I have a Puppy Weight question?
 

Mom is 3 1/2 to 4lbs lactating, dad is 5lbs, puppy weighed 2.5 oz's at birth. Puppy will be 6 weeks old next week and is still under 1lb. Can you all give me an guesstimated idea of what the adult weight may be? I don't know the formula or how to figure it out.:D Hope I explained that correctly. Thanks

How many pups in the litter?

If I'm not mistaken there are 4, two tiny ones and two bigger ones. The one in question is the smaller of them.

Yes! I would be interested to know the exact way its 'guesstimated' as well! ;)

This is what I was told & tested. It is pretty acurate. Take the weight at 8 wks & x's by 3. So if the pup is 1lb at 8wks probaly around 3lb adult weight. I would use that as a minimum & x's by 4 for maximum which is 4lbs. So 3-4lbs adult weight.

That is a very unretrable breeder to breed a mom that small and then to even breed her to a male who is bigger than the female

I thought that to but was trying to stay on topic for once

My thoughts exactly.:goodpost:

Um, well I am the breeder and I am FAR from an unretreable breeder. Unretrable is caging your yorkies in a building and breeding them every cycle and being in it for the money. My female is my pet and my baby so before you try to judge you need to know the situation.

Can we all just answer the question maybe and stay on topic for a change?




:)

I've heard the 3 times the 8 week weight, and also 2 times the 12 week weight. I would think the 2 times the 12 week weight would probably be a little more accurate, but there is no guarantee. Here is a growth chart....don't know how accurate it is....


http://yorkiepassion.com/growthchart.htm

I have to agree with Chachi on this one as well (although I am guessing she means Unreputable). I'm sure you do love your female and it is great that you keep them in your home and not caged in an outbuilding with litters every cycle. However the point is that your female is too small to breed (especially to a larger male) and while you were successful this time you did take a huge risk. So many people have posted about losing their females as a result of breeding them too small.

Well at 6 weeks Peeka was just a little over a lb and he is now 4.3 lbs at 7 1/2 months

Any ethcal breeder would tell you that you dont breed females that small and you you dont breed with a larger male. I feel sorry for your female

Well I feel sorry for you because I was warned via PM about you that you and a few others on here think they are the god of breeding.

I am able to make decisions myself and dont need anyone to tell me about ethics. I am a very educated person so no need to talk down to me.

Thanks to those who did answer the question though. :)

I dont think I am the god of breeding and sorry what I have said is just common sense

Well if someone would have asked for your opinion that would have been great. No need for unsolicited advice. A size question was asked. Not 'hey Chachi what do you think". I have plenty of common sense.

IF you mean "unreputable" -- why would that be? The mom is 3.5-4 pounds the male is only 5 pounds -- What is wrong with that? Wouldn't it depend on what the breeder and vet have determined if the female is healthy and able to bear a litter. It is not like she is breeding a 1 pounder or something.

The standard is under 7 pounds -- so what weight do you think is acceptable?

:thumbup: THANK YOU!! How else would the tiny ones get here? There are a LOT of people breeding smaller ones just fine.:)

The standard is 7 l and under but it doesnt mean you breed tthat small. Smaller yorkies more often than not need c sections and that alone is putting their lives at risk. 5 lbs is an accetable size to breed but you never breed to a larger male no matter what size they are. But that is even more of a risk when you breed a tiny

Heather I am not trying to tear you down either I just dont agree with your breeding practices but who am I someone on a forum. I am sure you are going to continue to do as you please. I didnt know you were a member of this forum but I would express that I dont agree with that no matter who it was

From chachi: "5 lbs is an accetable size to breed but you never breed to a larger male no matter what size they are."

I am studying on this now. I have been reading what the seasoned breeders have published on this subject and it does not seem as though they all agree. Many say 4 pounds is fine for a breeding female. Some say 5 pounds. Some have other ideas. What they do all agree on though is that it depends on MANY factors and not just the weight. I could have a small boned 8 pounder that should not be bred. To just grasp on to one factor such as 5 pounds or over as a determination is not looking at the whole picture.

As for the male -- he is not that much larger than the female. I think the warning about a larger male is when you are looking at larger variations in size than that.

Leave it to the breeder along with their vet to determine what is healthy for their particular Yorkie.

