Newborn Puppy Weight Chart
How much should a newborn puppy gain? About 5 to 10% of its body weight every day, according to the Merck Veterinary Manual and VCA Animal Hospitals, after a small dip of no more than 10% on day one. Most puppies double their birth weight in about a week, by day ten on average. This one-page chart gives you a row per puppy to log daily weights through day 14, the box and puppy temperatures for the first four weeks, and the signs that mean call your vet.
Fillable · bilingual EN/ES · vet-sourced, not a scanned template.
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- A fillable weight log: a row per puppy, from birth weight through day 14
- What normal looks like: the day-1 dip, 5–10% daily gain, and doubling by about day 10
- Box and puppy temperatures for weeks 1 to 4, in °F and °C
- Milestones: eyes opening at 7 to 14 days and weaning from three to four weeks
- The signs that mean call your vet, and the 48-hour checkup after the birth
How to use it
- Write each puppy’s collar color or name in the first column, with its weight at birth.
- Weigh every puppy at the same time each day on the same digital kitchen scale.
- Check each day’s number against the day before: a puppy that loses or doesn’t gain needs your vet.
- Keep the box at the week’s temperature, and bring the sheet to the puppies’ vet visits.
Sources
Vet-sourced: the facts on this sheet come from these sources. It is educational, not veterinary advice.
- Merck Veterinary Manual (management of the neonate in dogs and cats)
- VCA Animal Hospitals (raising puppies; feeding orphaned puppies; caring for newborn puppies)
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- How much weight should a newborn puppy gain?
- About 5 to 10% of its body weight a day, according to the Merck Veterinary Manual and VCA. A small loss on the first day, no more than 10% of birth weight, is acceptable; after that, the weight should go up every day. Merck also gives a breed-scaled benchmark: 1 to 3 grams a day for every kilogram of the puppy’s expected adult weight.
- When should puppies double their birth weight?
- In about one week, says VCA’s guide to raising puppies, and by day 10 on average, according to its guide to orphaned puppies.
- How often should I weigh newborn puppies?
- Every day at first. The Merck Veterinary Manual says daily for the first two weeks, then every three days until one month; VCA says daily for the first four weeks, then weekly from the fifth. VCA suggests a digital food scale that weighs up to 5 pounds.
- How warm should the whelping box be?
- Merck gives 84–89°F (28.9–31.7°C) in the first week, 80°F (26.7°C) in weeks two and three, and 69–75°F (20.6–23.9°C) in week four. VCA keeps the first four days a little warmer, at 85–90°F.
- When do puppies open their eyes?
- Most open their eyes between 7 and 14 days old. VCA advises having a puppy examined by a vet if its eyes have not opened by day 14.
- What are the warning signs in a newborn puppy?
- A puppy that stops gaining or loses weight, won’t suckle, feels cold, or cries in an unusual way needs your vet, the Merck Veterinary Manual and VCA agree. VCA also advises having the mother and puppies examined within 48 hours of the birth.
Free educational printable. Not veterinary advice, and not a substitute for your vet's official records or an emergency call. Full disclaimer → · Leer en español →