Quote:
Originally Posted by PROLINKer  Teacup just means they are runts. They are abnormally small. They usually have growth hormonal problems that's why they are small. |
Not true....the phrase "
usually have growth hormonal problems" is the disqualifier.
I have tinies....I keep all my tinies and do not sell any of them, not because of health issues of ANY kind, but because these tinies require extensive knowledge to keep them safe from everyday accidents. What a 7 lb dog would tolerate, "tinies" would never be able to do it. NONE of my tinies have "growth hormonal problems" ....they are perfectly healthy, and hormones have nothing to do with their size. It is genetics that play a major role in developmental patterns and while unhealthy dogs can certainly exhibit physical variants, it can not be said they "usually" have hormone issues....there are lots of tiny dogs that are perfectly healthy, just small in size, due to genetics and heredity, not because of health issues. Then there are the completely healthy babies, that breeders deliberately
underfeed to keep growth rate/patterns controlled. This is more common an issue with undersized pups than growth hormonal issues.