German Shepherd Sofi is small and petite 48 lbs at 20 months

by Mary D
(Massachusetts)

We are often stopped when we are out with her- Mostly by people who comment on her beauty, but often People ask us why she is so small. She is on the small side as our last GSD female was about 65 lbs and we painfully lost her at just about age 10 to hip dysplasia and old age so we are ever so hopeful that our little Sofi may live longer because of her lighter size.

Our Vet is pleased with her growth, muscle mass, etc. and she is a speed demon. Her parents, grandparents were all normal size, no hip problems, good papers. She is perfect....


Total German Shepherd:

Hey Mary, Thanks so much for sharing the story of your petite little girl with us. Your little Sofi really is small compared to most other GSDs of her age however the standards we so often go by do have dogs that are on the higher and lower end. And your sweet little girl is definitely on the low end as far as size goes.

That's ok though. A long as Sofi is healthy, happy, playful and your vet seems to have given you the "all's well" for her health wise, I wouldn't worry about it so much.

Currently she is still considered a puppy. Now I haven't seen her in person, or have actually gotten my hands on her (which I always like to do ;)), but I can tell you, that if she follows the pattern of growth as all other German Shepherds I have dealt with have, that she will probably fill out a little more and maybe put on some more weight as she becomes a fully adult female GSD - normally around 2 to 3 years of age for most German Shepherd Dogs. Normally males do this around the age of 3 or later.

I wish you much luck and continued success with your little girl. Sofi is a beautiful, petite German Shepherd and I'm sure she's a wonderful part of your family. Keep us up on her development down the road - I'd be curious to see how she matures down the road.