Samson at 15 Weeks

Samson is almost 16 weeks old now.  He met his vet this past week, and got his rabies, and his last distemper shot.  He weighed in at 39.5 lbs, up 6.3 lbs from two weeks previously.

Giant breeds have specific nutritional need difference from regular sized dogs - they have a slower growth cycle (2 yrs vs 1 yr), need less fat and protein as puppies to control their growth rate and prevent puppyhood obesity that can lead to joint and bone disorders.  They are also susceptible to bloat, or gastric torsion.  No one knows what causes the bloat.  Genetics certainly play a role, in that the giant breeds are the ones who get it.  People have suggested raised feeders, not allowing a lot of water to be drunk after eating, certain food ingredients, etc.  But the upshot is no one really knows.  However, now that vets are doing laparoscopic procedures just as human surgeons are, they are making prophylactic gastropexy for these giant dogs.  The procedure tacks the stomach to other structures to prevent it from being able to twist.  The risk of torsion goes up with age, and can kill a dog very quickly, so it is a major concern.

Samson starts a couple of private puppy lessons next week, and will do puppy classes for socialization starting later in the month.

Comments

[Manise]

A belated Congrats on your new pup! He's a beauty!

[LaurieM]

Adorable doggie!

I have a boxer and they tend to gastric troubles too. I'm always careful to feed him after a walk. We follow Ceaser Milan's structured walk regime, which boils down to walk, play, then eat. After that, my doggie just wants to sleep which gives his tummy lots of time to digest slowly.

[tina]

what a cutie! one of my basset's is a sampson too (different spelling. Love your blog, I read it quite often.

[tina]

what a cutie! one of my basset's is a sampson too (different spelling. Love your blog, I read it quite often.

[Michelle]

So you didn't actually say whether you are going to take Samson in for the elective surgery....

[Colleen]

Hey! He looks great! looks very happy and comfortable in his home.
Bloat is a scary thing- I just read about that surgery- very interesting.

[Laritza]

Huge lovely guy!

[Chris]

Awwwww, snuggle up with him for me!!!

[lisa]

Big baby boy! He looks happy! We were careful w/ the wolfhound to not feed her then immediately run her, we'd wait an hour or so, and we'd wait 30 min or so if we ran her first before feeding. I think many of the "regular" dogs don't fully mature until they are 2... so maybe the giants are full grown at 2 and really full grown at 3? Hard knowing... the other thing (a sad thing) is that many of the giants have shorter average life expectancies, on the order of 8-10 vs 15 or so.

[vanessa]

sampson is just getting more and more adorable!

[Sara]

He is too cute! Love his face...his markings are just beautiful!