How much should I feed my dog? Feeding chart by weight
Chart by weight: kcal and grams of dry, wet and fresh food per day. A 10 kg dog needs around 630 kcal, or about 175 g of dry food.
By the DoggoMeal editorial teamPublished Updated 6 min read
In short
How much your dog should eat depends on their energy requirement: a resting requirement of 70 × body weight^0.75 kcal, multiplied by a factor for activity and life stage. On that basis, a neutered, normally active 10 kg dog needs around 630 kcal a day – about 175 g of dry food, 630 g of wet food or 485 g of home-cooked food. That's a starting point: check your dog's weight and body shape every 1–2 weeks.
For Nami, we're at about 2.5–3% of body weight per day. We worked it out with our app – that put an end to the constant guesswork.
How much your dog should eat depends on their energy requirement – not on a fixed percentage of their weight. A neutered, normally active 10 kg dog needs around 630 kcal a day: about 175 g of dry food, 630 g of wet food or 485 g of home-cooked food. The table below shows the values for other weights – as a starting point that you check against your dog's weight.
A sporty 18 kg Border Collie needs around 1,225 kcal a day (about 340 g of dry food), while a calm Beagle of the same weight needs only about 855 kcal (about 240 g). That's exactly why “how much” isn't just a question for a table – but the table is a good start.
Work it out
Work it out for your dog: enter weight, life stage, exercise and whether your dog is neutered – the food amount calculator shows the grams per day of dry, wet or fresh food, with the kcal figure from your pack if you like. Guide values for typical breeds can be found under food amount by breed.
How the requirement is calculated
Veterinary experts calculate in two steps (NRC, WSAVA):
- Resting energy requirement (RER): 70 × body weight in kg to the power of 0.75 – for 10 kg, that's around 394 kcal.
- Daily requirement: the resting requirement multiplied by a factor for activity and life stage.
Because body weight is raised to the power of 0.75, the requirement doesn't rise in a straight line: a 60 kg Great Dane doesn't need twice as much as a 30 kg dog, but about 1.7 times as much. Rules of thumb such as “50 to 70 kcal per kilo” are therefore too low for small dogs and too high for large ones. For a quick estimate, you can calculate your dog's calorie needs.
The table: what actually belongs in the bowl
Values for a neutered, normally active adult dog (factor 1.6). Dry food at 360 kcal per 100 g, wet food at 100 kcal per 100 g, home-cooked or fresh food at 130 kcal per 100 g:
Individual dogs vary by about ±10%. And the energy density of your food is printed on the pack – it always takes priority over our averages. With the figure from your pack, you can calculate the food amount for your dog. You'll find typical values for individual breeds in the overview of food amounts by breed, for example for the Labrador, Dachshund or French Bulldog.
Puppies, adults, senior dogs
Puppies need considerably more per kilo: up to about four months, around three times the resting requirement, and after that twice the resting requirement. With large breeds, though, it's still better to let them grow steadily than too fast. You'll find the details in our guide to feeding puppies properly.
Adult dogs fall between a factor of 1.4 and 2.0, depending on activity and whether they're neutered. Neutered dogs often need noticeably less than dogs that aren't neutered – something that's frequently forgotten in practice.
Senior dogs usually need about 10 to 20% less energy, but not less high-quality protein. Maintaining muscle is more important than ever in old age.
Dry food vs. fresh food: why the amounts look so different
100 g of dry food provides roughly as much energy as 275 g of home-cooked food. So if you switch, you'll be filling the bowl with almost three times the amount – it looks like a lot, but it's right.
The raw feeding rule of thumb of “2 to 3% of body weight” only fits energy-dense raw rations. With home-cooked food at around 130 kcal per 100 g, a normally active dog needs more like 4 to 5% of their body weight – a 15 kg dog about 660 g. That's why it's better to calculate by calories than by percentages.
How to tell whether the amount is right
The WSAVA Body Condition Score helps: you should be able to feel your dog's ribs without pressing hard, but not see them from a distance. Seen from above, a dog at their ideal weight has a waist behind the ribcage; from the side, the belly tucks up slightly towards the back.
Weigh your dog every one to two weeks – small dogs with you on the bathroom scales (you holding your dog minus you on your own), large dogs at the vet. If the weight moves in the wrong direction over a few weeks, adjust the amount by about 10%.
By the way: treats count too. All treats together should stay below 10% of the daily calories – so with 630 kcal, below about 63 kcal. If your dog is carrying too much weight, our guide to helping your dog lose weight will help.
In the DoggoMeal app, you can work all of this out directly for your dog – weight, activity and age in, ready-made amounts out. Get the app.
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Frequently asked questions
How much dry food does a 20 kg dog need per day?
A neutered, normally active 20 kg dog needs around 1,060 kcal a day. With dry food at 360 kcal per 100 g, that's about 295 g. If the dog isn't neutered, it's more like 330 g; for a calm dog, about 255 g. The kcal figure on your pack takes priority – and after two to three weeks, your dog's weight will show whether the amount is right.
Should I calculate raw feeding (BARF) amounts differently from dry food?
It's best to always calculate by calories. The raw feeding rule of thumb of 2 to 3% of body weight only fits energy-dense rations. With home-cooked food at around 130 kcal per 100 g, a 10 kg dog needs about 485 g, or just under 5% of their body weight.
My dog doesn't finish their food – am I giving too much?
Possibly. First check their weight and body shape: if your dog is slim and fit, reduce the amount by 10% for a week and see whether they finish their bowl. If, on the other hand, they're losing weight or suddenly eating noticeably less than usual, have them checked by a vet.
Sources
This article is based on the following expert sources. You can read how we work under Editorial team & methodology.
- Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats (2006) – National Research Council (NRC), National Academies Press
- Global Nutrition Guidelines – World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA)
- Body Condition Score – Dog – WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee
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DoggoMeal editorial team
DoggoMeal is a dog nutrition app, founded and run by Kim Marques. Nami, our Shiba, is part of everyday life – her experiences with food changes, bland diets and the like appear in many articles as personal examples.
Our content follows the recommendations of the NRC, WSAVA and FEDIAF. You'll find the sources for this article above under “Sources”. The articles are no substitute for veterinary advice – if your dog has symptoms, please talk to your vet.
