Puppy Belly : Is It Normal For A Puppy To Have A Big Belly? 7 Crucial Facts

Understanding dogs’ health to pay attention to specific body parts such as the belly is very important. Especially if your dog is still a puppy, you have to supervise them specifically to ensure normal growth and development without any problems.

What to watch out for in a puppy belly? There are no visible masses on the underside of your puppy’s belly, and it should be smooth. Do not let their belly tight when you hold it, and they should have the ability to move when you hold their belly. A tight belly is a sign of problems such as bloat or worms.

To know this, we must study deeper so that our puppies are always healthy at all times.

Is It Normal For A Puppy To Have A Big Belly?

The puppy shouldn’t have a big belly. If your puppy belly looks big and different than usual, there’s a sign your puppy has bloat or something more severe, such as a swollen belly.

You will often find puppy bloating situations because they cannot be fed carelessly. After all, the wrong food can make a barrel belly. Besides the wrong food choice, barrel belly can also be caused by worms in your puppy’s body.

Because several factors can make this situation, you should pay attention to some of the differences when your puppy feels his belly shape is not as usual.

Do they have to be taken to the vet immediately, or is it just a common problem that can be solved in a short time.

Why Does My Puppy Have A Potbelly?

If your puppy has a pot-bellied appearance, there is a good chance they have internal parasites. To check your puppy’s health regarding this, you must take him to the vet so that he is immediately given anti-worms.

There is also the possibility of a large puppy belly because of their high-eating breeds, such as Boston Terriers, Pugs, and Bulldogs. Potbelly is just an appearance, but it could also be if they are overfeeding, it will affect their health when they are adults.

Puppy having a big belly is not a normal thing even though in terms of appearance, it looks cute. If you feed too many puppies, it is also not good for their health because they do need fast growth and development, but not to the point of overfeeding.

What Should My Puppies Belly Look Like?

A puppy belly will look normal, not swollen, and feel soft to the touch. In terms of appearance, it will be seen if they have a big belly. If you hold that belly and feel it hard, it’s a sign your puppy needs to get a medical examination.

In addition to touching the belly, you need to pay attention to the skin’s color and the shape of the belly. If you see a rash on puppy belly, there is a possibility that your puppy has an infection or irritation and should be treated immediately before it spreads to other areas.

Normal belly will look clean, soft when you touch it and looks normal if you look at it from any side.

When Should A Puppy Lose Its Belly?

You can see changes in your puppy’s body shape from the age of 3-6 months. It can be seen from the puppy belly, which loses its pudginess and leads to a slimmer mature body type. The diet from this age must be considered to maintain body shape and other growth.

You can also start giving physical exercise to get rid of their big belly, because at this age they are already excited to do new things with you, and do a lot of activities by running around.

How To Care For Puppy Belly With Worms?

Intestinal parasites in your puppy must go through a medical examination by a vet first so they can give the appropriate medicine for the worms in your puppy’s body. A puppy’s belly will look big because of the parasite, and your puppy can look weak and powerless.

After your vet knows the type of worms that are in your dog’s body, they will de-worm it until the worms are clean from the puppy’s body. Oral or injected drugs will be adapted to the existing symptoms in your puppy.

Puppy bloated belly worms will slowly deflate after getting the right treatment. Do not give careless drugs because each type of worm needs a different drug and treatment.

Does Puppy Belly Rub Gives Joy To Pups?

Some dogs like to rub their belly and feel that the owner gives them joy. But some dogs avoid the rub part of the belly.

If the puppy feels itchy because of worms or irritation in the belly, their response will be to scratch their belly and cause infection if injured.

Puppy belly bands are suitable for wearing on your dog when you notice a rash on the belly to prevent the puppy from scratching and causing injury. Immediately take them to the vet to inquire about the condition of their belly.

How To Care For Puppy Belly Button Hernia?

There are several types of puppy belly button hernia that you should know with several different types. The table below is a list of the types of hernias that can occur in your puppy.

You can do surgery by putting the organs back into place and repairing the hole that is causing the hernia. The hole area will be reinforced with mesh to strengthen, and no re-hole occurs.

Normal Puppy Belly Vs Bloated Differences

Bloat is a condition when your puppy belly becomes filled with gas or air. This can be due to foods that can cause gas, eating too fast, or stress. The bloat can create gastrointestinal problems and cause pain in your puppy.

