Not sure what is normal for my first puppy!

It took 18 months (& many conversations with different vets) for us to find a food that didn't upset our cat's stomach. Talk to the vet about your concerns.

I’d say he’s being overwalked. Puppies only need short walks and spend hours sleeping, it’s quite normal. He looks beautiful by the way 😊.
Enjoy many wonderful years with him.

I would always advocate a word with the vet if worried about weight loss. But my experience of my male poodle growing up was that when he became 6 or 7 months old he very often went off his food, he sometimes wouldn't eat for a couple of days and he lost weight. The vets couldn't find anything wrong and put it down to his male hormones as he was maturing. It turned out to be true because as soon as he was neutered he changed and became interested in food again. I have 3 dogs at various stages of life and they all sleep (often with one eye open) lots during the day, to be honest I don't know what else they would if they are not being walked, played with, fed etc. It's not as if they can read a book or watch TV is it?

My daughters Mini is the opposite in that she can’t seem to keep the weight off her although she eats hardly anything (she is 4 though). Please be aware that Minis are prone to pancreatitis and need to be on a low fat diet. They are lovely little dogs, though.

If he’s tired a lot, maybe change to two walks and scatter of a few treats on the garden for him to find and a play?

You don’t say how long you are walking him, so it’s hard to say if he’s getting over tired.

I’ve fed raw, and do now but I feed a pup a good quality kibble plus raw in appropriate amount. Just my opinion.

Can you walk in at your vets and get him weighed? I’ve done it with all mine, then asked them to add it to their records.

You sound a lovely dog owner, and your dog will be a wonderful companion and a credit to you.

Good advice from Iam64 and others

My father-in-law over-walked one young puppy he had (a Labrador, I think) and it suffered joint problems yes, I've heard that too.
He's still growing and at six months perhaps he doesn't need quite so much walking. I agree about the sleep too, they do sleep a lot at that age.

Perhaps worms were the problem and now he's been wormed he should start gaining weight again.
If you're still worried, take him to the vet, presumably you've taken out insurance.

Thanks everyone. 🐶🐾

Lovely looking pup. You have done the correct thing by going to vets. My dogs also sleep loads. Enjoy your pup.

We have a 13 month lab whom we got at 8 weeks and puppies should sleep a lot just like babies. Ours has a sleep after his morning and afternoon walk . Also puppies like children have growth spurts and lose it especially if they are running around more .
I’ve always had labs who love their food and finish the bowl in minutes, so I can’t comment on the food issue .
Your pup looks gorgeous. Enjoy him . Puppies are hard work but a year or two on and you’ll have a very loyal friend .

V3ra

^last week he actually lost .2 kg.^

I read it as 0.2kg

My father-in-law over-walked one young puppy he had (a Labrador, I think) and it suffered joint problems. The poor man was so upset as he hadn't realised it was possible to do harm in this way ☹️

Pheeeew, yes, my bad. 200 gr- still significant for a small dog- but yes, thank goodness.

We have a nine month old puppy, our first dog since childhood, they do make you worry. By my limited understanding, sleeping a lot is a sign of a happy dog. Ours went off his wet food quite recently and is now preferring dry, although we still offer wet food. He has been weighed a lot at the vets as he was very ill when young, the vets are always happy for us to pop in for a weigh. We too have a paid plan which involves check ups, I find that really helpful.
Because he was ill as a puppy I have had to train myself not to worry if he doesnt eat all his food. I think you sound a lovely owner. GSM is right Iam64 knows a lot about dogs!

I was looking after my son’s 18 month old lab last weekend while they were away. I was surprised how much she slept in between walks and play sessions.

For anyone who wants to routinely weigh their dog in between vet visits I noticed branches of Pets at Home have a weighing machine free for customers to weigh their dogs. Its the same as the weighing machine in our local vet practice.

Your puppy is gorgeous Gelisajams 🐶

This is my Honey!

Such a cutie Gelisajams! I have my first puppy too, she’s an 8 1/2 month old beagle named Honey.
You are lucky if your pup is able to settle and sleep after the walks, some pups want to be on the go all the time and they need their sleep to grow and develop. Any worries about weight you could ask your Vet to refer you to a canine nutritionist. I’m not confident enough to feed raw myself, the breeder I got my pup from asked us to keep her on the same puppy food for a year. I saw her again recently at a beagle meet and she commented that she could do with gaining a bit more weight but honestly it’s so difficult to get a dog to lose weight if they are even slightly over fed, have too many treats or too little exercise. My vet thinks she’s just perfect, as do I.
If your dog is still eating well and losing weight then that’s more of a worry, you should be able to feel their ribs but not see them. They, like us can fluctuate a bit both daily and weekly. As long as your vet is happy with the trend you are doing the right thing. Hope you are enjoying your pup as much as I’m enjoying mine?

I’m with Georgesgran on a routine for feeding. I know some people put food down all day allowing their dog to graze. My dogs ‘work’ for their food, so morning and tea time walks then sit, wait, take it.
Also agree with Gergesgran about them settling and sleeping - I’m not a rigid routine person, flexibility important in case our lives change unexpectedly.
Dogs look to us for guidance, so building obvious ‘training’ in builds the bond. My big boisterous over lively lab does stop at any door or gateway so I lead the way. In other ways he remains a work in progress 😇🐕😏

last week he actually lost .2 kg.

I read it as 0.2kg

My father-in-law over-walked one young puppy he had (a Labrador, I think) and it suffered joint problems. The poor man was so upset as he hadn't realised it was possible to do harm in this way ☹️

Advice for feeding is to put the food down, but remove it if it’s not eaten straight away. I’m not saying dogs should be starved, but they should be keen to eat.
Don’t forget puppies have small tummies, so don’t give too many treats, as that could curb appetites.

Fleurpepper, it wasn't 2kg, it was 0.2kg. , and the pooch had gained weight when checked at the Vet's last week, so no probs.

I think it’s .2 of a kilo FP?

If he was at the Vets only last week, and his weight had gone up, I really wouldn't worry. Puppies do need a lot of sleep too, just as human babies do, so what you're describing doesn't sound that unusual. As for appetite some dogs can be difficult. We have two Cavapoos, one of which is a real hoover-hound, whilst the other is really picky. Lovely dog, by the way.

Sleeping a lot is one thing. But a two kilo loss in a few days, quite another. And for a vet to investigate, not really an internet Forum, even one with very knowledgeable people.

2 kg is about 4 pounds- in a small (gorgeous) dog like this, a huge proportion of body weight.

I always have and always will have rescues- but if I eever chose a dog, it would be a schnauzer, but the full bodies version.

Oopsadaisy1

PS, I’m sure you arent giving him raw meat, not sure what raw food is though.

Raw feeding is exactly that - raw meat (and bones, offal etc). Our Lab was weaned onto raw food by his breeder and has been raw fed ever since. He is absolutely thriving on it. There's absolutely nothing wrong with a raw food diet for dogs - if you think about it, dogs would naturally eat raw meat in the wild.

Training and reinforcing what they’d already learned was mentally and physically exhausting for the dogs. You are the pack leader, but remember always to end a walk/training session on a high, with much praise! Little and often is better, so the puppy can concentrate and doesn’t get bored. Once back in kennels, our dogs slept for most of the time between their outings - twice a day during Winter, three times a day in lighter nights and whole days away working/competing.
As very active working dogs, they were fed a high protein dried food mixed with raw tripe - not something you’d want to feed indoors!

Honestly, your puppy sounds normal and just maturing. He looks a sweetheart.

Sorry - posted far too soon!

We had working dogs in kennels. Training and reinforcing training tr(and working)