Why is my 9-month-old Chocolate Lab small? Can she still grow?

She looks cute and healthy. She also looks to be more of a field type lab which can be smaller than the more English show type labs. I expect her to mature around 50 lbs. or a little larger. Some dogs grow more slowly but will still reach their full normal mature weight, just later than other dogs. I don’t like to over feed as they can get fat and grow too quickly causing some bone growth problems. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Kala.

At four months of age, a puppy is typically about half the weight of their full grown weight. A female lab weighs between 25-32kg when fully grown, so if Kitu is 13kg at four months of age, this is a good weight. I hope this helps!

There are a few possibilities. He could still be recovering from the parvo disease and will start gaining weight soon. He could be a mixed breed and just have a small adult size that he's getting to (and from his picture, he doesn't look like a pure lab to me, although it's impossible to tell from looks alone), or he could have an endocrine issue that he preventing him from growing normally. If he is otherwise normal, I would recommend giving him another month to work on growing, otherwise, schedule a vet visit to talk about possible testing. Good luck! He's quite a cutie.

He should be ideally around 6kgs. 2.3 kgs is underweight and should be ideally checked by your local veterinarian to determine if there is any underlying health problem impairing his growth rate. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Make sure Ruby is properly dewormed and feed her a high-quality large breed puppy food such as Royal Canin or Purina pro plan. Don’t be in a rush to put weight on her, she will gain it naturally. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Is this a purebred Labrador? If so, 40 pounds is very, very small. Have you had Dugan examined by a veterinarian to rule out any underlying medical issues (ie: liver or kidney disease) as the cause for his small size? I suggest you do that before considering any supplements, etc to "boost" growth. Those supplements can be damaging if there is an underlying medical problem.

Puppies grow at different rates and even though the parents are large and stocky not every pup may get their build. Make sure you are giving Max a good quality food and that you are feeding enough at each meal. If he's very hungry and eats all the food quickly then you're probably not feeding enough at each meal. I feed twice a day and give a biscuit or two for treats. Controlled exercise daily will build muscle and swimming is a great exercise also. Max will reach his full size by the time he is two years old, perhaps slower than the others. He's a handsome boy and is just at an awkward stage right now. In addition please have a stool sample checked by your veterinarian to be sure there are no parasites effecting his growth. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Max.