How Much Food Should I Feed My Dog?
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When it comes to dog food, dog owners have a lot of options, but the brand they choose is only the beginning. The amount of food a dog should eat is determined by its age, size, disease status, and activity level. Knowing how much to feed your dog differs from knowingh
low much to feed someone else's dog, thus knowing what your dog need is crucial. Providing the right of food and nutrients will keep your dog not only happy, but also healthy.
Types of Dog Food
Dog food comes in a variety of formats, each of which contains varying amounts of nutrients and calories that a dog requires. The following are some of the most prevalent types of dog food:
_Freeze-dried kibble
_Homecooked diets
_Raw food
_Canned wet food
_Pouched wet food
_Refrigerated kibble
_Refrigerated tubes
_Frozen discs or patties
_Frozen kibble
_Dry kibble
Nutritional Needs of Dogs
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Dogs are omnivores, which means they require a variety of foods in addition to meat. Fruits, vegetables, and even grains give a wide range of nutrients that an exclusively carnivorous diet lacks. The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) establishes food standards that are used by governing organizations to guarantee that dog diets are nutritionally adequate and contain everything a dog need. This means that dog food manufacturers who adhere to the AAFCO requirements provide diets that are complete and balanced for the life stage of the dog for which they are labeled.
Because dogs with health issues may require variable levels of essential nutrients, your veterinarian may recommend a special diet for your dog that does not adhere to AAFCO criteria. Large or giant breed dogs may also benefit from special formulae to keep them from growing too quickly.
AAFCO Nutrient Requirements for Dogs
Caloric Requirements of Dogs
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The more active a dog is, the more calories it should ingest to meet its energy requirements, just like people. A little arithmetic is involved in determining a starting point, or resting energy requirements (RER), for how many calories your dog should eat each day.
To begin, figure out how much your dog weighs in kilograms. Divide your dog's weight in pounds by 2.2 to get the answer. To get the weight of your dog in kilograms, multiply it by 30. Finally, double that figure by 70 to get your dog's RER in calories. Next, multiply the RER by 1.8 if your dog is not neutered or spayed, 1.6 if it is neutered or spayed, and 1.4 if it is prone to getting overweight if your dog is healthy. Multiply the RER by two if your dog is between four months and a year old, and three if it is under four months old. This will tell you the MER (maintenance energy requirement) for a moderately active, healthy dog.More calories will be required if your dog is particularly active or lives outside, however the MER may need to be changed by up to 30% more or less than you predicted depending on how your dog maintains its weight.
How Much Food Does Your Dog Need?
You'll be able to estimate how much food to feed your dog after taking into account the nutrients and calories it requires. If a food has a greater calorie content, you won't need to give as much as if it has a lower calorie content, so check the bag to see how many calories each cup of dog food contains. A healthy, neutered 50 pound dog, for example, should ingest roughly 1200 calories per day. Depending on how many calories are in the food you choose to feed your dog, this corresponds to around 3 cups of dog food per day.