Thank you all for the replies, I wasn't trying to ruffle any feathers, I just needed help with sizing. :confused: I am trying to convince my significant other to purchase a playmate. I live in an apartment and want to keep the new puppy as small as Kodak. I know weight can't be guaranteed, but mines is 3 1/2 lbs and I wanted my 2nd one around the same. I purchased him out of state and the breeder does not have any. She was checking with other breeders that she deals with. In the meantime, members here have been trying to help me and it's greatly appreciated. So I put the topic up for a guideline/formula to go by. Not just for Heather's puppy, but other's that are trying to sell that may have a tiny puppy. But like many have said, they started out tiny and blossomed bigger than anticipated. :)

Tinkerbell was 9oz at 6 weeks and she is 3 1/5lbs now, many people predicted her weigh at 2 or 2/15lbs but Tinkerbelll can eat I guess, she never was a picky eater and she loves her snacks:D :D , But I feel the same as you , my husband already agreed to get me another baby but I do want it to stay small;) At least under 5lbs:rolleyes:

Kodak - you're fine - You've asked good questions and you are polite.....

But Heather --- for heaven's sake! For a fact - most of us Yorkie owners and lovers do not think such small Yorkies should be bred --- and, for sure, my vet doesn't think so either...... he would have you hanging by your feet in his office.

QUOTING YOU -- Um, well I am the breeder and I am FAR from an unretreable breeder . . . I am a very educated person so no need to talk down to me....."

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Hmmmmmmmmmmm!!!


Carol Jean

I never told Heather how she can breed. I said I dont agree with her breeding practices and I dont. When I first made My comment I had no idea the breeder was a yorkietalk member either

It's okay Chachi, you didn't sound rude to me. Breeders can be very sensitive about their breeding practices. I bred a 9 lb. redleg to a 4 lb. black and tan to see if I could isolate a particular color gene. Neither dog would be considered an excellent example of the breed standard but that's the chance that I took to try to get what I wanted. I got a beautiful bitch that I will use to unite two reputable lines and start my own line. I know breeders that would not agree with my decision to breed the redleg but they are rare and she's very valuable to me. The pups were sold to good homes at a good price and everyone turned out happy, so no problem. Down the road I do risk the birth of a large pup but having owned a 12 lber. once, I know that they are beyond compare. My teapot was my walking companion and I miss him still. The market pushes for smaller dogs, it puts all small bitches at risk. In the end you have to make the best decision for your situation.

I would rather see a female that is over the standard be bred than a tiny yorkie whose life is at risk. I also dont see anything wrong with redlegs being bred. Another breeder on here did it for the reason you did. She was criiticized but she ended up with some gorgeous puppies

If we look around at most breeds (even most animal species in the world - including people) -- the males are always larger than the females......making it natural for females to usually breed with males that are larger than they are.....and the Yorkie's small size shouldn't negate this rule.

The Yorkie is a small dog - but mammals much smaller than any dog breed successfully and almost always with the male being larger than the female.

However, because of the wide variation in Yorkie sizes (more so than most species), it certainly should be our responsibility to breed males with females that are close to the same size.

Depending on the size of your Yorkies, I doubt many of you professional breeds worry about your males being a pound or two larger than your females. This would often be only the natural difference in their weights and shouldn't cause a problem.

PLUS - Wouldn't it be difficult -- to always breed females with smaller males. A geneticist would have fun with this one.

***** Then there's my dog's family.....to the other extreme. His mother was 12 pounds. His father was 4 1/2 pounds. My dog is 13 pounds. He has a brother that weighs 5 pounds and another brother that weighs 6 pounds. (I just got the "big one.") And - believe me - when I picked my pup out - all three puppies were the same size. Mine just grew and grew and grew!!!!!



Carol Jean

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm???? What?? If your going to try and nit pick me maybe you should go re-read. That is the word Chachi used so maybe you should hmmmmmmm her.;)

Good for you and your vet that you agree. My vet said she was fine to breed. Just like Debra said too, each dog is different. I bred her and guess what?? I will probably do it again someday.... If you "pro's" are so worried about the dogs then you are barking up the wrong tree with me. You want something to cry about then go harass the members here who run kennels and keep a dogs caged for its entire life, not someone like me who has 3 Yorkies as pets and loves them very much.