Calling all the Girly Pyr Mommas!!

[London_Pyr_Lover]

Alright, so it's time I assess Naja's growth by comparing her to your pups at her age!  Hope ya don't mind.  lol 

When my mother had her at the doggy ER, they weighed her at 66.2 lbs.  She turned 8 months old yesterday, would you say she's about right, a little light?  Or a little heavey.  She's between 25 - 27 inches tall from the bottom of her front paw to her shoulders, I couldn't get that close of a reading 'cause she's scared to death of the measuring tape.  (that bad evil measuring tape's gonna steal her soul!!! )  She's been wanting to eat a lot more lately, and she's a bit of a piggy, so it's hard for me to gauge if it's growth spurt time, or her just being a piggy...  lol

[Little Bit]

Since I am new and only have an 8 week old pup, I am not the one to give you the statistics. How does she look to you? Did the vet say anything like "she's fat"? If she feels in good weight to you I would say she is fine.

[London_Pyr_Lover]

Sorry, I should maybe be a bit more clear, I'm going back to Nicoles Small Newf problem, except people keep saying I've got a small Pyr.  I just want to make sure that she is developing at a normal rate compared to everyone elses girls.  She's tall and skinney, but doesn't feel fat or boney to me.  I wasn't at the vet when my mom took her as I was working a night shift and I didn't even find out she was at the vet until the next day.    And I know I've got a consultation in 2 weeks with a new vet, but I'm going to try to make that appointment more about interviewing him, then him examining Naja.  It may sound weird but I don't want to establish a docter patient relationship until I know for sure that I want him to be our vet. 

[People Whisperer]

Lily was 75lbs at 8 months. She is 26-27 tall and 80 lbs now. She is about 7-10 lbs underweight though.
If Naja is as tall as Lily and only 66 lbs she is either really thin or really compact 

[London_Pyr_Lover]

Hmm.  Not what I wanted to hear, but thank you.  I will up her food another cup or so a day, I'm just really worried about her overeating.  We get out for a good 1 to 2 hour run every other day or so, and shorter walks every day, so We'll try some nice walks in town maybe, or maybe trek further into the forest to see what we can find, try to build up some muscle mass.  Like I said though, she doesn't look/feel boney to me but I thought that maybe she should weigh a bit more then she does.  Hmm. 

[GoldenPyrs]

It's been 5 yrs now since we've had a puppy, so I didn't recall, but I found this previous post where Tina (Abbyroadpyrs) found this link with a puppy growth chart in kilos.

www.bigpawsonl y.com/index.php?topic=19120.msg235161

Also, here is the breed standard for adult pyrs from the GPCA web site (www.clubs.akc. org/gpca/gstandrd.html):

SIZE, PROPORTION, SUBSTANCE:
Size - The height at the withers ranges from 27 inches to 32 inches for dogs and from 25 inches to 29 inches for bitches. A 27 inch dog weighs about 100 pounds and a 25 inch bitch weighs about 85 pounds. Weight is in proportion to the overall size and structure.

So, it looks to me like at just 8 months old, Naja is very well on her way to being a good sized pyr girl.    As long as she is energetic & her weight feels right to you (based on ribs & hip bones) then I think that she sounds just great.  In general though my pups were never inclined to overeat, so I increased their food when they seemed to ask for more.  I just assumed that they were revving up for another growth spurt (and they always were).     Please give her a hug for me.    

[People Whisperer]

Hmm.  Not what I wanted to hear, but thank you.  I will up her food another cup or so a day, I'm just really worried about her overeating.  We get out for a good 1 to 2 hour run every other day or so, and shorter walks every day, so We'll try some nice walks in town maybe, or maybe trek further into the forest to see what we can find, try to build up some muscle mass.  Like I said though, she doesn't look/feel boney to me but I thought that maybe she should weigh a bit more then she does.  Hmm. 

