That cute little puppy you just adopted could become a fairly large dog when he reaches adulthood. Calculating the eventual weight of your adult dog during puppyhood is as simple as looking at the size of his paws, checking out the size of his parents, and seeing if any loose skin is hanging around to help him grow into his suit of fur. There are a number of size calculation methods depending on the dog's breed or breed mix.
Video of the Day
Characteristics that indicate future size
Looking at the size of both parents can generally tell you a lot about how much your puppy will weigh when she reaches adulthood. For instance, two 25-pound dogs will probably produce similarly sized offspring. A large-breed dog paired with a smaller breed could end up with either size or something in between. The mother dog's size usually but not always takes precedence over the father's in the case of mixed breeds.
Video of the Day
Loose skin is a great indicator of the eventual size of your puppy. A loosely fitting furry "suit" means she has a lot of growing to complete, and that indicates a big pooch. Paws are another obvious indicator of the future size of your canine companion. The bigger the paws, the bigger the dog. Have you ever heard someone say, "Look at the size of those paws! She's going to be big!"? The person who says that is almost always correct.
Using breed standards
For purebred dogs, it is easier to calculate adult dog weight. A breed standard can almost always determine the eventual size of a specific-breed puppy. Of course, not every dog fits the specifications perfectly, but you can more or less get an accurate assessment from breed standards.
A purebred dog is the offspring of two dogs of the same breed that mate together and produce their own kind. The breeding of purebred canines creates a predictable outcome. Each pure breed is placed into a distinct category reflecting the type of dogs in that grouping. For example, herding dogs are in the herding group. They require ample activity and are used to move livestock.
Puppy weight calculator
Believe it or not, someone has invented an online puppy weight calculator. Just plug in your puppy's age (in weeks) and his current weight and with just one click, you can see your dog's estimated adult weight. The calculator even shows some interesting remarks about the dog's size, and you can send the results to yourself or a friend.
Another online puppy size calculator goes by breed, date of birth, current weight, and gender. There's even a selection for mutts. This puppy size calculator is a little more laborious to use if you have a mixed-breed dog, and you may have to sign up for an account to view the results. Beware that some of the online puppy weight calculators may be very inaccurate.
Measuring puppy weight gain
How much weight should a puppy gain per month? The simplest measure is that a puppy should gain 10 to 15 percent of her birth weight per day. Smaller breeds should be expected to gain around 5 ounces each week. Larger breeds can gain about 2.5 pounds weekly. Giant pup breeds may gain 3 to 5 pounds per week.
Of course, these are estimated weight recommendations, and it's not an exact science. Each individual dog is going to be unique and different. Even littermates will end up being different sizes and weights in adulthood. Diet, health issues, exercise, and genetics all affect growth.