How Much Food Does My Dog Need: Simple Tips And Tricks

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One of the best ways to keep a dog healthy is to know how much food does my dog need

Feeding dogs seem so simple. You only offer suitable dry or wet dog food and never anticipate a problem.

Do you feel guilty about eating three delicious meals a day plus snacks while your dog only gets one or two balls of dry chunks?

Except, it’s really not that simple, it doesn’t have to be that way.

Too little can suffer from nutritional deficiencies and too many eventually lead to obesity and all health problems associated with that condition, including:

Musculoskeletal problems such as osteoarthritis, cruciate ligament fractures, and intervertebral disc disorders
Congestive heart failure
Cushing’s disease
Skin conditions
Some cancers

There are several healthy ways to feed your dog depending on his individual needs.

If you are ready to learn some simple tricks to ensure that your puppy gets the right amount of dog food, then you are in the right place.

Table Of Contents

How Much Food Does My Dog Need
My Dog Always Hungry

How Much Food Does My Dog Need

The amount of food your dog needs depends largely on the size, breed, and age of your dog, as well as how regularly he trains. The key is to ensure that you do not feed your dog too much or too little.

If you are ever unsure, ask your veterinarian to assess your dog’s diet and diet and the condition of his body and overall health.

Always ensure that your dog is well hydrated. This means that they must ensure that their water bowl is always full and is replaced daily so that they can help themselves with watering when they need or want it.

When assessing the size and weight of your dog, it is much more important to look at their body shape than at the weight.

You want your dog to be lean, meaning you should be able to feel his ribs when you rub your fingers firmly over their sides and see a defined waist.

If this is not possible, the diet is time. Obesity in dogs is linked to a shorter lifespan and diseases such as osteoarthritis, and it is completely preventable.

look at the nutrition guide on your dog food. They are usually presented as a table that looks something like this:

Unless otherwise stated, these amounts are the total that is recommended for your dog over a 24-hour period. Most adult dogs should eat two meals a day (puppies often need three or more feeds), so you) should divide the amount in the table by the number of meals you offer.

Combine this information with your knowledge of your dog’s lifestyle to come up with the initial amount of food you are going to offer your dog.

Relation To Your Dog’s Age

8–16 weeks

This is the age at which many puppies enter their new homes. It is important not to make major dietary changes at this time because you may cause an upset stomach by accident.

Many breeders will tell you what they feed your dog. Ideally, continue with this and introduce the diet that you want to give them in small steps in a few weeks until you give your puppy the desired diet completely.

The best food to feed is a high-quality commercial chunk designed for puppies. This ensures that all nutrients are present that your puppy needs for growth and development.

You can add cooked meat and vegetables or rice as desired; however, the most important diet should be the commercially balanced part.

Puppies have a high nutritional requirement and cannot live without food for long. It is very important to give small meals regularly.

16+ weeks

You can gradually apply raw bones after 16 weeks. It is around this time that permanent teeth erupt, so this encourages them to actively chew on something else than on your shoes or couch (it has no effect on healthy teeth).

For puppies one bone per week is usually sufficient; and remember the meat – the better.

Always be aware of signs of illness or anxiety when introducing new food for your puppy. Just like people, dogs can have intolerances or be allergic to things4, or a certain food simply disagrees with your puppy.

Pay attention to what you gave your puppy if a reaction or illness occurs and place it on the no-feed list.

As your puppy gets older, you can gradually reduce the number of feeds twice a day. Try to ensure that you do not feed your dog too much or too little.

It can be tricky because most people assume that larger breeds need more to eat; however, this is not always the case. Over-feeding your puppy can lead to health problems later in life, such as musculoskeletal problems

Adult dogs

Adult dogs should be fed once or twice a day. Use high-quality commercial dog food and make sure it is suitable for the life phase and health of your dog

Dogs of small or medium breeds are generally considered to be adults) from the age of 12 months, while your dogs are of larger breeds last a little longer and (adults) actually do not reach 18-24 months.

Contact your veterinarian when you need to switch from puppy-suitable food to adult-friendly.

The same dietary guidelines apply to adult dogs. Make sure that the diet you choose is complete and balanced. You can add meat (cooked or raw) and vegetables or fish for variation. Choose large, raw, meaty bones. The most important thing is that you do not feed too much.

Senior dogs

For older dogs, they need to check their health is crucial.

Many older dogs have chronic health problems that can be influenced or improved by the diet that you feed.

For some older dogs, frequent smaller meals will keep them happy and satisfied. For others, it is about keeping things the same as before.

Some older dogs may need more fiber, protein or other nutrients to ensure that their body is cared for. Talk to your veterinarian about the specific needs of your dog.

How much should I feed my dog when he is not active?

Inactive dogs need fewer calories, not necessarily less food. So from this point, you can go in two ways.

You can give him less food (say 2.2 – 2.5% of his body weight per day) or you can give him the same meal as a normal dog, but you must ensure that his meals are lean (use white meat such as chicken/turkey/ fish instead of thicker red meat).

If it’s too heavy, check out our article about fat dogs!

How much should I feed my dog if he is very active?

You must feed active dogs a little more (at least 3% of its body weight) or a high-calorie (thicker) meal! So choose red meat over white!

How much should I feed my puppy?

Puppies eat much more in terms of a percentage of their body weight. Go to our dog food calculator to get an accurate figure, you have the weight of your puppy AND the weight you expect from him.

In short, the puppy of a medium-sized dog eats about 10% of its body weight at the age of 2 months, 5% of its body weight at 6 months and 3% of its body weight at one year.

My Dog Always Hungry

The use of commercial pet food guidelines should be a starting point for deciding how much you want to feed your dog. If he seems to be hungry all the time, you may have to feed him more. Keep in mind that some dogs will always look hungry and overweight. You may need to use diet food that fills it more.

The amount of food your dog needs can change if: