Pets
How much food should you feed your dog per day?
Daily calories and grams of kibble, wet or raw food based on your dog’s weight, age and activity level.
Quick answer
Over half of dogs in western countries are overweight, and the number one cause is simple: owners feed by eye, and the serving suggestions on food bags tend to be generous. The good news is that dog nutrition has a well-established formula behind it. Vets start from the Resting Energy Requirement — RER = 70 × (weight in kg)^0.75 — and multiply it by a factor for life stage and activity: around 1.6 for a neutered adult, up to 2.5-3 for a growing puppy, down to 1.4 for a senior.
Food per day
286 g
- Calories per day
- 1,059 kcal
- Per meal (2 meals)
- 143 g
Based on the standard veterinary formula (RER = 70 × kg^0.75) with age and activity multipliers, assuming average energy density. Kibble brands vary from 3.2 to 4.2 kcal/g — check your bag’s label and adjust. Watch body condition over 2-3 weeks rather than trusting any single number. Not a substitute for veterinary advice.
How it works
Calories then convert to grams through the energy density of the food, and this is where owners get caught out: dry kibble packs roughly 3.5-4 kcal per gram while wet food is only about 1 kcal per gram — so the same dog needs more than three times the weight in wet food. The calculator above does the full chain: weight → calories → grams per day → grams per meal. Treat the result as a starting point, check it against your bag’s label, and let your dog’s body condition over the following weeks be the final judge.
Frequently asked questions
How many grams of kibble should a 10 kg dog eat per day?+
A neutered adult 10 kg dog with normal activity needs roughly 630 kcal per day, which is about 170 g of average kibble (3.7 kcal/g), split into two meals of ~85 g. An active dog of the same weight can need 20-25% more, a couch-loving senior 15-20% less. Always cross-check with your specific food’s kcal/100g on the label.
How do I know if I’m feeding the right amount?+
Use the body condition check, not the bowl: you should feel the ribs easily under a thin layer of fat without seeing them, and see a visible waist from above. If ribs disappear under padding, cut portions by ~10% and re-check in three weeks. The scale matters less than the shape — muscle and breed variation make weight alone misleading.
Do treats count toward the daily amount?+
Absolutely — and they’re the most common hidden cause of weight gain. The guideline is that treats should stay under 10% of daily calories: for a 10 kg dog that’s about 60 kcal, which a single dental stick can use up entirely. If you train with treats often, subtract the equivalent from the kibble ration or use part of the daily kibble as training treats.
How much should a puppy eat compared to an adult?+
A growing puppy needs 2-3× the calories per kg of an adult — the calculator uses a 2.5 factor. Feed puppy-specific food (higher protein and calcium) in 3-4 meals a day until about 6 months, then 2-3. Recalculate every few weeks as weight changes fast. For large breeds, avoid overfeeding: growing too fast is a risk factor for joint problems.
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