Weight Loss?
by athena
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
When I first got my precious Oscar at 2 1/2 months old, he weighed 3 lbs. At 3 1/2 months he weighed 4 1/2 lbs. When I took him to the vet at 5 months, he weighed 3 lbs. (These weights were all given to me by my vet.) When I explained my concern with my vet about the weight loss he re-examed Oscar and found nothing wrong, and explained to me that the scales are not always accurate and assured me that I had nothing to worry about. Now Oscar is a year old and just went in last week to have 8 of his baby teeth removed. His weight has not changed. He still weighs 3 lbs. Is this fluctuation normal?
DISCUSSION:
Athena, this does not sound right to me. I know my vet has gotten Noah's weight wrong several times. Is there any way you could weigh him yourself? If he is healthy and eating well, then there is nothing to worry about. You may just end up with a tiny baby.
April B
I suspect that your baby was having trouble chewing, especially if some of those extra teeth came in so as to hit his upper soft palette. I had that happen with one of my small ones and as soon as the baby teeth came out, the adult teeth moved into proper position within a few days in that tiny mouth and the appetite picked up. He may gain some weight now. Feel his ribs and see if you can tell if his is really skinny or just tiny. A 3 pounder can be very healthy but if he is a 5 pounder weighting 3 pounds then I would try to get him in better condition. His hair coat will be better too!!
Mary Lou
If your little baby has a healthy appitite and the vet says all is well w/him you may have what I call a malteenie hence my e-mail name--I have one who is just 2 1/2 lbs. and the love of my life but the terror of my other three-it seems the smaller they are the less they know what they weigh and fear nothing--Although he eats more than my others he is very healthy and just has not ever gotten any bigger-perhaps an ounce or two but that's all-He'll be three years old in Novemberand is smaller than most 12 week old puppies..but is very large on the love side..enjoy your little gift-they are unique and so special--
Tatiana,Love,Andy,M.C. and Sophie.
Tatiana McCoy
Athena,I think it could be one of two things. As mentioned, the scale. If they do not zero it right, it can be off by almost a pound or maybe even more. This happened at my last vet visit, and they didn't seem to really care The other thing is, if you have given her a haircut or something. Their hair can actually weigh a decent amount I believe. When we got our dog, she had no hair because it had been matted and had to be shaved off. Once she grew hair, her weight increased by a couple pounds in a very short period of time.
Ann
Oscar has been eating well, and I have cut his hair shorter for the summer months. Just didn't realize the hair could make that much of a difference. Oscar thanks everyone for their advice and reassurance. ("Now maybe Mommy won't be so worried!") And I thank you too...
anonymous poster
Time:Mon Jul 20 23:01:57 EDT 1998;Host:den03-5.ppp.iadfw.net;poster location:Dallas, TX 75201;
APPROVED.................ok to go
Athena, something else that may affect Oscar's apparent weight is if on one occasion he was weighed after a meal or a large drink of water and at a subsequent weighing his stomach was empty. Just a thought.......
Deanna (Moose & Squirrel)
Deanna's got the right idea. And it could also be the scale. My vet told me the large digital scales aren't all that accurate under 10 pounds. She only had room and budget for one so she got the table type for weighing babies. She was more concerned with the tinies and thought the big dogs weight could be off a little and not affect their treatment.
Dottie Starr
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