Is My Puppy Growing Normally?
Answer 3 quick questions to find out
What size breed is this puppy?
Choose by the weight you expect this puppy to reach as an adult. The examples are typical members of each class, but some breeds (French Bulldogs and Beagles among them) can grow into the next class. The class sets the reference band for weeks 3–8 and matches our puppy growth chart tool.
One of the first questions breeders ask after a litter arrives is whether the puppies weigh what they should.
It is a natural question. Birth weight feels like an objective measure — a number that says whether a puppy is off to a good start or not.
The reality is more nuanced. Birth weight matters, but it is one data point in a picture that only becomes clear over time. Understanding what weight numbers actually tell you — and what they do not — helps breeders make better decisions and avoid unnecessary alarm.
The short version
- Birth weight by size: roughly 75–200 g for toy breeds up to 400–700 g for giants; healthy puppies fall outside these ranges in both directions.
- Expected gain: 5–10% of body weight a day for the first two weeks, doubling birth weight between about day 7 and day 14.
- Day one: a dip of up to 10% of birth weight is within normal; any loss or failure to gain after day one is a same-day call to your vet.
- Trends beat single readings: weigh at the same time every day, before a feeding, and watch the direction — and the gap to littermates.
- A fine-enough scale: one that reads in increments of 1 g or smaller for toy and small newborns (5 g steps are fine for large and giant puppies), on a tared bowl, in the same unit every day — a toy puppy's whole daily gain can be 5 g.
Why birth weight varies so much
There is no single correct birth weight for a newborn puppy because puppies come in an enormous range of sizes.
A healthy newborn Chihuahua may weigh 75 to 100 grams. A healthy newborn Golden Retriever may weigh 400 grams or more. Both are normal — for their breed.
Even within a single breed, birth weight varies based on litter size, the mother's size and condition, genetics, and individual development. Puppies from large litters are often smaller at birth than puppies from small litters, even within the same bloodline.
This is why breed-specific averages and generic puppy weight charts have limited practical value. They can offer a rough reference point, but they cannot tell you whether a specific puppy in a specific litter is doing well.
What matters more than the number itself is how that puppy's weight changes over the following days.
The exception is the very bottom of the range. In a study of 4,971 puppies across ten breeds, very-low-birth-weight puppies had a 55% neonatal mortality rate, against 4% for normal-weight littermates. A puppy far below its breed's usual birth weight needs the closest watch from hour one.
Birth weight ranges: 75 g toy to 700 g giant
While individual variation is significant, broad ranges by breed size can serve as a rough orientation when evaluating a newborn litter.
Toy breeds (Chihuahua, Yorkshire Terrier, Pomeranian, Maltese — under 10 lb as adults): Birth weights typically range from approximately 75 to 200 grams. Puppies at the lower end of this range require close monitoring, as their reserves are very limited.
Small breeds (French Bulldog, Beagle, Pug, Shih Tzu — 10–25 lb as adults): Birth weights typically range from approximately 150 to 300 grams. Variation within litters can be significant in this size group.
Medium breeds (Border Collie, Bulldog, Brittany — 25–50 lb as adults): Birth weights typically range from approximately 200 to 400 grams.
Large breeds (Labrador Retriever, Golden Retriever, German Shepherd — 50–90 lb as adults): Birth weights typically range from approximately 300 to 600 grams.
Giant breeds (Great Dane, Mastiff, Saint Bernard, Newfoundland — 90 lb and up as adults): Birth weights can range from approximately 400 grams to over 700 grams.
The size classes are defined by expected adult weight and match our puppy growth chart tool, so a puppy carried from this page to that tool at 8 weeks is the same dog in both. The example breeds are typical members of each class, not its limits: a French Bulldog or a Beagle can grow into the next class, so choose by the adult weight you expect.
These ranges are broad and intended only as general orientation. Healthy puppies regularly fall outside them in either direction. If a puppy's birth weight concerns you, the days that follow will provide far more information than the birth weight alone.
Reference
Typical Birth Weights by Breed Size
Ranges are approximate. Individual litter variation is wide — trends matter more than targets.
The first 24 hours: a small dip is normal, a large one is not
Some puppies lose a little weight on day one; many gain from the start.
A day-one dip reflects fluid loss and the transition from the womb to the outside world. A loss of up to 10% of birth weight on day one, in a puppy that is warm and nursing, is within normal.
Anything past that, or any loss after day one, is not a wait-and-see situation — call your vet.
