Male Corgi Development - "Filling Out"
Hello all!
Marty is my first corgi and honestly, my first male dog. Our vet recommended (and most of the ones in our area) to have him neutered between his 5th and 6th month of age.
He has been doing great -- but wow, he's so muscular and already starting to "fill out" at just 18 weeks. Few places I have read online (and even I believe on here somewhere), the males generally tend to "fill out" after a year or two.
He's on Orijen Puppy dry food, given a very small amount of canned as a food topper, and given a puppy supplement recommended by the vet (she is aware of his diet). We walk and run A LOT....his body is very toned. We call him a "Little Bodybuilder" because of how bulky he looks in his harness. :P
I just want to make sure he's developing at the right rate. I'm a little new to male dog development, because I had a female border collie and a female border collie x old English Sheepdog mix in the past. Both weren't "buff"; they were dainty and fluffy. :] Not to mention, the male dogs I have been around on a regular basis and watched them grow up (my friend's lab for example) were neutered at a fairly young age.
I'll definitely consult my vet when we take him in for his neuter next month, but I thought I'd ask around and see if others on here have had their male corgis develop and fill out a little faster. :] I just want to make sure I'm not "over doing it" and to see if it's normal for this particular breed.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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They can be very active dogs, but no breed should have a lot of forced physical exercise until they're an adult. Letting him free run in a park or your yard is totally fine, I was assuming by "jogging" you meant actually taking him running with you.
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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I agree some recent pics would help. Puppies grow funny and I've seen pics of show puppies that looked almost like smaller versions of adults at 6 months of age. Jack was gangly and gawky and all ears; he didn't grown in his chest til he was much older, and that is what many Corgi people refer to when they talk about a dog "filling out." Here's a picture of Jack at around 6 months. Jack is a very big Corgi with a huge chest, but as you can see here he was pretty big already but not chesty:
Compare to adult Jack, with added chest:
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Permalink Reply by Laura (and Marty) on
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Yeah, I guess that was kind of the original intent for my post -- was a comparison. I need to work on being more specific. >.< But, yeah the discussion on food and exercise really scared me into thinking I'm already doing something wrong to my corgi.
Again, yes he is my first corgi and first male dog too. I had border collies before and they have a waaaay different body structure. ^_- And besides his parents (and other dogs from the breeder or via photos) most corgis I see are generally obese or elderly....so it's all new to me on how they are supposed to look at each developmental stage. That's why I said he looked muscular, because he looks sooo buff compared to my border collies when they were 5 months old. It's a totally different breed and gender, so I was just curious...especially because he is still "a baby". I will say with the collar and harness on, it does kind of ruffle up his fur a bit and cause him to look bulkier than he does without either of them on. Unfortunately, I don't have a recent picture of him without either on yet.
But yes, I suppose pics would have helped. ^^; These are taken 2/16/2012. I'm not sure how much he weighs "exactly" right now --- but I would say probably at least 17 lbs but not more than 20 lbs (will be able to confirm when he goes to the vet). He feels lighter than my Maine coon was (he was 21 lbs) though, so I'm kind of basing it off him -- LoL. His stools have always been well-formed since he's been on the Orijen -- only issue we had with it was that it took us longer to transition him from Wellness to it, because it did cause gas at first. Now, he hasn't been on that high protein formula for that long. Maybe less than two months (?)...and that was while he was eating it mixed with some Wellness. Hmmm, now that I think about it, I think it was when he got his rabies shot that the vet suggested the high protein puppy formula...so maybe he's been on it for about 5 or 6 weeks? Still...I know that's a long time for puppy growth.
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It is tough to say without being there, but to me it looks like you might have a combination of one of those rare puppies who grows in a balanced way and so continues to look like a smaller version of the adult, plus winter coat coming in? He's got a very short, dense coat for a pup. Might just be an early maturer.
Are you in contact with his breeder? Looks like a nice pup so I'm assuming you got him from someone who sort of knows what they are doing? You might call the breeder and ask if she'd mind looking at him. She can get her hands on him and give you a good idea of what she thinks.
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Oh yeah, we send the breeder pictures on a regular basis. She's never voiced any concern -- always praise. She definitely knows her corgis....they are all so beautiful and healthy. He's not colored like his dad, but his dad is definitely a big guy. :] But she did tell me to feed a puppy formula till they were about 8 months and then transition to the adult formula....and then the vet recommended the other diet because we mentioned he was very active. So, the whole thing is so confusing. But I trust both my vet and the breeder.
He really kind of seems like he's "matured" just very recently -- face is looking more adult corgi-esque, looking more toned, and he's starting to grow in his belly hair etc. In my photo album you can kind of see some of his younger pictures. But his coat has been kind of dense even with the soft puppy fur when he was just a wee pup.
But I have started transitioning him to a lower protein food starting yesterday, monitoring calcium dosages, and will definitely chat with the vet to make sure he's developing correctly.
-PS- Jack and Rufus are lovely! :]
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Permalink Reply by Krystina and Rufus on
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Interesting post. I adopted Rufus from family that didn't want him anymore at about 4 months. THeir family got his family from a breeder and said he was definetely the biggest out of the litter (as in big boned)... I gave him puppy food up until he was mayb 8 months old..HOWEVER, he grew so fast (not sure if it's because of that or his genes). I thought it was weird, but he eventually stopped growing. He's maybe 14 inches tall ( a few inches taller than what he should be), but the vet says he's perfect as far as weight. I've been walking him and jogging him since he was a puppy just about every day.
He's not overweight and he hasn't had much health issues...up until a few months ago. He already has been diagnosed with elbow dysplasia at 1 1/2. :( poor thing, ive done everything I could raising him up. NOt sure if the dysplasia was because he grew so fast, if I just over-exerted him when he was growing, or if he was just jumping up and down too much. anyways, just wanted to let you know. I think supplements are good, even though he's young. GOod luck, I'll t keep you guys in my mind and I hope all goes well! I"m sure he is just fine, and in great condition
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Here's him just a couple months before 2 yrs. The second was him at about 7 months
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Permalink Reply by Roger/Laurie on
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Our Chepstow was a buff puppy. Mainly because running was the only way to get someplace. He chased a ball constantly and living at the lake he would swim (really) for hours if we let him. He is 6 now and during the winter his body softens but come spring when he gets into the lake full time, he is a buff boy!
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I love this. he softens during the winter!! =)
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Permalink Reply by Hayley Roda on
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The Orijen puppy food is fine, it has mostly to do with Calcium. Hope that takes your mind off of the puppy food question. I however don't know how fast they should fill out. Especially as my puppy is a girl and while she is growing swiftly I think its pretty normal. Check with your breeder perhaps? Or maybe if you are in touch with any of the owners of anyone else in her litter you can compare growth?
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