Dog feeding recommendations, including how much to feed a puppy, are merely a general suggestion. Here’s how to properly feed your dog.
The amount of food to feed your dog will vary depending on the dog’s size, age, breed, degree of activity, and genetics. How much food to give your dog can also depend on whether it has been neutered or spayed.
There are no formal food recommendations for dogs because of this. Calories determine how much food to give your dog, just as they do for humans, and each dog has a different caloric requirement.
According to the American College of Veterinary Nutritionists, there are between 300 and over 700 calories per cup in various brands of kibble. That represents a huge gap. Thankfully, the majority of pet food producers now provide the number of calories in a cup of their food.
The “resting energy requirement (RER)” is a general term for the amount of calories your dog needs to consume to maintain their ideal weight. Divide the dog’s optimum weight in pounds by 2.2 to get kilos to get your dog’s RER. Then add 70 and multiply that result by 30.
So let’s suppose your dog should weigh 90 pounds at its ideal size. 90 lb divided by 2.2 equals 40.9 kilograms. Add 70 and multiply by 30 to get 40.9 x 30 = 1,227 + 70 = 1,297. Therefore, a 90-pound dog needs 1,297 calories per day (without additional exercise) only to carry out basic bodily activities.
Examine the meal you are feeding next. Let’s suppose each cup has 380 calories. Therefore, divide 1,297 calories by 380, or the number of calories in one cup of food, to get the following result: An average 90-lb dog needs 3.41 cups of food per day divided by 1,297 380. However, not all dogs are average, and all dogs need get at least some exercise.
To maintain a healthy weight, the RER must be multiplied by the dog’s energy requirements and then adjusted upward or downward. Since individual dogs can differ significantly from estimated numbers, you need still make adjustments to the number you receive in order to get your dog to a healthy weight and then keep it there.
Obese dogs should be fed at the RER for their optimal weight in order to shed weight. Working dogs who are active can require two to five times the RER to maintain weight. The RER x 1.6 is required for typical active neutered dogs. With typical labor, intact adult dogs require RER x 1.8.
At the very least, check your dog’s body once a month with your touch if you can’t weigh him on a scale. He should always have ribs that you can feel and a waist that you can see when you glance down over his topline. Your dog is too overweight if his ribs aren’t discernible. In these conditions, a lower-calorie dog food might be helpful to some extent, but ultimately, he will need to have smaller servings each day.
Do away with snacks and treats. For the majority of dogs, reducing your dog’s meal quantities by 25% is a straightforward, secure, and efficient method of weight loss. Take part of the kibble he would normally receive at mealtime and use that for treats if you’re teaching your dog.
Measure: To measure your dog’s food, use a regular measuring cup. Do not load food into the top centromedicorelaxesalute.it of the cup; instead, use level measures!
Nutrients: Choose a food that is formulated to fulfill the American Association of Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) recommendations for nutrients. The majority of mature dogs thrive on “maintenance” foods. Moms, puppies, and energetic dogs require extra calories, protein, and fat. These canines require food designed for “all life stages.”
Schedules: All dogs should be fed at least twice daily, and pups should be fed at least three times daily. Never give your dog a free-choice diet. Even those dogs who don’t gulp it up right away shouldn’t be free-fed because the majority of dogs will at least try to eat it all in one sitting. If you let your dog “graze” all day, it will take you much longer to realize that he no longer has an appetite.
Table scraps: Unless there is a need (such as a fussy eater, a senior dog, or a dog who is on boiled ground beef or chicken with rice owing to an upset digestive tract) or unless you reduce his regular food quantity correspondingly, don’t ruin all your hard work by offering your dog table scraps. If additional “leftovers” account for more than 25% of his daily caloric intake, you run the risk of throwing off the balance of a “complete and balanced” diet.
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