The amount of food and the frequency that we feed our dog throughout the day are essential to make sure that it does not gain too much weight or, conversely, does not receive the necessary nutrients.
Knowing how to choose the right food for your dog and taking him out so it gets some exercise are important ways to prevent canine obesity, but they're useless if you feed your dog more food than it needs. If you want to know how much food to feed your dog so that it maintains an ideal weight, this OneHowTo article will explain everything.
Choosing the right dog food is essential to ensure that it leads a healthy and balanced life, but the amount of food you feed it is just as important. The quantity of food it needs will depend on the age and size of your pet.
Until they reach 4 months old, all puppies need to eat 4 to 5 meals a day. During their first months of life, dogs need to eat really well in order to grow and develop properly. That's why at this age well feed them more frequently throughout the day.
Once they are six weeks old, you should start giving them puppy food mixed with water and, little by little, reduce the amount of water until you're feeding them dry food. Small breeds should eat 5 times a day; larger breeds should eat 4 times a day because they grow and develop more slowly. If you want to know when to change from puppy food to dog food, take a look at our article.
Try to create a feeding schedule so that you're always feeding your dog at the same times. It is very important to establish a routine for your dog. Dogs are animals that need to follow rules and during the first 6 months is the best time to start establishing a routine when it comes to feeding and training.
From 4 to 6 months, you need to wean your dog down to having 3 meals a day. Most types of dog are halfway through their development at 4 months old and already weigh half their adult weight, which is why it is necessary to reduce the number of meals. For small breeds, you will now feed them 4 times per day.
Once it reaches 6 months, your dog begins to become an adult and you should feed it 2 meals a day. It is very important to know how often you should feed your dog so that it grows healthy and strong. After 8 months of age, or a year for giant breeds such as Great Danes, you can continue feeding your dog two meals or reduce it down to one: it really depends on whether you prefer to split the food over two meals or give it all in one sitting.
As for the amount of food to give per serving, this will largely depend on the size and weight of your dog. In general, a dog should eat 2-3% of its total weight, so it's best to consult your veterinarian for the correct proportions, check the table of recommendations for dog feed or familiarise yourself with the ideal amounts that your dog breed needs.
However, certain general recommendations can help you determine the ideal amount of food for your dog. Small breeds need a smaller amount than larger ones. Low weight breeds, such as chihuahuas, will need to eat between 29-92 grams per day until they reach 4 months old. The actual amount will depend on the adult weight of the breed. For example, if it will weigh 1 kg as an adult, you should feed it between 29-33 g, but if it will weigh 4 kg, the amount should be between 78-92 g. The higher the adult weight, the more food it will need.
From 4 to 6 months, you should feed it between 33-84 g. From 6 to 8 months, the amount varies between 28-66 g. From 8 to 6 months, you should feed it between 23-65 g. As you can see, as the dog gets older the amount of food decreases because its body changes and does not require as much food.
You should take your puppy to the vet to find out what your dog's ideal adult weight should be.
Small but heavier breeds, such as French bulldogs, require larger amounts of food, depending once again on their ideal adult weight. The following are the amounts that you should give your dog according to its age, so that you know how much you should feed your dog:
- Up to 4 months old: between 115-240 g
- From 4 to 6 months old: between 140-245 g
- From 6 to 8 months old: between 140-235 g
- From 8 months old: between 135-230 g
For large breeds, the general guidelines are as follows:
- Up to 4 months old: between 210-480 g
- From 4 to 6 months old: between 365-590 g
- From 6 to 8 months old: between 390-520 g
- From 8 months old: between 340-445 g
Giant dog breeds grow more slowly and, therefore, the amount of food varies. The amount of food you should feed your dog if it is a giant breed is as follows:
- Up to 4 months old: between 310-855 g
- From 4 to 6 months old: between 635-1020 g
- From 6 to 9 months old: between 800-955 g
- From 9 to 12 months old: between 640-935 g
- From 12 months old: between 615-830 g
If your dog is suffering from an illness or your vet determines for whatever reason that it should eat more or less food throughout the day, then you should follow the advice of your vet. You should be aware that the type of food will change in some cases such as when your dog has dermatitis, diarrhoea, gastritis or displasia, among others.
If you want to read similar articles to How Much Food To Feed My Dog, we recommend you visit our Pets category.
- Remember that the amounts shown are per day, so you should divide the amount by the number of servings you should give.
- Until your dog reaches adulthood, the amount of food is determined by the weight it will have as an adult.