g... 7-9 lbs
6... 4000-5000 g... 9-11 lbs


Months / Kilograms,kg / pounds,lbs
3... 14-17 kg... 31-38 lbs
4... 17-23 kg... 38-51 lbs
5... 24-31 kg... 53-68 lbs
6... 30-35 kg... 66-77 lbs
7... 34-40 kg... 75-88 lbs
9... 36-46 kg... 79-101 lbs
10... 36-50 kg... 79-110 lbs
11... 38-50 kg... 84-110 lbs
13... 40-50 kg... 89-110 lbs

This is the guideline to go by for a growing Rottweiler to ensure an even growth rate. Large breeds that grow to fast will have joint and hip problems. However, adult dogs can exceed 110 lbs due to being overweight which will also cause joint and hip problems. Also, this is just an average guideline for both male and female Rottweilers. You can give or take a little and still be OK. I have a female Rottie and she's been 118 lbs the last two times she's been to the vet (at age 3 years and 4 years).
Hope this helps. Despite their bad reputation, if cared for and raised properly, they are wonderful family pets. This is a pic of my 3 year old son and "his" dog. Good luck...
Attachment 1465

[vluna]

Thanks Kae that helps. I am just worried she is not gaining enough weight. She is 4 1/2 months and only weighs 28.7# she looks big but the scale at the vets office showed her only gaining 7# in 3 weeks. Is that normal? She was the runt of the litter, but she is healthy otherwise. She is on her meds for fleas and mosquitoes.etc... What do you think? Am I just over worried for nothing? V

[Melinda]

If she was the runt, she could stay a smallish dog... I'll bet she's beautiful though.

[binx44]

I find rottweiler runts grow a heck of a lot slower then most other breeds of large dogs... I'm sure she'll be fine but take AKaeTrue's post and see how far off she is.. then you can slowly try bringing her weight up but remember on some runts of the litter regular weights may put them into the overweight category... just take your time in deciding what to do

[labman]

Worry less about weight gain and instead, body condition. See http://www.puppychow.com/products/po...condition.aspx Butter balls may be cute, but lean is healthy. I was disappointed how fat my Lab Holly was a month ago at 7 weeks. She has a waist now and is doing fine.

Even large breed puppy chow is too rich leading to excessively fast growth and puts too much stress on developing joints. Best thing is to switch to adult chow at 7 months, or 4 months if you are feeding a general puppy chow.

[AKaeTrue]

Hi there,
Could it be that she is a bit younger than you think?
Was she born with a very large liter of puppies (10 or more puppies)?
At this point when they are so young, growing in proportion is the main goal.
Growing at a slower pace is always better for the large breeds as it promotes healthier bones and joints.
If she came from a very large litter of puppies, it is possible that she will remain on the smaller side during her puppy years. Often, especially in large litters, due to not enough space, the last fetus implants (and therefore situated) poorly along the uterine horn, having been poorly nourished while in utero. Most of the time, while seeming behind, they are actually growing at a normal pace (because they were so small when they were born), and will start falling into the guidelines around 7 months of age.
Rarely is a puppy forever stunted in growth because of being the runt of a large breed dog in a litter of 10 or less puppies.
It's not uncommon for the 11th, 12th, & 13th puppy born to be a bit smaller, but they can surprise you as their size could go either way.
It has been my experience, by working through dog rescue groups in the past, that litters containing 14 or more puppies, the 14th and up have always been stunted in growth and/or have serious health and birth defects. Many didn't survive past 8 weeks old. (however, none were of the Rottweiler breed or size)
If your pup is doing good and is happy and healthy, she is probably right on track with her growing rate due to the small size at birth. You will more than likely start to see her fall into the guidelines around 7 months old.
-Kae

[hapixbuni]

AKaeTrue... you wouldn't happen to have one of those weight growth chart for an american pit bull would you? I just want to make sure my puppys growing according to plan. Thanks!

[hapixbuni]

Labman-
I thought you wernt supposed to switch a puppy to adult food until they were at least a year old?

[labman]

Labman-
i thought you wernt supposed to switch a puppy to adult food until they were at least a year old??

A year is the conventional wisdom largely from the people selling dog chow. My opinion is based on what the highly experienced people that give away dog guides, tell us that are raising puppies for them. They have an incredible accumulation of info on how to produce healthy dogs with long active lives and every incentive to share the straight story with their volunteers. I am familiar with a number of other schools, and they all do about the same. My local vet is a nationally know joint specialist, and he urges and even sooner switch.

