[Vonsha9]

I feed him Royal Canin poodle food unlimited along with his 15 and 16 year old poodle brothers. Any ideas on fattening him up or is it ok that he is lean and mean. Please forgive the covid 19 scissor lockdown cut!!! He just got is latest vaccinations and weighed in at 4.4kgs the vet felt his wee body and said he was under weight. He is also a full dog, not desexed. Just wondering if that might have something to do with his lithe little body? He does have a stud mission coming up in July, so may desex him after that.

 

[old-boots]

How tall is he at his shoulders? That determines if his weight it too low for his size. Generally speaking if he is over 10inches tall at the shoulder he should weigh more than 10lbs, for sure, as that is miniature size. If he is under 10inches he is ok at that weight as most toys do not go over 10lb. Neutering him later will probably help him keep weight on, but for the moment you may want to supplement his dry food with something yummy like canned food, dried liver, or plain boiled chicken to give him more calories.

 

[twyla]

 

[Vita]

He appears from the photo to be a toy poodle, not a mini. He's 4.4 kg (or 9.7 lbs), which sounds about right for an oversized toy depending on it's height. Have you actually seen his parents, and if so, were they considerably larger? Or did you get him from a commercial seller like a pet shop or one of those farm-type situations where they brought him out to show you but you never got to see him with his mother? One problem with pet shops is they go by what his registration papers say (if any), which may not be accurate. Another problem is one parent could have been a mini (probably the mother) while the other was a toy.

You mentioned plans to breed him once this summer. Since he doesn't look like a minipoo, here are some thoughts about other genetic issues with this.

If either or both of his parents or some of his grandparents were miniature(s), and you breed him to a toy female, the pregnancy would likely be extremely difficult for her and might even kill her from carrying and/or trying to deliver one or more oversized pups. If you plan to breed him to a miniature, this wouldn't likely be a problem, however, the pups run the risk of having disproportionate bodies, i.e. their heads are too big for their body, or their hind legs are shorter than their front legs, or their back is too long or slopes in an odd way.

Other than his size heritage (toy vs mini), unless you've verified by sight that both of his parents are normal sized minis, there may be other things you don't know about his genetic heritage. The most important of these is what's in his DNA? In other words, is he carrier of a genetic condition? One cannot tell by looking at the dog. This is easy and not expensive to find out.

The Vet DNA Center offers a variety of tests. The best one that covers four of the five most common genetic conditions and is called the Poodle Disease Panel and costs $98 US dollars. These will rule whether he is a carrier or will eventually develop blindness and two other common poodle problems. Ideally the female you have in mind should also be tested; if both dogs are carriers of the same condition (like PRA-PRCD), some of those puppies will become blind and all will be carriers. Ending up with a blind or disabled dog is traumatic for the owners and miserable for the dogs, so testing is the way to go to not end up with that situation. There are other labs that do testing but I gave you the least expensive that I know of in the USA; google "animal genetic testing labs" for your country.

 

[Johanna]

You might want to re-think using him as a stud dog for a variety of reasons. Dogs who have been used as studs often start marking territory - in other words they will pee on your furniture.

As mentioned in other posts, responsible breeders have tested their dogs for a variety of hereditary problems. The most expensive test is a hip x-ray ($200-$700). It has to be done by a veterinarian who knows exactly how to do it.

Here is what I paid for testing for Zoe in case I decide to breed her this summer:
Hip x-ray - 527.72
Eye exam - 65.80
Disease panel - 98.00
OFA registration - eyes - 12.00
OFA registration - hips - 12.00
AKC DNA registration - 45.00

While the registrations are fixed costs, the x-ray and eye exams can vary quite a bit in cost. I live in New Mexico where most fees are pretty reasonable. I'll bet it's a great deal more expensive in other parts of the country.

 

[Vee]

My bitch who’s 13” TTS is 6kg. I agree not to using a dog to stud as it does alter the dogs temperament.
Before breeding a dog you need to consider:
If he is a good example of the breed so ensure you know the breed standard and ask someone with this knowledge. He should obviously have a good temperament. Also he should be kennel club registered. Good health is very important and all tests required should be done.

Im not sure what health tests are required where you are but here miniatures are tested for:
Osteochondrodyplasia
Degenerative Myelopathy
Progressive retinal atrophy
Neonatal encephalopathy
Progressive Retinal Atrophy
von Willebrand disease Type I
Eye test
These tests set you back about £300