dog size

Question
Hi,
I have a 6 month old pup.
His mum is Irish wolfhound & his dad great dane x ridgeback.THey both look like average size for their breeds.

At 6 months he weighs only 18kg. A Great Dane that age should apparently be 31 - 40kg

Do you think there is any chance he will still grow to a big size?

How can
i end up with such a small dog when his parents are all large breed dogs?

We are feeding him vet recommended puppy food for large breeds.

If I feed him more will it help him grow bigger?

Is he likely to do much more growing after 6 months?

thanks
Katrina

Answer
No feeding him more will only cause problems with his growth plates and set him up for obesity.
Large breed dog food isn't made to grow large dogs, it's developed to prevent hip and joint problems by have the correct ratio of calcium to phosphorus. Dogs fed too much of these crucial minerals have been shown to have a higher incidence of hip dysplasia and other joint problems.

Your dog is one quarter ridgeback. That is a large breed,but not a giant breed. Irish wolfhounds and great Danes are giant breeds.Since this dogs are all freely breeding there could be some other mixes in there too.

Your dog might be the runt of the litter as well. It's really hard to say. I would just keep him on a normal amount of food and let nature take its course. If he is smaller he might live longer, since the average age of a Dane and Wolfhound to die at is 7- 10 yrs old.

And dogs do grow up to two years old. Most of the growth after a year is filling out some and then some growth you don't see, like bones and organs maturing.

Just remember, The smaller the dog, the longer they live!