[hapixbuni]

I'v read some of your post and believe you are a well knowledged dog person... in saying that, I have a 45 lbs 7 months old american pit bull puppy that I currently have on large breed puppy chow. For the majority of his puppyhood I fed him either an all age chow (natural balance) or recently a chow that didn't say anything about being for puppies or adults (nutro natural lamb and rice, I'm pretty sure it was for adult dogs though). On both those other ones he always seemed to gain weight respectively, never too fat never too thin. For the past month that he's been on the puppy chow he actually seems to be losing weight, lb wise he's stopped gaining weight and went down just a tad. According to that body condition chart he is still ideal but compared to what he's been before he's significantly thinner... is this what large breed puppy chow does or should I go back to what I was feeding him before? If its smarter to switch a 7 month old, that's going to grow to be over 50 lbs, to adult chow then should I go back to the nutro?

[doggie_poopie]

Most of the following information involving specifics of requirements comes from "Small Animal Clinical Nutrition, 4th ed." by Hand, et al. From www.vetinfo.com

There is no clear guideline for when to switch from puppy food to adult
Food, but the switch should be made about the time that the puppy's bone
Growth (including increasing bone density) stops. This varies from breed to
Breed but probably is somewhere between 10 months and a year of age.

The most common mistake made in feeding puppies is to feed too much
Calcium. This is easy to do. The second most common mistake is probably
Feeding foods with improper calcium/phosphorous ratios. This isn't usually
Due to a problem with the commercial food, it is usually due to feeding
Supplements or snacks that contain either calcium or phosphorous and
Unbalance the ratio found in the food.

The first thing that you have to understand about feeding calcium is that
The percentage of calcium required in the food is very dependent on the
Amount of energy that the food provides. A food that provides a high degree
Of energy will require a higher amount of calcium and a food that provides
Smaller amounts of energy should have lower amounts of calcium. I have not
Seen a figure for the maximum amount of calcium in very high energy foods
But if a dog food provides less than 3.8 kilocalories of metabolizable
Energy per gram of food (< 3.8kcal/g ME) then the calcium level in the
Food should not exceed 1.5% on a dry matter basis.

To convert the calcium percentage in dry dog foods to a dry matter basis,
Multiply by 0.9 (90%) to convert to dry matter from the label (as fed)
Percentages.

For canned food it is reasonable to multiply the percentage of an
Ingredient on an "as fed" basis to a dry matter basis by multiplying it by
4. This is not as precise as subtracting the percentage of water to figure
Out the dry matter and then dividing the percentage on the label by the
Percentage of dry matter but it is easier.

The new big breed puppy foods have higher calcium levels than adult dog
Foods. They also have a lot more energy per gram (or cup, or any other
Measure). So the puppy eats less of the food to meet its energy
Requirements. This is important to realize, because if a puppy is fed an
Adult dog food that has a lower amount of calcium, but it has to eat two or
Three times as much of the food to meet its energy requirement, it will
Actually consume more calcium from the adult food, even though it has a
Lower calcium content on a percentage basis. Puppies need about 1% calcium,
On a dry matter basis, for foods that provide 3.5kcal /g ME (about the
Average).

You might have to call the dog food company to get the number of
Kilocalories per gram of food, or you can check out Ohio State's web site
On nutrition, which might have your dog food listed.

It might be possible to cause problems with hip dysplasia,
Or other orthopedic disorders, by feeding excessive calcium, but the
Biggest problem is feeding excessive calories. The reason that the large breed puppy foods are a good idea is that they have enough calcium and energy to allow you to feed adequate amounts of calcium while meeting the puppy's energy needs, without making
Him overweight.

Once the growth phase is over the calcium requirements drop. On the other
Hand, the risk of feeding too much calcium and causing orthopedic problems
Also drops some. Adult dogs only require about 0.6% calcium on a dry matter
Basis for foods providing 3.5 kcal/g ME

For a Rottweiler 12 months is a good age to change. You should make the transition
Gradually, taking a week or so to switch entirely.

[labman]

i'v read some of your post and believe you are a well knowledged dog person... in saying that, i have a 45 lbs 7 months old american pit bull puppy that i currently have on large breed puppy chow. for the majority of his puppyhood i fed him either an all age chow (natural balance) or recently a chow that didnt say anything about being for puppies or adults (nutro natural lamb and rice, im pretty sure it was for adult dogs though). on both those other ones he always seemed to gain weight respectively, never too fat never too thin. for the past month that hes been on the puppy chow he actually seems to be losing weight, lb wise hes stopped gaining weight and went down just a tad. according to that body condition chart he is still ideal but compared to what hes been before hes significantly thinner... is this what large breed puppy chow does or should i go back to what i was feeding him before? if its smarter to switch a 7 month old, thats going to grow to be over 50 lbs, to adult chow then should i go back to the nutro??

