A Shih Poo has no kennel-club breed standard and no single adult weight: depending on which Poodle was used, an adult runs 4 to 16 lb (2 to 7 kg). The charts below give the typical weight and the usual range by month for each pairing.
Quick answers
- There is no Shih Poo breed standard. The American Kennel Club does not recognise the cross, so no adult weight range is set by a kennel club.
- Size depends on which Poodle was used. A first cross lands between its two parents: toy poodle cross 4–16 lb; miniature poodle cross 9–16 lb.
- Every figure comes from the AKC for one of the two parent breeds, its standard or its breed-page figure; no kennel club sets a standard for this cross.
- If you do not know the category, the puppy weight calculator estimates adult weight from your puppy’s age and weight today, which is the better tool here.
Shih Poo growth chart by size
Each table below covers one parent pairing. Its range runs from the lighter parent’s standard to the heavier one’s, because a first-generation cross lands between its parents, and it is scaled by the growth curve for the size class that span falls in. Ask the breeder which Poodle was used; that choice, more than anything else, decides which table is yours.
Toy Poodle cross Shih Poo
Shih Tzu × Toy Poodle. The Shih Tzu standard gives an ideal 9 to 16 lb and the Toy Poodle’s AKC figure is 4 to 6 lb, so the range runs from 4 to 16 lb.
| Age | Typical | Usual range | Lightest 1 in 10 | Heaviest 1 in 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 months mo | 1.43.0 | 0.4–2.81.0–6.2 | < 0.3< 0.8 | > 3.5> 7.8 |
| 3 months mo | 1.94.3 | 0.6–4.01.3–8.8 | < 0.5< 1.1 | > 5.0> 11.0 |
| 4 months mo | 2.55.6 | 0.8–5.31.8–11.6 | < 0.6< 1.4 | > 6.6> 14.4 |
| 6 months mo | 3.47.4 | 1.0–7.02.3–15.4 | < 0.8< 1.8 | > 8.8> 19.3 |
| 9 months mo | 3.98.7 | 1.2–8.32.7–18.2 | < 1.0< 2.1 | > 10.2> 22.6 |
| 12 months mo | 4.29.2 | 1.3–8.72.8–19.1 | < 1.0< 2.2 | > 10.7> 23.7 |
| 18 months mo | 4.39.6 | 1.3–9.02.9–19.9 | < 1.1< 2.3 | > 11.2> 24.7 |
| 24 months mo | 4.510.0 | 1.4–9.43.1–20.6 | < 1.1< 2.5 | > 11.5> 25.3 |
Miniature Poodle cross Shih Poo
Shih Tzu × Miniature Poodle. The Miniature Poodle’s AKC figure, 10 to 15 lb, sits inside the Shih Tzu’s 9 to 16 lb, so this pairing is narrow.
| Age | Typical | Usual range | Lightest 1 in 10 | Heaviest 1 in 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 months mo | 1.53.2 | 0.8–2.31.9–5.1 | < 0.7< 1.5 | > 2.8> 6.2 |
| 3 months mo | 2.35.0 | 1.3–3.53.0–7.7 | < 1.1< 2.4 | > 4.1> 9.1 |
| 4 months mo | 3.16.8 | 1.8–4.74.1–10.3 | < 1.5< 3.4 | > 5.4> 12.0 |
| 6 months mo | 4.29.3 | 2.6–6.45.6–14.1 | < 2.1< 4.7 | > 7.4> 16.4 |
| 9 months mo | 5.011.0 | 3.0–7.56.7–16.6 | < 2.5< 5.5 | > 8.7> 19.2 |
| 12 months mo | 5.211.5 | 3.1–8.06.9–17.5 | < 2.6< 5.7 | > 9.3> 20.5 |
| 18 months mo | 5.512.2 | 3.3–8.37.4–18.4 | < 2.8< 6.1 | > 9.7> 21.3 |
| 24 months mo | 5.712.5 | 3.5–8.67.6–18.9 | < 2.9< 6.3 | > 9.9> 21.9 |
Each chart spans the whole size category, from its lightest adults to its heaviest, so its ranges run wider than a single breed’s: at least half of puppies in the category weigh within the usual range, and fewer than 1 in 10 weigh less than the lightest figure or more than the heaviest. Males and females are shown together, because the size categories are not set by sex.
