I have a litter of nine. The last two pups born were several ounces smaller than the other pups, but otherwise healthy.

I have watched them all along--no signs of illness or abnormalities, no signs of being hungry or unhappy. At three weeks they are a pound smaller than the other pups.

I have never had this large a weight difference in pups from the same litter. After discussions with my veterinarian, I have started supplimental feeding of the little ones--crushed kibble soaked in warm water (for a week now). They are eating happily, elimninating normally, walking, barking, starting to play (at three weeks). So developmentally they seem normal as well.

My veterinarian and I have talked--he is investigating what conditions we might need to worry about.

So the question is--should I STOP worrying and just let them grow and see what happens? Anyone else experienced this?

Thanks.

MWK

JMO - stop worrying please!

Did you make sure they had access to mom away from the bigger puppies? If not, they were probably pushed aside more often than not in such a big litter and didn't get enough nutrition.

I personally wouldn't be so worried. You have a big liiter on your hands and variation is normal. If your little ones are getting the appropriate amount of food well then perhaps they are just small. Do they seem underweight? Sounds like they are thriving from your descriptions of them. I had a pup who was just 9 oz. at a week and remember being so worried. She turned out to be a lovely girl, but small as an adult (50lbs)

How does your vet think your pups are doing?

Sorry, I re-read your posy saying your vet is looking into what might be the problem. I would say....Don't go looking for a problem!!!

yes stop worrying. Pups will grow as they should and be normal size down the road. They will most likely go home to new owners as smaller pups but Seen this many times. Don't let your vet go looking for problems. I've also kept a much smaller puppy who was beautiful, grew up and finished championship.

good luck

Yes, stop worrying and enjoy the pups. My two that were smaller are about the very same now at 6 weeks.
They will grow with the food you are giving them. Feed them in separate dishes so you will know they get their share. I did feed my smaller ones a couple days before the others. They catch up.

Thanks for the reassurance everyone. I have never had more than a couple of ounces difference in pups even with my average litter size of 8+ pups, so this is unsettling!

We actually think that their embryos may have implanted a day or so later than the other pups, so they are "younger" overall.

Mom is VERY diligent and babies have never once looked unhappy or empty or been fussy like a hungry pup.

I will just keep my eye on them and make sure they get their kibble separate from their bigger siblings and see what happens.

MWK

Definitely stop worrying. Our girl carried at HUGE litter and lost half of them. Needless to say, the birth weights were no where near our weights in average size litters. I spent weeks expecting them to catch up. As puppies, they never did. As adults, they were just as big as other dogs we bred. You have no problem, so please just relax and enjoy the puppies.

That doesn't happen (eggs implanting late). Most likely since they were the last puppies were at the end of the uterine horns, didn't have as much room and/or the placentas weren't nourished as well.

Please do make double-sure they get their share of food. With the mom, I always make sure any smaller puppies get plenty of "nipple" time - it's not always easy to tell just by how they act. I know by how their weight changes.

But I think you should expect these puppies to be perfectly normal - don't go looking for trouble if they appear healthy otherwise.

I had a litter of 12 several years ago that had some very small puppies at birth- as small as 8 oz. I did supplement them - weighed everyone twice day and tube fed the puppies that weren't gaining weight. Mom had had a C-section and wasn't producing a huge amount of milk. But I would think that a litter of nine with a natural birth would not need that supplementary feeding. My small pups all turned out to be normal in size.

My first litter had 7 at 16 oz or so and one at 11 or 12. Guess which one finished her championship!

My advice too is to stop worring, they will eventually catch up when their older
Aloha,
Jackie

Yes - I agree. Stop worrying. You might just have a larger genetic size variation in this litter than you have had otherwise. Some combinations make very consistent litters, others you see huge size variations, and everything in between. If the pups are healthy and happy let it go.