I would go back to the Nutro. One of the things you must filter any recommendation through is what its purpose is. Pet food is a branch of agricultural feeds. The American animal industry understands ''get big fast'' very well. We all eat better for less because of it. If a turkey's legs will barely support its huge body the first of November, no problem. Turkeys are also breed for maximum weight gain on minimum food input. However, large breed dogs are different and are suffering for our efforts.

''but the switch should be made about the time that the puppy's bone
growth (including increasing bone density) stops.'' This is just plain wrong.
I wonder what data it is based on and what the goal is. The dog guide school councils us to to switch at 4 months before the growth spurt soon afterwards. They are in an unusual position to have the complete records of the thousands of dogs they breed, 300-400 a year, pedigrees, known condition of the dog its entire first year, X-rays and other complete physical examination details, plus maintaining contact with many of the dogs over their entire lifetime, especially any ones that develop problems later in life. I doubt even the dog food companies have as much data on dogs later in their life.

I certainly doubt any small veterinarian practice has near the wealth of info the service dog schools do. Yes, there is the literature. Anything published is available not only to them, but to the service dog schools too. Articles such as Kealy, et al. "Effects of limited food consumption on the
incidence of hip dysplasia in growing dogs." JAVMA, v201, n6 Sept 15
1992. Of course, not all the information the schools share get published.
And as I have mentioned, the nationally know joint specialist, that still has time to do my puppies routine shots, is an even stronger advocate of early switch to adult chow.

I have no idea what sort of an agenda vetinfo has. Perhaps they are just trying to help pet owners and at the worst are trying to promote their practice. Nothing wrong with that. Nor do I know what else a search of the net would turn up. If you can't find a website supporting your position, or disagreeing with somebody you want to discredit, you are not very skilled at searching, especially not when it comes to dogs. Tons of bad info out there. I do know the service dog schools' agenda. They are doing everything they possibly can to put off having to spend the price of a nice car on training a replacement for a dog no longer able to work. They also GIVE away any dog with bad X-rays or other problems at a year old. Besides raising puppies, I am also involved in fundraising and understand the problems with dogs that are dropped from the program. The dollars invested in them are just too hard to come by, and worse yet is the emotional discomfort of the people involved.

If your growing Rottweiler is now down to its ideal body condition, that is the best thing you could have done for it. Good work. The service dog schools check their puppies every month for proper body condition. Dogs that are too fat, for too long, will be moved to a different home. Let me reassure you that keeping it lean will not stunt its growth, only delay it until its joints are ready for the same long active life that service dogs need.

[AKaeTrue]

I don't have a growth chat for a pitbull. I ordered the book I have from the American Kennel Club. Unfortunately they do not recognize the Pitbull so they're not in there.
I took my dog off puppy food around 4 - 5 months old. Vet recommended it - something about Lg. breeds bones growing to fast for the muscles - or vise versa, I can't remember.
I think depending on the breed whether it's small or giant depends on the amount of time spent eating puppy food.
A pitbull breed specific book should have a growth chart for you to go by, you can probably find one in a pet store - I know the library has breed specific books.
Kae

[spikenrocky]

Hi everyone. Just wanted to know if anyone could tell me how much weight a Rottie puppy should gain each month? I've searched everywhere for answers but no luck. Even my vet couldn't give me a straight answer. please help me.:confused:

Hi, it won't answer your question but might give you a guide or peace of mind. I took my Little (very large) 5month old Rottie called yoda to the vets yesterday and he weight a massive 33.5kg approx 72pounds. The vet said he looked great shiney coat wet nose virtually fat free. I have a monster on my hands as his dad was 181pounds (13stone) and mum was 139pounds (10stone).

[doggie_poopie]

Had a 8 week old Rott pup in the clinic last week... Weighted 22LBS.
Now that's a baby huey!

[nawan]

Haha my rott is a monster he looks like a tank he's 2 years old and he weighs 155 pounds all I feed him is steaks and w/e leftovers I have and what my mom cooks he never eats dog food just meat tons of meat...

[bushg]

nawan.. I think your dog needs food other than cooked meat. You really need to discuss his diet with a vet. I am not against feeding meat. But they need other vitamins and minerals that the meat does not provide.

[labman]

Dogs fed alternative diets do fine for a while and by the time trouble shows up, their liver or pancreas has irreversible damage. The only safe diet is a commercial dog chow.

[oreo_rr]

Hi guys
I'm looking around for a rottweiler puppy
Can you guys give me some pointers to look at
Like which is good and what's not...
I only know one thing, that is,
The shorter the mouth is the better
Besides that, what should I look for?
Thanks