How big will my pup get?

[tinuviel_k]

Anyone care to help me guestimate how big my pup will get?

Merlow is a "mystery dog." Here mama was found as a stray, very pregnant. The shelter thought her mama was part Australian Shepherd, but not pure by any stretch of the imagination. Mama is 60 lbs, and not overweight. The father is a total mystery. I assume there were multiple fathers for the litter: there were six pups and only two looked alike, kind of like Rotties. Though I don't think that our pup has any Rottie in her.

When people look at Merlow they tend to think she might have some Aussie, German Shepherd, Border Collie, or...? We really don't know for sure, though. She is much less bulky than a German Shepherd, less fuzzy than an Aussie, and has a pretty calm temperament (in other words, she isn't a herding dog at heart!).

Merlow is 3.5 months. At three months she weighed 20.5 lbs. At 3.5 months she weighs 23.5 lbs. I think that is light for a German, heavy for an Aussie, and I have no idea about a Border Collie.

Here are some pics:

Merlow's mama:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...erlowsMama.jpg

Merlow at 9 weeks old:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...k/DSC09736.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...k/DSC09719.jpg

Merlow at 3 months old:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...k/DSC09866.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...k/DSC09873.jpg

So, any ideas of what kind of dogs might be in her background? Any estimates about what her grown-up size might be?

[Doodlebugsmom]

Her mama looks like she may have some Swiss Mountain Dog or Bernese Mountain Dog in her. Of course, there are many mixes that could result in a dog looking like this. My guess is that your pup will be medium to large size. She looks to be about the size my husky mix was at 3 months. She ended up at about 70 lbs.

We now have a pyrenees/husky mix (not the one mentioned above). She's 40 lbs. at 6 months and we're always wondering how big she's going to get. It's fun to think about!

[tinuviel_k]

Woo! 70 lbs! Well, I did want a big dog!

They thought the mama may have had some Bernese or Swiss in there. Our trainer, who used to raise Bernese, said that if so all Merlow got was the color, as her body is way too long and skinny, and she has this long thin whip tail and a longer muzzle.

The vet guessed 50 lbs, assuming Border Collie heritage, our trainer guessed about 60 lbs, assuming Shepherd heritage. I suppose only time will tell, but it is really fun to guess.

[mommariffic]

I DEF see Bernese or Swiss! We have a Bernese mix [with a farm collie] and he got to be around 70-80lbs. Big yes, but totally manageable! You've got a beautiful lovely dog

[stardogs]

My vets have always said a dog is half their adult weight at 4 months, so she'll likely be around the 60lb mark. The main exception to that is if you have a breed that will be over 100lbs at maturity - half their adult weight will be at 5 months.

[Doodlebugsmom]

Originally Posted by stardogs

My vets have always said a dog is half their adult weight at 4 months, so she'll likely be around the 60lb mark. The main exception to that is if you have a breed that will be over 100lbs at maturity - half their adult weight will be at 5 months.

Wow! I'd never heard that. My pup has nearly doubled her 4-month-old weight (23 lbs) in the last two months. She's six months now and weighs just over 40 lbs. (about 44 lbs.) She doesn't seem to fit that theory, and I have to wonder why. She's going to grow quite a bit more, right? I don't think my last husky mix reached her growth maturity until she was over a year old.

[Alyantavid]

Originally Posted by stardogs

My vets have always said a dog is half their adult weight at 4 months, so she'll likely be around the 60lb mark. The main exception to that is if you have a breed that will be over 100lbs at maturity - half their adult weight will be at 5 months.

Really? I kind of hope that isn't true. My pup was 40 pounds at 4 months.

[Doodlebugsmom]

Originally Posted by Alyantavid

Really? I kind of hope that isn't true. My pup was 40 pounds at 4 months.

An 80 lb. female Weim would be big, but not unheard of! When I asked my vet how big she thought my pyr/husky would be she said she honestly had no idea. She said it's really hard to predict with mixed breeds.

[zebra15]

IDK but my roomie has a Bernese Mtn dog - the dog just turned a year and shes 85 lbs and still going strong. The dog eats 3-5 cups of food a day based on how much 'outside' time she has... We should get the stuff delivered by the pallet LOL

[vtechmom]

I've got a Swissy and I really don't see any Swissy or Bernese in that pup, I do see a whole ton of Shepherd though. She could also easily fall into a Shepherd weight range. A purebred female isn't really meant to be a huge dog. Around 65-75lbs is what should be the norm and I wouldn't be surprised to see your pup hit 65lbs.

If mom does have some Swissy or Bernese then it is very little or mixed with a much smaller dog. There are a fair amount of other breeds that can also throw that coat pattern. A beagle could actually do it, so could some different hound breeds. It's the paws that show that major mix. Neither a swissy or bernese get spots on the white. A lot of hounds do though.

To give a growth idea my Swissy was 17lbs by 8 weeks old, and at 1 and a half years is a tad over 100lbs, and about right on for the size a female should reach (100-110lbs, boys go 120-140lbs). While growing she was usually her age in months times ten, until 9 months when she really slowed her growth. So, 2 months = 20lbs, 3 months = 30lbs, 4 months = 40lbs, etc... I've noticed that pattern at work as well. A pup that is at least monthX10 in weight or more is gonna be a giant breed. Anything under that isn't going to get super huge but might fall into the large breed side, especially if they start that way for the first couple of months, then fall off the pattern.