We got a new puppy, a black pure bred GSD. Dad is V Gordon vom Fuchsgraben mom is a young 18 month old german shepherd named mara. It was an accidental breeding. The owner told me the puppies were all born about 1/2 the size they should have been. Our puppy, Rogue, is supposed to be about 12 weeks, and is 8.5 pounds!! Insanely skinny, you can feel every bone in her body. Its awkward to pick her up because you feel like she is going to break. Obviously something went very wrong with the pregnancy, and the owner did not take enough care after. I don't think he took him to the vet, although I forgot to ask when I saw the puppies because I was kind of in shock I guess. He said there were no worm issues, she was on her 4th or 5th day of panacur when we took her home. He said it was precaution because he had them next to chickens when he moved them to the outdoor kennel. I was so confused because I saw the other dogs, all in good shape, very beautiful, friendly. Met both parents. Kennels were clean and they had pretty good food. Not like Iams or anything. I think it was Kirklands grain free something. But obviously the owner wasn't responsible about getting them to a vet, figuring out why there were so underweight on top of being so small etc...I know I shouldn't have taken her home, in the sense of supporting an irresponsible breeder. But it broke my heart. My daughter was with us and fell in love. I guess I just couldn't say no. She is doing well. She is spunky, energized and has a great appetite! She does have a food guarding issue already, so I wonder if something was going on there. But for now were just focusing on getting some weight on her. I take her to the vet tomorrow, but thought I would ask here first.

What could cause a litter to be SO much smaller then they should be? Has anyone experienced anything like this before? What should I expect with her growth? Do you think she is forever stunted?

Here is a pic-

Picture of her ribs. She's laying on her side facing the ice cream bowl (of course) if she didn't have hair all you would see is skin and bones.

Breeder's website, puppies. Wow.

If one or two pups were small, I'd say checking for a heart defect/other congenital defect would be important.
If they are all runty, then I'm thinking lack of calories: perhaps the dam had mastitis, , had too big a litter for her supply, no one supplemented the litter. Or she was just a lousy mother, not too interested in pups. It happens. Or, calories were being consumed by parasites--coccidia, hookworm, whipworm, fleas, lice. I've seen litters look like this from fleas alone. That pups skin is WHITE. Check her gums. She could be anaemic.
Very early stunting can have lifetime effects. But there is a LOT of growth yet to come, so chances are good she will be on the low end of the normal size with good nutrition from here on out.

Bless her wee heart, she looks like a real sweetie! hope she continues to thrive now she is with a loving family

Yah the entire litter is shocking.
Her gums look nice and pink betty.I think the white comes from my flash/phone. It takes crappy night pictures. and let me tell you she is not acting anemic. She is jumping in the air trying to bite my computer cord as I type. LOL She does have diarrhea right now, boiling rice (over done) and boiling chicken right now. and I will take a sample to the vet today.

Someone on the GSD forum mentioned she looked more like a litter from the dutch shepherd they have for sale. And I totally can see it. The papers say Mara was the mom, but do you think people fib about that kind of stuff? Look at the for sale area, its a 7 month old dutch shep.

oh and her name is Rogue and I am hoping to do some schutzhund/agility/herding/nosework in the future. I'll try them all and see what she really seems to enjoy =)

kristi, yes people do lie about things like breeding parentage especially if there's any question about whether or not a litter is eligible for registration.

You could always contact the breeder and ask for DNA samples from the sire and dam be sent (at your expense) for testing. If you offer to pay and they hesitate or refuse, well, that might just be your answer right there.

I'm glad she's now in a loving home where she'll get great care.

At this point Kristi, I wouldnt give another thought to her pedigree or worry about anything but her health and how she does with your family. I hope she turns out well and you guys really enjoy her.

I'm not overly concerned with her pedigree. It really doesn't matter in the long run, I am just curious. Either way she is who she is =) Thanks for the replies! Got some Rice and chicken in her for her first meal, I am doing 4 small meals a day for now, until she gains some more weight.