The numbers behind that rule come from a 2023 study of 8,550 puppies. For puppies of normal birth weight, those still more than 8.7% under their birth weight on day two had an observed neonatal mortality of 23%, against 3.2% for the rest. For low-birth-weight puppies the dividing line was essentially no net gain by day two (−0.4%), with 37% mortality below it and 9.2% above.
By day two or three, most puppies have returned to their birth weight and begin gaining steadily. This is the point at which weight monitoring becomes most informative.
Expected gain: 5–10% of body weight a day for two weeks
Once the initial post-birth dip resolves, healthy puppies gain weight consistently every day.
The standard guideline is that puppies gain roughly five to ten percent of their body weight per day in the first two weeks. In practical terms, this translates to very different gram amounts depending on breed size.
A 100-gram toy breed puppy gaining five percent per day adds five grams — a small but meaningful amount given their size. A 400-gram large breed puppy gaining five percent adds twenty grams per day.
At those rates a puppy doubles its birth weight between about day 7 and day 14; VCA puts it at seven to eight days for most puppies. A puppy that has not doubled by two weeks is outside that window and should be checked by your vet.
This is why breeders weigh toy and small newborns on a scale that reads in increments of 1 g or smaller: a toy puppy's whole daily gain can be 5 g, which a scale that steps in 5 g, or in whole or tenth ounces, cannot show reliably. If your scale reads in ounces, it needs hundredths (0.01 oz is about 0.28 g). A 5 g step can follow the 25–70 g daily gains of a large or giant puppy, but it cannot show a small change — for any puppy that is growing poorly, use the 1 g scale.
The table below is generated from the one growth model this page uses — the same one behind the checker above, the 21-day chart, and the detailed charts further down. The daily-gain column is 5–10% of the birth weight; because the percentage applies to a growing body weight, the gram gain rises day by day (a 200 g newborn on the 10% line adds 20 g on day one and about 35 g on day seven). The day-14 column is an illustrative band, not a pass mark.
| Size | Birth weight | Gain per day, at birth weight | Day-14 band |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toy | 75–200 g | 4–20 g | 127–759 g |
| Small | 150–300 g | 8–30 g | 255–1139 g |
| Medium | 200–400 g | 10–40 g | 339–1519 g |
| Large | 300–600 g | 15–60 g | 509–2278 g |
| Giant | 400–700 g | 20–70 g | 679–2658 g |
Days 0–14 follow Merck's guideline: up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Both right-hand columns are illustrative: the gain column is 5–10% of the birth weight (the gram figure rises as the puppy grows), and the day-14 column is the illustrative band, not a pass mark — a puppy that has not doubled its birth weight by day 14 needs a vet check whatever the band says.
These numbers are approximate starting points. Actual gain rates vary by litter size, nursing effectiveness, and individual biology. A puppy consistently trending upward — even if more slowly than the estimates above — is generally doing better than one whose weight is flat or declining.
Weight charts by breed size, birth to 8 weeks
The tables below show the band at key milestones from birth through 8 weeks for the smallest and the largest typical newborn of each size class. All figures are in grams.
How the band is drawn. Days 0–14 follow Merck's guideline: an allowed dip of up to 10% on day one, then 5% a day on the low line and 10% a day from birth on the high line. From day 15 each line runs straight to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses for that size class, so the two tools agree at the handoff — that stretch is a reference drawn to meet the other tool, not a clinical threshold. The checker above, the chart, and every table on this page use this one model; the vet-call rules (a loss past 10% on day one, under birth weight from day two, not doubled by day 14) sit outside the band and always win.
Toy breeds (under 10 lb adult)
| Day | Born at 75 g | Born at 200 g |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | 75–75 | 200–200 |
| Day 1 | 68–83 | 180–220 |
| Day 3 | 74–100 | 198–266 |
| Day 5 | 82–121 | 219–322 |
| Day 7 | 90–146 | 241–390 |
| Day 10 | 105–195 | 279–519 |
| Day 14 | 127–285 | 339–759 |
| Day 21 | 242–404 | 419–799 |
| Day 28 | 357–523 | 498–839 |
| Day 35 | 472–641 | 578–879 |
| Day 42 | 586–760 | 657–918 |
| Day 49 | 701–879 | 737–958 |
| Day 56 | 816–998 | 816–998 |
Days 0–14: Merck's guideline — up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Days 15–56: a straight line to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses — a guide, not a diagnosis. Healthy puppies fall outside these ranges.