A Puppy bloated belly will look bigger than the normal belly. If you hold it, your puppy will feel pain and avoid your touch. In addition, the enlargement is sudden, not due to normal weight gain.

If held, a normal belly will feel soft, but for the bloated bell, it will feel hard, and your dog will feel pain every time you hold it.

What Does Healthy Puppy Belly Look Like?

A healthy puppy belly does not need much work to keep it looking strong and lean. Just like an adult, a puppy can begin to lose weight because he is growing.

A Healthy puppy belly looks soft and clean with no signs of inflamed or full of purplish spots. You should be able to see a couple of ribs in an upright position if you are looking at the abdomen of a healthy puppy. The anal gland should be fully developed and visible.

If the anal glands are not fully developed, your dog could be suffering from anal sacs, which could become infected or inflamed and cause pain and bleeding while defecating.

You should always be aware of your pet’s diet. A healthy puppy doesn’t have to come at the expense of his health.

A balance of meat and vegetables is essential. If you do not have the time to prepare your dog’s diet yourself, talk to your vet about buying prepackaged, healthy food that you can feed him in his food bowl.

What Does Normal Puppy Belly Look Like?

You can see the condition of the belly and the puppy belly button and its surroundings. If there is no distention of the belly, masses, or bumps, this is a sign that they are healthy and have no problems with their belly.

When you touch, they are silent, and there is no visible discomfort because of your touch. Make sure puppies socialize enough.

Just like humans, they need to have the right amount of space to stretch their little bodies out. If you notice that your puppy’s tummy seems to be getting bigger, it is time to get down to business and take some measurements so that you can figure out just how much room your dog really needs.

Abnormal Puppy Belly

To find out whether or not the belly of our dog is healthy, we also have to know how the abnormal belly condition might occur. When you see some of these abnormal things, you can immediately take them to the vet for a medical examination.

The most noticeable thing is when you hold the belly. Even if the pressure you give is not too much, your puppy will groan or look like it has difficulty breathing. This examination can use palpation or with your finger.

Visible tumors or abscesses also indicate an abnormal belly that requires special treatment from a vet, or surgery is recommended.

Normal puppy belly will have no distended abdomen or feels hard. If you find this, there is a sign of GDV or bloat, so you need to take your puppy to the vet.

Puppy Belly Feeding Plan

The feeding plan will help the puppy grow and develop optimally and prevent upset stomachs. If you want to have a good plan, you should make a puppy belly chart that pays attention to age-appropriate feeding.

For 6 to 12 weeks, they still have to rely on their mother’s milk for nutrition. You can also give puppy food up to four times a day.

After reaching three months to 6 months, you can reduce their food portions to three times a day. You will see their physical changes with the reduction of potbelly to mature body type.

For 6 to 12 months, you can feed only twice a day to not overfeed and reduce their energy requirements. You can start to reduce puppy food and mix it with adult food to adapt to an adult food that has more protein content.

Puppy Belly After Eating

There are several possibilities for a puppy belly to look big after eating a puppy too fast, food that is stuck in the stomach, drinking too much in a short time, or overeating.

If your puppy is forced to do activities in this condition, it can experience stomach pain and become weaker until the condition goes away.

Ensure your puppy gets the right portion of food and drink, and don’t let them eat in a hurry, so they don’t experience bloat or pot belly.

Final Verdict On Puppy Belly

Knowing the puppy’s health condition from their belly needs to be considered because some things are not commonly experienced by puppies related to the big belly.

Bloat in puppies is common because puppies can bloat because they eat too fast, so a lot of air gets in, or eat food that can produce gas in the stomach.

Suppose the bloating sign does not occur in your puppy. In that case, this is something to worry about, especially if their abdomen is in an inappropriate position because your puppy could have a hernia and need surgery.

Other things such as abscesses or tumors can also make your puppy uncomfortable, so they can lose appetite, weakness, and less activity. Making sure their belly is normal will be your reference for your dog’s healthy life.

Rajkumar Ravichandran

Welcome to Learn About Pet. My name is Rajkumar Ravichandran and I love all pets, travel, and amazing food. I write about my passion and personal experience caring for multiple pets in this blog! ❤️