Weigh on the same scale at the same time of day where you can. The trend across several weighings tells you far more than any single row, and in a cross it is the only thing that narrows the answer.
Where these numbers come from
No kennel club recognises the Shih Poo, so this page does not invent a standard for it.
Every weight range above is built from the American Kennel Club figures for its parent breeds — the Shih Tzu, Toy Poodle and Miniature Poodle pages on this site carry those figures and their sources — and a first-generation cross is taken to land between its two parents. That is why the ranges are wider than on a breed page: they cover everything the two parents allow, not a figure someone chose.
The month-by-month ranges are not measurements of Shih Poos. They are the same growth curves used everywhere on this site — built from 8,754,779 veterinary bodyweight records published by Salt and colleagues — applied to each size category’s adult range.
That research found dogs of similar adult size grow on similar curves whatever the breed, which is what makes the arithmetic valid for a cross with no standard of its own. The derived table, the filtering steps and the known gaps are published in full.
- Salt C, Morris PJ, Wilson D, Lund EM, German AJ (2017). Growth standard charts for monitoring bodyweight in dogs of different sizes. PLoS ONE 12(9): e0182064
- Supporting dataset, University of Liverpool DataCat (CC BY 4.0)
Where to go next
- Puppy weight calculatorAge and weight in, adult weight range out — the tool to use when there is no breed standard.
- Dog size chartThe five size classes, and how to tell which one a puppy is heading for.
- Shih Tzu weight chartOne of the parent breeds, with its own AKC standard.
- Toy Poodle weight chartOne of the parent breeds, with its own AKC standard.
- Miniature Poodle weight chartOne of the parent breeds, with its own AKC standard.
- Body condition scoreThe 9-point scale vets use, and why it beats the scale alone.
Other toy breeds
A Shih Poo sits in the toy size class at the category this page is filed under, so these breeds share its growth curve. Each has an American Kennel Club standard behind its numbers, which a cross does not.
Frequently asked questions
How big will my Shih Poo get?
A Shih Tzu × Miniature Poodle cross lands between about 9 and 16 lb as an adult, and a Shih Tzu × Toy Poodle cross between about 4 and 16 lb, because both pairings land between their parents’ American Kennel Club figures. If you do not know the pairing, enter your puppy’s age and weight into the calculator on the home page.
Is there a Shih Poo breed standard?
No kennel club recognises the Shih Poo, so no kennel club sets its weight. The ranges on this page come from the American Kennel Club standards of its parent breeds, the Shih Tzu and the Poodle.
How much does a Shih Poo weigh in kg?
A Shih Tzu × Miniature Poodle cross lands between about 4.1 and 7.3 kg as an adult, and a Shih Tzu × Toy Poodle cross between about 1.8 and 7.3 kg. Each table above gives every month in kilograms, with a switch to pounds.
When is a Shih Poo fully grown?
A Shih Poo is close to adult weight by about 12 months, as small dogs are; the last few percent can fill in over the following months.
Is my Shih Poo puppy underweight if it is below the chart?
Not necessarily. The tables show a span, and a puppy taking after the smaller parent will sit toward its bottom. A puppy that is consistently below its range and not gaining, or has dropped from a higher line to a lower one, is worth a vet visit; a single low reading is not.
How can I tell if my Shih Poo is a healthy weight?
Body condition tells you more than the scale. You should be able to feel the ribs under a thin layer of fat without pressing, see a waist from above and see the belly tuck up from the side. In a coated cross that check has to be done by hand.