Small breeds (10–25 lb adult)
| Day | Born at 150 g | Born at 300 g |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | 150–150 | 300–300 |
| Day 1 | 135–165 | 270–330 |
| Day 3 | 149–200 | 298–399 |
| Day 5 | 164–242 | 328–483 |
| Day 7 | 181–292 | 362–585 |
| Day 10 | 209–389 | 419–778 |
| Day 14 | 255–570 | 509–1139 |
| Day 21 | 478–813 | 690–1288 |
| Day 28 | 702–1057 | 872–1437 |
| Day 35 | 926–1301 | 1053–1586 |
| Day 42 | 1150–1545 | 1234–1734 |
| Day 49 | 1373–1788 | 1416–1883 |
| Day 56 | 1597–2032 | 1597–2032 |
Days 0–14: Merck's guideline — up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Days 15–56: a straight line to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses — a guide, not a diagnosis. Healthy puppies fall outside these ranges.
Medium breeds (25–50 lb adult)
| Day | Born at 200 g | Born at 400 g |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | 200–200 | 400–400 |
| Day 1 | 180–220 | 360–440 |
| Day 3 | 198–266 | 397–532 |
| Day 5 | 219–322 | 438–644 |
| Day 7 | 241–390 | 482–779 |
| Day 10 | 279–519 | 558–1037 |
| Day 14 | 339–759 | 679–1519 |
| Day 21 | 815–1310 | 1098–1943 |
| Day 28 | 1291–1861 | 1517–2367 |
| Day 35 | 1766–2412 | 1936–2791 |
| Day 42 | 2242–2962 | 2355–3216 |
| Day 49 | 2717–3513 | 2774–3640 |
| Day 56 | 3193–4064 | 3193–4064 |
Days 0–14: Merck's guideline — up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Days 15–56: a straight line to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses — a guide, not a diagnosis. Healthy puppies fall outside these ranges.
Large breeds (50–90 lb adult)
| Day | Born at 300 g | Born at 600 g |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | 300–300 | 600–600 |
| Day 1 | 270–330 | 540–660 |
| Day 3 | 298–399 | 595–799 |
| Day 5 | 328–483 | 656–966 |
| Day 7 | 362–585 | 724–1169 |
| Day 10 | 419–778 | 838–1556 |
| Day 14 | 509–1139 | 1018–2278 |
| Day 21 | 1195–1993 | 1620–2942 |
| Day 28 | 1882–2846 | 2221–3606 |
| Day 35 | 2568–3700 | 2823–4269 |
| Day 42 | 3254–4553 | 3424–4933 |
| Day 49 | 3941–5407 | 4026–5596 |
| Day 56 | 4627–6260 | 4627–6260 |
Days 0–14: Merck's guideline — up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Days 15–56: a straight line to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses — a guide, not a diagnosis. Healthy puppies fall outside these ranges.
Giant breeds (90+ lb adult)
| Day | Born at 400 g | Born at 700 g |
|---|---|---|
| Birth | 400–400 | 700–700 |
| Day 1 | 360–440 | 630–770 |
| Day 3 | 397–532 | 695–932 |
| Day 5 | 438–644 | 766–1127 |
| Day 7 | 482–779 | 844–1364 |
| Day 10 | 558–1037 | 977–1816 |
| Day 14 | 679–1519 | 1188–2658 |
| Day 21 | 1496–2604 | 1920–3553 |
| Day 28 | 2312–3689 | 2652–4448 |
| Day 35 | 3129–4774 | 3383–5344 |
| Day 42 | 3946–5859 | 4115–6239 |
| Day 49 | 4762–6944 | 4847–7134 |
| Day 56 | 5579–8029 | 5579–8029 |
Days 0–14: Merck's guideline — up to a 10% dip on day one, then 5–10% a day. Days 15–56: a straight line to the 8-week reference range our puppy growth chart tool uses — a guide, not a diagnosis. Healthy puppies fall outside these ranges.
Trends matter more than single readings
This is the most important concept in newborn weight monitoring, and it is worth stating plainly.
A single weight reading tells you very little. A series of readings taken at the same time each day tells you whether a puppy is trending in the right direction.
A puppy that has not gained since yesterday: re-weigh it now on the same scale, tared the same way. If the reading holds, that is a failure to gain, and after the first 24 hours it gets a same-day call to your vet — the same as a loss.
What needs attention: any confirmed loss or failure to gain after the first 24 hours, a puppy not back to birth weight by day two or three, or one growing more slowly than its littermates as a share of its birth weight, day after day.