Sometimes it takes 4 years for pyrs to fill out. Some pups grow much slower than others so don't worry  She might be light boned and well proportioned that's why she is 66 lbs.
Lily is 17 months and still doesn't have much muscle despite our 3 a day long walks. She looks like a rail  and I am patiently waiting 

[Pyr Heaven]

Well, I know I don't have a girl pyr, but I do have a boy pyr! Girl pyrs are usually on average, I'd say 20 pounds lighter (at adult weight) than a male.

Miles, right now, at 6 months old weighs 75 pounds. He just went through a major growth spurt though. He gained almost 20 pounds in a month and a half. No joke. I'm not sure if he's still considered underweight for his age now, but he was. The vet said he should be a relatively small pyr (about 100 pounds), but that was before his big growth spurt. He is definitely not fat, and doesn't seem thin either (although it's hard to tell through all the fur!)

I would say that Naja is a little underweight at the moment. If she's acting hungry, I'd go ahead and feed her. I would always worry about overfeeding Miles too. But it seems, he only eats alot when he's going through a growth spurt. These past few days, he hasn't been interested in food much at all. But he's acting just fine. It sounds like Naja is going through a growth spurt right about now, and after it's all finished, she could very well be 75 pounds!

[People Whisperer]

Ok, I had to go back and dig some records from last year.
At 8 months one of Lily's sister was 78 lbs, another 64 lbs and Lily was 75 lbs. Right now all of them are about the same 80-85 lbs.
I would say no worries, and yes, if she is hungry than feed her more 

[London_Pyr_Lover]

Thanks all. 
I've upped her food by about a cup and that seems to satisfy her, and we'll do longer dailey walks.  (I've got some great pics and video of our walk today I'll be loading as soon as I can get my laptop to work.   

As far as that goes, I'm not gonna worry about it anymore then that, I'll talk to the vet on the 12th (nope not the 11th lol), and hopefully I'll like him enough to make him our new vet so I can bug him with all my questions. 

[London_Pyr_Lover]

I'm curious how much Naja is eating per day (just to compare to Tobey).

I was feeding her 4 cups a day, but I've upped it to 5.  2 1/2 in the morning, and 2 1/2 at night.   

[GoldenPyrs]

I'm curious how much Naja is eating per day (just to compare to Tobey).

I was feeding her 4 cups a day, but I've upped it to 5.  2 1/2 in the morning, and 2 1/2 at night.   

Just for fun, Cassie will be 3 in May and she eats 3 to 3 1/2 cups per day (Innova Adult) and she stays a nice healthy weight (85# or so for her).  So you will most likely see Naja's intake slow down quite a bit when she's older, but right now she's a kiddo and busy growing so she needs the fuel.    

[GoldenPyrs]

Tobey is probably eating around 6-7 of Innova adult (he leaves his food so there is some carryover from day to day). I certainly don't think you're in any danger of overfeeding.

Oh no, I definitely don't think that you are overfeeding!  I was just saying that Cassie is almost 3 yrs old, so she is eating like an adult now.  Your puppies need to eat *much* more than she does at this point.    

[GoldenPyrs]

Ooops - not intended to be a comment on anything but my earlier question as to Naja's vs. Tobey's food intake (I'm pretty sure they are within a couple of weeks of each other agewise).

He is very un-food motivated (though he eats a lot over a 24 hour period) so the comparison is interesting.

Sorry GoldenPyrs if the comment seemed directed at your post 

Oh, no problem at all, Sarah!      I just hoped I didn't sound like *I* was saying that either of you were overfeeding your pups.  It's funny how puppies (as well has our skin kids) all go through times when they are sooooo hungry and then suddenly you notice that they've grown overnight or something.  I love that about watching them grow (my oldest 2 skin kids have just gone through those stages in the last few months    ).  It's the most normal, healthy thing in the world.   

[GoldenPyrs]

Ha, ha!  I have one that age, too.  Our son was also super thin until he went on a huuuuge peanut butter binge and then he filled out.  He's up to a average weight now so he's probably about to get taller again soon, since he's usually thin between growth spurts.  Yikes, he's already bigger than I am....     Amazing, isn't it?