growth ?

[hurt]

my brother has a 8 month old rotie. the dad is 120 lbs and mom is 100 lbs. they have sam on canidae adult feed. and give in 3 cups a day. the problem is he is already 118 lbs. this dog is huge. they have tryed many diffrent foods to slow hos growth down with no results. the vet is worried that he may have health problems due to rapid growth, but really had no ideas how to help. my brothers frien got a brother to this dog and he is only 78 lbs. how can this be? i am lost. he gets plenty of exersise everyday. my brothewr is worried about joint problems etc.. parents hips are good. i dont know what to tell him to slow this pup way down. is he keeps growing at this rate he will be 180 lbs full grown. any ideas?
thank you

[DANBUDDE]

What are the dimensions on this brute,Hurt? Might be genetics.Any idea how big his grandparents were? That is a huge pup,I thought my "Deuce" was large at 110lbs at 9 months.Does he look overweight?

Dan

[rottcrazed]

Doubtful he is ever going to hit even close to 180lbs.

He is a VERY big boy, and he is growing exceptionally fast, I too would be worried about too much growth too fast.

You can't stop genetics though and if he is destined to be LARGE, all your brother can do is monitor his activity, keep him very lean (almost thin would be best) and have him x-rayed at a year to see how things are shaping up in there.

The fact that he has a brother that small (actually, more normal sized) depends on the lines. If this was a total outcross in the lineage, you can get anything under the sun. And the parents are not the only dogs who affect the sizes of the pups in a litter. Aunts, unlces, grandparents also play a part. Can he do any research into the lines?

Kristi

[hurt]

no he is all muscle. mom is 100 lbs dad 120 lbs he is normal height for his age . he is just huge!! and his head is already bigger than his dads lol. he doea dailey walks and play ball. i quess muscle is better than fat but my brother fears he will have health problems is he continues at this rate.

[hurt]

he has cut his food back to 2 cups a day. and wanted to do more walks everyday. he takes him on a 2 mile walk everyday.i wouldnt be surprised if he hits close to 180 lbs. this dog is huge!!! but he is the kindest rottie you will ever meet. luvs everyone. he sleeps with there cat at night. i quess they snuggle on the floor together lol.

[DANBUDDE]

Well,if he's healthy now and has no health issues,all you can do is make sure he gets plenty of exercize and eats right(things i forget to do myself,haha).I bought my pup with the idea of wanting a huge dog,i see that was not a smart move now. I just hope Deuce stays healthy.

Dan

[rottcrazed]

See, the problem I do see if if he is a good weight right now, not fat, lean and muscular, then cutting his food back, on a young, growing dog, is going to be more detrimental in my mind. If you were talking about a fat, young dog, that is one thing, but to cut back his food on a lean puppy won't necessarily slow his growth, he is going to grow whether you like it or not, but he does require a certain amount of protien and nutrients to maintain his health and young body.

Again, don't count on a 180lb Rottweiler. Really, that should never happen, but he could be very large. I have seen a 140lb Rottweiler, not in too bad shape, he was monstrous.

He will slow down in his growth very soon. One of my pups from my first litter grew quite fast being fed raw, good muscle, never fat, etc... He topped out recently at 122lbs and 26inches tall at 14 months old. He looks awesome now. He was not 118lbs at 8 months, but he was 100lbs at that point. At about 10 months he slowed down considerably.

His dad is 120lbs and mom is 80lbs. He is the largest pup in the litter.

Kristi

[llwaxan]

Welcome.
One suggestion may be to switch this lil darling to a single source food, like Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Fish for example or Wellness Potato and Duck.

Canidea is a great food but has multiple protein sources. One of my pups developed pano as a result of rapid growth (and genetics). It was suggested that I put him on a single protein source food. Since I have he has slowed done some and his pano is less constant.

Do a search in "Nutrition and Grooming" under single protein source or any of the food brands mentioned and you can get alot of more detailed information.

Good luck and let us know how the uber puppy is doing.

[kayozzy]

Originally Posted by hurt

no he is all muscle. mom is 100 lbs dad 120 lbs he is normal height for his age . he is just huge!! and his head is already bigger than his dads lol. he doea dailey walks and play ball. i quess muscle is better than fat but my brother fears he will have health problems is he continues at this rate.

If he is at normal height for his age, but weighs so much more, that sounds more like an overweight dog to me. But without seeing him, it's hard to make that judgement.

[rottcrazed]

That is a good point - if he is 'normal' height for his age, meaning he is close to the same height as his 78lb brother, then he is grossly overweight.

Can you get the height measurement of the pup?

Kristi