Hi,

I'm new to this forum and hoping to spend quite a bit of time around here (if our little fellow allows!). Looking forward to any advice people could give as there seems to be a lot of knowledge out there on these boards.

We've just bought our first Staffie pup, he's eight weeks old today and we've just had him for his vet check and first vaccination. The vet seemed quite shocked (although not at all concerned) at his weight as he weighed in at 3.9kg and said she had seen one the day before which was half his size. Would you say he is overweight or have we just bought a well built monster? At the moment he's eating approx 150-200g of Iams per day (this is what he came to us on) and we will hopefully be switching him over to Autarky within the next week.

Welcome to the site.
I a not an expert but I have a very fat adult staff (27kg) who can't go for long walks now and has problems with arthritis.
Yours is young and may burn this off with lots of exercie but I would keep an eye on him, he may just be a big dog.
You will also need to find a food that doen't make them let off such a bad smell
Good luck with your boy, you will need it.

congratulations on your new pup, I remember when we picked up our Staff girl for the first time I have never felt so excited and now she is a year old and we love her to bits.
We had her on four meals a day then, milk/ eggs/porridge/weetabix type  for breakfast and supper, then chicken or fish and maybe some pedigree puppy(only because she had had it with her breeder) twice in the day. Our vet didnt say her weight was a problem either and she has always been at the top end of her weight scale
He needs his milky food as he is only little so are you feeding him this as well .They say in the books that they should be 1ib for every week as puppies, I dont know how accurate that is but it was in my Staff book so you're not far off that.
Whichever food you use you should try and follow the guidelines and then monitor their poo, if it is solid then he's fine if its runny then he may either be adjusting to his new environment or if you think he's settled alright it could be you're feeding him too much.
Tell us more about him, how long have you had him whats he like, I could talk about Staffs 24hrs a day!

Thanks for the reply.

We havent been giving him any milk, he has just been having 4 meals a day of Iams. We did however try him on some Green tripe the night before last which he ate a little of but wasnt too bothered and last night we gave him a taste of Sardines and again he ate a little but wasnt that bothered. Too be honest he just seems too busy to eat! He sleeps for about 18 hrs a day but when he is awake he is WIDE AWAKE!! So I fully understand why the little man needs so much sleep! He has one possibly 2 poos a day and they are very solid so no probs there!!

We have had him for 4 days (Waited for him for 15 years!) Decided to let the kids grow a little first and wait until someone was at home most of the time for him. Our pup was always going to be a staff and it is just so exciting to eventually have him here with us :) Whats he like? FANTASTIC! We just love him to bits, we have laughed so hard the last few days at the things he does.

Shame I cant show you some pics, we have taken 100's of him over the last few days!!

Well i have just looked at my boys vet records and he weighed more than that at 8 weeks, so dont worry, he has grown to be pretty chunky, but bang on standard.

Sarah x

I'm no expert but I'd say be careful with sardines or tripe whilst he is little as his tummy is delicate I know it doesnt seem like that as Staffs can eat and eat but I was told that they need plain food when little
I used to love the way Giorgia used to just drop off to sleep in a second it didnt matter where she was, if she wanted to sleep she just dropped. Then when they wake all systems go!
I'm sure someone will comment on this or correct me but I thought puppies were suppose to have and need milky meals, one for the calcium and two because their tummies are delicate when young . Again all the books I have read gave this as a diet for puppies and also the diet sheet from the breeder. Sounds like his toilet action is ok thats good news, a good indication of his health.
You have entered the brave new world of being a Staff owner, it has been the most rewarding experience that my Husband and I have had. We are totally smitten and cannot imagine her not being with us. Welcome! 

Thanks again for the reply's!

Sounds like he is bang on target with his weight!

I am very interested to hear peoples views on the milky feeds. I have thought about it but as yet kinda decided to leave well alone, and just carried on with what the breeder was feeding him. Which I have to say suits him very well.

Our boy sounds just like Georgia when it comes to falling asleep!! He just drops and then can sleep for hours :)

Hi

I have a staff who is 3 years old and weighs 16kilos which the vet says is the right weight and she is fed 1lb of minced chicken split between morning and night together with a hand full of mix or pasta.  Now and then perhaps once a week she has tuna in oil as they say it is good for the coat.

Oh theres nothing nicer than a Staffie pup!(IMO of course!)
The one thing you need to watch out for is Staffs can sometimes be greedy and this is why they put weight on.
I've got 2, a girl who is not greedy at all and a boy who can eat like its going out of fashion!
Best of luck with your new pup :D

Loads of luck with your boy,i remember when we got our first pup, it is so exciting, you sound like your doing a great job.

I reared a litter on both milk and meat meals, but lately am coming round to the idea that once they are off mum the meat meals are just fine.

What have you called him ?

That would be about right for my breed both in weight and feedinfg amount.  My breed as adults weigh about 20kg (bitches).  Your pup is probably well grown.  If you can feel the ribs without difficulty and he has a discernible waist then he isn't fat. 

The vet may have seen a poorly reared or younger pup sold as being older, as is not uncommon from commercial outlets.

I have vets say that they though my pups would grow into huge adults as they were well grown pups, but this is not the case.

Most Vets are not breed experts and would be hard put to acurately guess a breeds age when presented with a puppy.

Yes, can feel the ribs no problem and he definitely narrows on the waistline.

Would certainly agree with you on the commercial outlet bit. When we were "just looking" to get ideas of what we wanted, we visited a couple of petshops. Yes, you see Staffies but it's only until you start looking at breeders that you realise that there could be such a difference. I'm so glad we went down the latter route now.

Forgot to add we called our boy *Paddy* :)

Hi Russ
congrats on your new puppy.Seems like you are feeding your pup just fine.There is nothing wrong with feeding fish or a bit of tripe...both will do no harm at all however do be careful you don't make him fussy. Pups do not need milk(apart from their mothers when yuonger of course) since they cannot digest it.
If your pup is happy eating 4 meals of complete then I would continue that way with maybe a bit of oily fish once a week for his coat.
Archer

Thanks very much for the advice!