Can you guesstimate adult size?

[linda S]

We are in the process of buying a golden-doodle from a breeder - both parents are standards on the smaller size, and we are interested in a little girl who we have been told is trendy to be very small at 5 weeks 2 lb, on average she is gaining .5 lb a week but worried that she will eventually catch-up.  This is the first litter with these two parents.  I live in the city and to stay with a smaller dog, under 35 no more than 40lb.  Any suggestions or ideas?

[Brandi]

Hi Linda, I have heard a few different ways of calculating weight.   My vet said that if you add both parents weight and divide by 2, should give you a roundabout figure.  Also, if you take their weight @ 16 wks, double it and add 5 lbs, should give a adult weight.  Both calculations worked for both my doodles.  Probably won't be perfect, but that'll give u an idea.  Good luck with ur new baby ;)

[Kim]

Linda,  If I was looking for a dog under 35 pounds, I wouldn't count on 2 standards producing that.  I guess I don't know for sure, but even people with mini's are sometimes surprised at the size they can become.  You should do some more researching to be sure you get what you want.

[Lindsey]

I agree with Kim & Allie...
our doodle is a standard and she's already 27 pounds, at not even 5 months old!
I would look for a mini breeder if you're wanting a smaller pup...just to be on the safe side.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Our little Sophie was the runt of her liter of 11.  She weighed 2.5 lbs at 6 weeks and she now weighs 55 lbs so I would not count on this puppy staying under 40 lbs.  I'm not saying she won't, I'm just saying you can't count on it.  There are too many Doodles that end up in rescue because they got bigger than their owners were told they would be.  Besides, in my personal opinion, it is more about training than size anyway.  If you have a 20 lb dog that is a nightmare behavior wise that is worse than an 80 lb dog that is well trained and well behaved.  If size is really important I would be looking for a breeder that is very reputable and has a long history with his/her dogs and can show you  the sizing that her dogs produce.  Best wishes with whatever you decide.

[Adina P]

Is size a requirement where you live (apartment or association rules?) or just your preference?  If it's something that could get you kicked out of where you live or leave you sorely disappointed I would opt for another litter.  It's just too risky.  You can guesstimate size, but with doodles you can also be way off in that guesstimate.  Better safe and sorry if this is a make or break kind of situation.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

There's never a guarantee but I also heard of the 16  weeks weight thing listed earlier and it was pretty on for both of ours. If they are that unsure then I think I would not go with this litter.

[Kim]

The 16 weeks weight thing worked for me too... but what if at 16 weeks the dog is 30 or 40 pounds?  Is she going to be ok with a 60-80 pound adult dog?  If she absolutely needs her dog to be less than 35 pounds, I think she is probably looking in the wrong place.

[Jennifer Tramell]

Webster was from a litter of 10 and at 5 weeks he was right in the middle of the pack size-wise.  His mom is 60 lbs, dad is 73 lbs so I was guessing that he would be close to 70 lbs.  Webster is 83 lbs.  I don't think you can judge an adult size when a pup is so young - sometimes the runt turns out to be the biggest, and the biggest slows down. 

I was told by a standard poodle breeder that her female pups stay around the mom's size and her male pups trend more to the dad's size.  I've stayed in touch with some of Webster's littermates and the female pups are close to, or smaller than, the mom while the males are from 65 - 83 lbs (yes, my big boy).

Here is a picture of Webster and 2 of his siblings.  You can see that he is not any bigger yet the black pup is only 65 lbs - not sure about the little blond pup.

[DeeDee and Sheila]

I wouldn't do this.  If both mom and dad are standard, then the healthy offspring are standard.  There are just too many great breeders that are already breeding the size you want.  I have a mini, but my breeeder sells alot of dogs in NY.  If you want her name you will have to friend me and I can tell you in a private message.  So can alot of other DKers.  You don't need to be surprised here.  The ALDs are like 7 generations old now.  The goldens aren't so far along yet.  But some of them can tell you about their breeders.  I know one here in Central Illinois that people just love the breeder.  She ships all over the world.  Any of these good breeders are going to have lists and you will have to wait.

[Maureen W]

Linda, as a breeder with years of experience I have more questions before knowing if what you hope for would come true.

Is this an F1 litter?  Exactly how big are the two parents?

What about heights?

Honestly I have never seen a puppy grow up to weigh LESS than the parents, in a litter from 2 Standards.  You might have a girl be as small as the smaller parent, but I can't imagine genetics getting thrown out on a breeding such that you would get a puppy who matures smaller or less in height OR weight, than her 2 Standard parents.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Personally I would go with a breeder that is breeding 2 medium/mini dogs together - that way you have a better chance of the puppy being small like you want.

My Peri is an F1 mini and the smallest in her litter at 25 pounds full grown. I believe one of her brothers is 40 or slightly over....it is hard to predict unless both parents are small and/or the same pair have been bred before.

BTW Peri was the largest and looked piggy to me while I visited her growing up at the breeders. And she turned out to be smallest.....

[Arron (Shadow)]

I would agree with most people that caution you against two standard sized parents.  Our breeder told us Shadow was supposed to be only 40 pounds (about the size you wanted) as she was the smallest pup from a 40lb Golden mother and a 65 pound poodle father.  At 5 months she was 40 lbs and has shown signs of letting up but she obviously is going to be bigger than 40 lbs fully grown.  At 6 months she was only 43 lbs but still quite a ways til full grown.  Our vet is estimating closer to 60 lbs so much closer in size to the father than the mother for the smallest pup in the litter.  If you go by the 16 weeks double it and add 5 pounds calc she should be 63 pounds and so it tracking for that.