Puppy weight
by Patti
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
My question is this:Do smaller litters allow puppies to gain weight quicker than larger litters? Do some puppies gain weight quickly, then taper off, and some gain more gradually? Or is genetics truly responsible for adult weight in dog?

DISCUSSION:

In my experience a one puppy litter will result in that one puppy being a butterball while nursing. All that good milk and just one baby! Usually you have to help the mom by expressing some of the extra nipples that the one can't use. While that puppy may be so fat just after weaning that he can hardly walk, causing a husband to name him the "hippapotamus prince", in the long run he only grows to his genetic inheritance in height and weight. If you have a very large litter then the problem is much different as our little moms sometimes can't feed them all and need extra food for themselves and the babes. Again these pups, IF well nourished will grow to their genetic potential and only if malnourished would they not do so. You cannot keep a Maltese small by starving it. This was actually done years ago and only results in a deformed and unhealthy dog.
Mary Lou