Anyone have the runt?

dartnyss · Mar 29, 2016

There are two puppies in the litter that I am looking at who are half the size of the rest of the litter. I'm trying if I want to "gamble" on one of those or take one of the others. I will be meeting them in a little less than two weeks and will be picking my puppy at that time.

I will obviously try to observe their personalities and feel which one "feels" like the right puppy. My three favorite out of the six are a pied male (very nice size), a black masked fawn female (very small), and a brindle boy (smallest of the litter).

I really want to have a nice little Frenchie with a blocky head and good proportions. I know runts can end up being very nice looking dogs, but not always. Have you ever picked the runt and if so, how did that work out? Do you have pictures of puppy versus adult?

They are two weeks old now and I will be picking when they are four weeks old. This is so hard!!!

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2bullymama · Mar 29, 2016

Best of luck in your choice..... I have no experience in picking from biggest/smallest, etc. Our fist was that last when we contacted the breeder, our second.. we wanted a female and she was the only one... Cheli was sort of a rescue (owner surrender to our vet) and Lambeau we just fell in love with when we saw his picture.

winginit66 · Mar 29, 2016

Smallest of his litter of 3 is the brindle pied in my signature photo below, far right. Not so small anymore!!! His sister is the "blockhead" on the other end.

eeturk · Mar 29, 2016

We have one that was the runt and one that was the largest. The run is 28 pounds now and the large one should top out around there too. They're all different and it's so hard to know how they'll grow!

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dartnyss · Mar 29, 2016

winginit66 said:
Smallest of his litter of 3 is the brindle pied in my signature photo below, far right. Not so small anymore!!! His sister is the "blockhead" on the other end.

My gut says the two smallest will end up being normal size, I just wonder how their heads will be. They seem to have slightly more rounded heads than the other "normal" sized puppies and I *really* want that blocky head, like your girl on the far left! I don't know how much I will be able to tell at 4 weeks old.

Jakeyjake · Mar 29, 2016

There really wasn't any pups half the size in my dog's litters. Your chances of getting a larger head are better with a male though. Have you seen the dam and sire? Good luck in your decision and can't wait to see photos.

Squishy Walnuts · Mar 29, 2016

Jakeyjake said:
There really wasn't any pups half the size in my dog's litters. Your chances of getting a larger head are better with a male though. Have you seen the dam and sire? Good luck in your decision and can't wait to see photos.

I agree. In Wally's litter the 2 male pups were bigger than the female, who was first born. Wally was the middle born pup. He has weighed 30lbs since he was 1 years old. His head is massive and he's very muscular.

dartnyss · Mar 29, 2016

Jakeyjake said:
There really wasn't any pups half the size in my dog's litters. Your chances of getting a larger head are better with a male though. Have you seen the dam and sire? Good luck in your decision and can't wait to see photos.

I have seen the dam and sire and both are very nice looking dogs, about 26-28lbs between the two of them, with nice heads and solid body structure. The two runts are a male and a female. They really are close to half the size of the rest of the litter (four other pups, one male and three females). I like the little fawn female, but I really feel I want a boy. The brindle boy is the one I wanted, but he is the tiniest of all the puppies, and the other male is a pied, which is my last choice coat-wise. I know they have a lot of growing to do in the next two weeks, but I also know I'll be rolling the dice when I pick, too!

hannah · Mar 29, 2016

Good luck in your choice

2bullymama · Mar 29, 2016

winginit66 said:
Smallest of his litter of 3 is the brindle pied in my signature photo below, far right. Not so small anymore!!! His sister is the "blockhead" on the other end.

:laugh: :laugh: === 'blockhead' .... I laughed out loud at my desk.... :laugh:

winginit66 · Mar 31, 2016

2bullymama said:
:laugh: :laugh: === 'blockhead' .... I laughed out loud at my desk.... :laugh:

[MENTION=2]2bullymama[/MENTION] - My younger son also calls her "shovel head"

KimB3384 · Mar 31, 2016

Keep an open mind. That's what my breeder told me. I was insistent that I was going to have a male and went to visit to see the litter with the one I wanted. It didn't want anything to do with me. But Beezy came over to me, jumped onto my lap and stayed there for the next four hours. The dog will pick you. Incidentally, Beezy was the runt of the litter and they didn't even know if she was going to live. She got stuck in the birth canal and they couldn't get her out. She's brindle, her brothers are cream as cream can be. She tips the scale at a whopping 18 lbs. and her brothers are all big blockheads. They're handsome, but Beezy has my heart. You will wind up with the right one when you meet it.

blushy · Mar 31, 2016

Isabelle was first born and smallest, she was about 3.8 lbs at 8 weeks when we got her if I'm remembering 2 years ago correctly haha.
She's really slim/all muscle, not a typical "bulldog" rolly Polly Frenchie body type...

Titan was only 3.3 lbs at 10 weeks old.

Titan has issues so he didn't really grow to his full potential but that wasn't because he was the runt. He's a little hippo boy! With a big fat head! (Considering how little he actually is!)

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KimB3384 · Mar 31, 2016

It's still my plan to drive up north and steal Isabelle from you. So, you know, you've been warned

dartnyss · Mar 31, 2016

KimB3384 said:
Keep an open mind. That's what my breeder told me. I was insistent that I was going to have a male and went to visit to see the litter with the one I wanted. It didn't want anything to do with me. But Beezy came over to me, jumped onto my lap and stayed there for the next four hours. The dog will pick you. Incidentally, Beezy was the runt of the litter and they didn't even know if she was going to live. She got stuck in the birth canal and they couldn't get her out. She's brindle, her brothers are cream as cream can be. She tips the scale at a whopping 18 lbs. and her brothers are all big blockheads. They're handsome, but Beezy has my heart. You will wind up with the right one when you meet it.

I am keeping an open mind, but I do want a snuggle monster, which is a male, in my experience. The two smallest are just the smallest, not runts as in health risks or anything, but still. We shall see who I connect with!

hannah · Mar 31, 2016

blushy said:
Isabelle was first born and smallest, she was about 3.8 lbs at 8 weeks when we got her if I'm remembering 2 years ago correctly haha.
She's really slim/all muscle, not a typical "bulldog" rolly Polly Frenchie body type...

Titan was only 3.3 lbs at 10 weeks old.

Titan has issues so he didn't really grow to his full potential but that wasn't because he was the runt. He's a little hippo boy! With a big fat head! (Considering how little he actually is!)

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