As many of you know, Aspen is 6 months old and I feel like he has not grown at all in the last month or 2! He has been steady at 55 lbs for the last 2 weeks, but it is not his weight I am worried about because I know he is healthy. He has not gotten any taller since he was about 4 months and I am wondering if I should be worried or if I should have the vet check him for growth. Also, a more silly question - Aspen has NEVER drooled. Is that normal?
Axel would go through growth spurts, it took months for him to no longer be bum high. So I would think if he’s healthy and happy and eating and drinking then it’s ok, he will grow in height until 12 months roughly and weight until around 18-24 months roughly. As far as drool goes, some dogs drool and some don’t. Axel has been a huge drooler since he was just a little thing. I just keep a towel in the kitchen to mop up his drool throughout the day lol. I often step in drool puddles while I’m cooking.
If he's healthy and eating well, maybe he's just going to be a little guy? Or he'll have a massive growth spurt and catch up. If it's worrying you, why not just ask your vet? It would be worth the appointment if it would put your mind at ease. My first Rottie grew until he was about three years old (ended up at 125 lbs) and my second stopped at 8-10 months (ended at 75 lbs). It's really amazing how dogs of the same breed can vary so much. In defence of mini dogs (or as I liked to call my second Rottie, "travel-sized"), generally smaller dogs are longer-lived. So there is a definite up side if he stays small! Also, just say, "thank you" if Aspen doesn't drool. Your walls say thank you, your clothes say thank you, the inside of your car says thank you.
As @Emily_BabbelHund says if you're concerned, which I'm guessing you are otherwise you wouldn't have posted ) have a chat with your vet and a check up. It's not unusual for weight gain to slow around the 6 month mark but I don't know about the lack of growth in size for 2 months. All puppies grow at their own rate - some slow and steady and some in spurts but it doesn't hurt to check with the vet.
Harley rarely drools.......it's only when we have something really really tasty that she will but that didn't start until she was around 2.
Another question is, were his parents tested for dwarfism (SD2 test)? Dwarfism can often lead to small Labradors that are otherwise perfectly proportioned. It doesn't have the health implications that it often does in humans, so it's just an aesthetic thing. I know a Lab with dwarfism who is a great little working gundog On the drooling - both my girls are droolers, but Shadow rarely does.
I was thinking about scheduling a 6 month check up for him. He comes from parents who are both AKC registered dogs, so I don't know if parents have to be tested for all those things before they can be AKC registered? But I don't think it is dwarfism, as 55 lbs still seems to be pretty large for a pup his age compared to other labs around my city. I'm sure he will have another growth spurt, was just wondering if your dogs grew a lot and then stopped growing for a while and then had more spurts of growth, which it sounds like they did. Thank you everyone!
55# at 6 months is not really small for a Lab. Cooper was about 58# and 21.5" at 6 months. She is 80# and 24+" now.
Yes, I was not concerned about his weight but rather his height because he doesn't seem to be getting any taller! But I will talk to the vet.
