WHEN DO THEY STOP GROWING - Page 1

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by 69RS on 24 September 2007 - 17:09

at what age do male shepherds stop growing in height


by clewsk9s on 24 September 2007 - 22:09

Since no one is replying, I will give my 2 cents ...

My boy just hit 23 months and it seems he grew another inch in the past few weeks along with filling out in his neck & chest.  I hope this it the max he will be because when we were training this past weekend my husband was taking pics and my boy was unsure of something and turned to me and stood up (looking for his mom's comfort) and he was a head taller than me.  If he gets much bigger I'll have to enter him in the Kentucy Derby instead of Schutzhund sport!

Hope someone who really knows the answer to your question send you the info you seek.  I have heard that it is 2 years.


by marci on 24 September 2007 - 22:09

My experience is that... maximum  wither height around 7-8 months... bone and substance varies... horizontal stretch also varies...

My general rule is they stop growing vertically before they reach the 10th month considering DDR lines to grow up slowly... For West HIGH lines, some are fast growers and grow tall rapidly... just make sure they are also substantial and not just stretched-out long bones... we are breeding GSDs and not Melachaar's which normally have straight front and rear assemblies...

In short Vertically before his 10th month...horizontally upto a year (by the way coincides alos with the final change of COAT and COLOR) then onwards if he is still growing,,, that will be just to gain SUBSTANCE (where he gets wider and deeper...)  HOPE THIS HELPS... And it ALL STOPS at Puberty...


by ilovemygsdnenz on 25 September 2007 - 21:09

Very interesting thread. I was wondering the same thing myself, although about females. I had a lab/GSD/husky mix spayed female that at a year and a half was alot taller than she was at a year. I heard that altered dogs don't stop growing as soon as unaltered do. My 7 and 1/2 month GSD female is 21inches at the withers and I tell people I don't think she'll get much bigger but they still make grand predictions about her final height. Alot of people around here thing GSDs are supposed to be huge dogs, bigger than rottweilers..........


by JGA on 26 September 2007 - 00:09

Well, I have to put in my 2 cents as well. I have had MANY dogs gain height even after 2 years old, both male and female. I am not talking about the dogs people THINK grew, but really just put an inch of fat on the whole frame of the dog so it is 1 inch taller and 2 inches wider due to fat (not bone growth). I am talking dogs with proper weight and proper care.  Some dogs that make KKL1 at 20-24 months would be too tall for KKL1 if done for the first KKL at an older age. Yes, some cheat when the dog is measured, but many are TALLER when they have to be resurvyed for life, and at least until recently, dogs were never remeasured when they went for the Lifetime Survey 2+ years after the first survey. I think that has changed now, and i know the dogs are all being measured in the shows for 12 months old and older if there is any questiosn that the dog may be too big (galad to see that!)

My 1st GSD (born Oct 16, 1976) was a small female. She was 22.5 inches at 2 years old. She was 23.5 inches at 4 years old...grew a whole inch. I have had males also gain 1/2 to 1 inch after 2 years old. These are intact dogs, not spayed or neutered, so steralization can not be blamed for their continued growth.

In the Olden days (20-30 years ago) it was said that Shepherds had 85-90% of their height at 12 months.... One does have to wonder, however, if the current dog foods that sitmulate rapid growth may actually push some young dogs to full height (too fast) at a younger age...???






 


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