Question
My gorgeous pups!
Hi Nicole
I have had Bassets all my life, some were older rescues, a couple of ex-breeding bitches and two from puppies and all had very happy lives. I now have two gorgeous sisters aged exactly 6 months and got them at 9 weeks and two together has been perfect as they have grown up playing together and have never whined and they get on well with my older Basset.
My question is about their weights... their mum and dad are very big hounds and these two weigh 23kgs (50lbs) each but look well in proportion and you can see their 'waist' where their ribs stop so they don't look 'fat' but look well nourished and they run around the garden several times a day so get loads of exercise! They have spent loads of time playing and running since we got them but I'm not walking them yet as I was advised to wait until they are around 10-months old to allow their bones to knit into place.
They always love their food, never leave a crumb and have always been fed Eukanuba puppy food with a small amount of Butcher's tripe mixed in and I am about to cut out their mid-day meal so they'll then get fed twice a day now they're just 6-months old.
A friend of mine saw my pups last week and she said they have grown too fast and are too big for 6-month pups but she has never had Bassets only skinny terriers. As both parents are very big Bassets, presumably they have inherited this from them. I must admit they are bigger built than some of our previous Bassets but look well in proportion.
Do you think 6-month Basset pups are too heavy at 23kgs each? At what age do Bassets stop growing?
Thanks for any advice you can give me.
Sophie
AnswerSophie,
Your girls look fine. I'd not take advice from someone who'd never owned the breed. ;) As long as they are in proportion, and the vet has not said that they are too large, don't worry about it!!
As for not walking them...at 3 months of age, you can start walking a pup for 5 minutes and adding 5 minutes for each month. At their age, they should be walked for 20 minutes a day. Because you've not walked them at all, I'd start with the 5 minutes and build them up gradually. I'm not sure who you heard the 10 month rule of thumb from but I disagree. Exercise is extremely important for a Basset as it helps with back problems later in life. ;)