Context matters too. A puppy that is gaining slowly but nursing actively, staying warm, and behaving normally is in a different situation than one that is gaining slowly and also cold, lethargic, and not nursing.
Weight is one input. Behavior, warmth, nursing activity, and overall demeanor together create the full picture.
Comparing littermates: watch the growth rate, not the runt
It is natural to compare puppies within the same litter, and relative size differences can be informative.
Some size variation within a litter is normal. The smallest puppy in a litter — sometimes called the runt — is not automatically at risk as long as it is nursing, gaining weight, and progressing alongside its littermates even if more slowly.
What matters is whether the smallest puppy is falling behind proportionally. Compare each puppy's weight as a multiple of its own birth weight, or as a share of the largest puppy's weight: two puppies growing at the same percentage will show a widening gap in grams, and that is normal. A puppy whose multiple lags its littermates' day after day — 1.3 × birth weight when they are at 1.6 × — is the signal worth acting on.
In competitive nursing situations, smaller puppies may be displaced by larger ones. Monitoring individual weights, rather than assessing the litter as a group, helps identify this early.
When to start supplemental feeding
Weight monitoring is valuable precisely because it allows breeders to identify puppies that may need supplemental feeding before those puppies are visibly struggling.
Puppies that are gaining slowly, losing weight beyond the first day, or consistently being pushed off the nipple by larger littermates may benefit from supplemental feeding to support their intake.
Puppy milk replacer is the standard supplement, and it can be delivered by bottle, syringe, or tube depending on the puppy's strength and the breeder's experience. Tube feeding delivers nutrition efficiently and bypasses the energy cost of suckling — it is commonly used for very small or weak puppies.
Never feed a cold puppy. A chilled puppy's gut stops moving; milk given by bottle or tube can come back up and go into the lungs. Warm it gradually first (30–60 minutes), and get your vet on the phone for any puppy that is cold, limp, or too weak to suckle — tube feeding is a technique to learn from a vet, not from a chart.
Supplementing early — based on weight data — is generally more effective than waiting until a puppy shows obvious signs of distress. Weight trends provide the earliest objective signal that intervention may help.
For the full bottle/tube/stimulation workflow — formula choice, the 2-hour schedule, correct position, and how to avoid aspiration — see our pillar guide on bottle and tube feeding puppies.
How to weigh newborn puppies accurately
Consistent technique makes weight data more useful. A few practical notes on getting reliable readings. For a step-by-step walkthrough of daily weighing technique and log design, see how to track puppy weights.
Weigh at the same time each day, before a feeding, so readings are not inflated by a recently nursed stomach. Morning is a common choice because it creates a consistent routine.
Use a scale that reads in increments of 1 g or smaller for toy and small newborns — if it reads in ounces, it needs to show hundredths. A 5 g step can follow a large or giant puppy's daily gain but not a small change. Grams are the easier unit for newborns, but whichever unit you use, use it every time.
A kitchen scale with a tare function works well — place a small bowl or container on the scale, tare to zero, and weigh the puppy in the container. If you would rather use a scale built for the job, a dedicated pet scale gives you a bowl-shaped platform and a hold function that steadies a wriggling puppy.
A note on the two picks below: the everyday pick reads in about 5 g steps and the finer one in 2 g steps. Neither meets the 1 g resolution recommended above. A scale can only show a change at least as large as its step, so a 5 g scale can follow a puppy gaining 25–70 g a day but cannot show whether a toy newborn, or any puppy that is growing poorly, gained 3 g or lost 2 g. For those, a 1 g kitchen scale on a tared bowl is the right tool.
Scales breeders actually use
Both read in grams with hold & tare — compare platform size and increments.
Greater Goods Digital Pet Scale
A roomy platform with hold and tare for weighing a moving puppy. It reads in approximately 5g steps. Choose a finer-resolution scale when you need to track changes smaller than that.
Check price on Amazon(paid link)MomMed Portable Pet Scale
This smaller scale reads in 2g increments and includes hold and tare. Finer increments can help you record smaller changes, but display resolution is not a guarantee of accuracy. Check the scale with a known weight and use a stable surface.
Check price on Amazon(paid link)Prefer to compare more options? See all puppy scales on Amazon (paid link).
Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Links marked (paid link) are affiliate links — buying through them supports BreedTools at no extra cost to you, and it never changes what we recommend. Full affiliate disclosure
Record each puppy's weight alongside a brief note — nursing observed, supplementation given, any behavioral concern. Over several days, this creates a meaningful record rather than a series of isolated numbers.
