It looks as though Merlin is going to be a big chap. At almost 14 weeks he weighs nearly 14 kg, and is very lanky and gangly. His legs are the same length as Poppy's, and his paws are bigger than hers!!! We keep him pretty thin on vet's advice to stop him growing too fast, and I feed him on a good brand of large-breed puppy kibble for two of his three meals, with the third meal consisting of raw food. I'm careful he doesn't get too many bones. I do think his joints still seem quite loose, especially his back legs, and we are very careful not to over-exercise him, though he has loads of energy and plays in the garden a lot. He gets plenty of sleep, too. I don't intend having him neutered. Has anyone else got tips on dealing with a fast-growing, lanky weed of a pup, both feeding and exercise? There have been posts regarding possible health issues with big, long-legged puppies that have increased my natural worries...
I'm not sure there's anything more you can do Karen. Whilst Obi isn't large for Clumbers as a whole he's reasonably big for a working Clumber particularly in leg length. My vet just said to be careful as Clumbers are 'loosely put together' and the same probably applies a bit to Merlin. Watch the jumping and the stairs, don't free feed....everything you already do You could try and do some gentle, controlled swimming if you have any hydro near you.
We had very similar anxieties. Bramble just got taller and taller! Very quickly outstripping both Benson and Casper in height. Saying that her saving grace is that she is of very lean build. She is though, heavy at 35kg and she looks almost too thin at this weight. I think I would rather a slender build then heavy build, though weight is weight at the end of the day. I was paranoid about her joints, and still am, less so as in her 18 months as she has not had a single limp, despite some hair-raising adventures! Saying that she is to all intents and purposes to tall for a working line bitch, and I don't know what repercussions if any this will have on her later. She comes from a line of big, tall Scottish working dogs, and apparently this is normal. Bramble has had regular check ups and her joints have been examined by an orthopaedic vet at 11 months old. We were advised to keep an eye on her exercise, and especially her weight. Her diet was kept on a strict calcium phosphorus ratio of below 1.5% (might have been lower, but certainly below 2%) to slow down bone growth until fairly recently. She stopped her growth upwards rather late at around 14 months old. This is why large puppy dog food is so good in this respect, and with a large boned pup I would keep them on it until 18 months old. Exercise wise, we kept strictly to the 5 mins rule...most off lead and in our paddock or gentle slopes. No stairs, or jumping. We also did a lot of gentle proprioception work, in order to improve flexibility, agility, core strength and balance to help prevent injury later down the line.
I was lucky enough to have a good physio who looked after Douglas. He saw Rory at different stages and gave me exercises for him to do and walking plans. Rory is cow hocked and his back is a bit long so i needed to develop and strengthen him in certain areas. I did all the usual things like no stairs jumping and limited exercise along with daily leg manipuation and stretches. Just moving his legs in a certain way and a lot of really really slow walking. Just to build up muscle in the right areas to support his joints . I did this from when he was tiny he saw the physio the first week he came home. Its was really helpful
Sam was that huge puppy ! I knew that he would be big, both parents were but he exceeded my expectations , ending up at 40 kilos . I did watch his joints very carefully as a youngster and even now , we are in a bungalow so stairs haven't ever been an issue but no jumping in or out of the car , building up the exercise slowly and steadily. My Vet advised me to keep him lean , which seems to come naturally to Sam , big he is, tall he is but slim with it . The Vet also advised that Sam would be a candidate for arthritis if we didn't try to guard against it as much as humanly possible , so far so good but then , arthritis is the least of our worries with the big lad x
Interesting @Beanwood I wondered if proprioception would help but I also thought if done wrong it could be detrimental. Did you get advice or did you just do gentle stuff by your own choice? Done well I can see it helping muscle tone and control as well as spatial awareness. You'd have to keep up with their growing bodies though
Bog feet,big knees , long ears ! Yep , Merlin is going to be a very big boy, more to love I always say ! He is gorgeous Karen , they could be Mum and son x
He's so handsome! Axel grew very fast as a puppy to. I did exactly everything you are doing and we have had zero issues with limping or joint issues. Vet said his joints are all perfect. Enjoy your little puppy cuddles, they won't last for long! Although I do love a good snuggle with Axel now, all 41kg of him, and vet says he still has filling out to do... eek. He's so warm and soft, huge teddy bear
Cooper was the runt of the litter, but by 14 weeks she weighed almost 12kg. At 2+ yearss, she is a very tall dog at 25" and weighs 38kg. She is exceedingly fast and very athletic.
He's just gorgeous! Is it possible the big isn't always more problematic? Of my two boys (not Labs) the runty skinny one (Brogan) had all the joint issues and the big strapping boy (Duncan at 130 lbs) was solid as a rock without ever a whisper of joint problems. Hopefully Merlin bucks the trend and will be a big sturdy boy too!
I wonder this too. Because they are bigger- their bones are also bigger and stronger, I can't help but think anyways. Even with my Pomeranians, the one I had before Odie, she was huge for a Pom, she had a big frame and was not over weight and she was 15 pounds. (They are supposed to only get to 7 pounds) Odie is 6 pounds and does have knee problems
Duggan was a very large pup and the runt. Now he's 13 months and 76kg, strong as an ox and so fast that I get scared everytime he tries to stop and change direction. It takes him 3-4 meters to get turned around but I think he has the muscle and bone structure to handle his weight well. I guess only time will tell.
He looks stunning Karen - sturdy rather than lanky from that photo. I know joints are a worry, but human wise, heavier people have stronger bones, and reduced risk of osteoporosis, only useful snippet I can say. There was a recent BMJ article about fit overweight people, but I didn't read it, must look it out.... Anyhow, you have given him the best start, and are looking after him in a way that trumps most of us. Dare I say "run with it" and try not to worry about the future?
Good input from everyone, many thanks. I will keep on with what we are doing, and try not to obsess too much! I think a bit of gentle swimming sounds like a good idea too.