If multiple people are involved in puppy care, establish a consistent routine so that the same person weighs at the same time whenever possible. This reduces variability and makes the data more comparable day to day.
After two weeks: every three days to one month, then weekly
The neonatal period runs to about three weeks by Merck's definition; the first two weeks are the most intensive monitoring phase, and daily weighing covers them. After this, eyes and ears open, puppies become more mobile, and the risks associated with the earliest days of life begin to decrease.
Weigh daily for the first two weeks, then every three days until one month. After that, weekly is the common practice. Keep daily weights going for any puppy that was small at birth or has had a wobble.
The records built during the neonatal period also become a useful reference for future litters — helping breeders recognize what normal looks like for their particular dogs and establish baselines for comparison over time.
Frequently asked questions
How much should a newborn puppy weigh at birth?
Birth weight varies widely by breed size. Toy breed puppies typically weigh 75–200 grams, small breeds 150–300 grams, medium breeds 200–400 grams, large breeds 300–600 grams, and giant breeds 400–700 grams or more. What matters most is not the specific number but whether the puppy gains consistently from day two onward.
How much weight should a puppy gain per day?
Healthy puppies gain roughly 5–10% of their body weight per day during the first two weeks. At those rates most puppies double their birth weight between about day 7 and day 14 — VCA puts it at seven to eight days for most — and a puppy that has not doubled by two weeks should be checked by a vet. The key indicator is a consistent upward trend: after the first 24 hours, any confirmed loss or failure to gain — re-weigh once on the same scale to rule out a measurement slip — is a same-day call to your vet.
When should I be worried about a puppy's weight?
Contact your veterinarian if a puppy loses weight or fails to gain on any day after the first 24 hours (re-weigh once to confirm), is more than 10% below birth weight at any point, or has not regained its birth weight by day two or three. A puppy that keeps growing more slowly than its littermates as a share of its birth weight, or is cold, limp, or not nursing, needs a call whatever the scale says.
What is fading puppy syndrome?
Fading puppy syndrome describes newborn puppies that appear healthy at birth but progressively weaken and die within the first two weeks. Warning signs include failure to gain weight, inability to nurse, constant crying, feeling cold to the touch, and separation from littermates. Early detection through consistent weight monitoring is the single best defense.
At what age can puppies regulate their own body temperature?
Newborn puppies cannot regulate their body temperature for roughly the first four weeks of life; they rely on the dam, littermates and the room for warmth. Keep the whelping area at about 85–90°F (29–32°C) in week one, around 80°F (27°C) in weeks two and three, and 70–75°F (21–24°C) by week four. Hypothermia directly affects a puppy's ability to nurse and digest milk.
Related Tools
References & sources
- Merck Veterinary Manual. Management of the Neonate in Dogs and Cats. — Normal gain 5–10% of body weight per day; a transient loss of at most 10% of birth weight is acceptable on day 1; weigh daily for 2 weeks, then every 3 days to 1 month; delay tube feeding until the neonate is warm; no thermoregulation until about 4 weeks.
- Mugnier A, et al. Low and very low birth weight in puppies: definitions, risk factors and survival in a large-scale population. BMC Vet Res 2020;16:354. — 4,971 puppies, 10 breeds; neonatal mortality 4.2% (normal), 8.8% (low), 55.3% (very low birth weight); thresholds are breed-specific.
- Mugnier A, Gaillard V, Chastant S. Relative Impact of Birth Weight and Early Growth on Neonatal Mortality in Puppies. Animals 2023;13(12):1928. — 8,550 puppies, 24 breeds; birth-to-day-2 growth lines of −0.4% (low birth weight) and −8.7% (normal birth weight) separated the highest-mortality groups.
- VCA Animal Hospitals. Breeding for Dog Owners — Caring from Birth to Weaning. — Most puppies double their birth weight in the first seven to eight days.
Further reading: BSAVA Manual of Canine and Feline Reproduction and Neonatology (England GCW, von Heimendahl A eds.); Lopate C, ed. Management of Pregnant and Neonatal Dogs, Cats, and Exotic Pets (Wiley-Blackwell); Davidson AP — UC Davis canine neonatology research; Root Kustritz MV — University of Minnesota canine theriogenology; AKC Canine Health Foundation. This article is for educational purposes and does not replace professional veterinary care. If your puppy isn't gaining weight as expected, contact your veterinarian.