How much should I feed my dog?

Vets start from the resting energy requirement (RER): the calories a dog burns lying still in a comfortable room. The 2021 AAHA Nutrition and Weight Management Guidelines give it as 70 x body weight in kg to the power 0.75. The Merck Veterinary Manual gives the same formula and says it works for animals of any weight; a simpler straight-line version, 30 x kg + 70, is only meant for dogs between 2 and 45 kg.

The RER is then multiplied by a life-stage factor to give the maintenance energy requirement (MER), the calories for a normal day. The factors below are AAHA's ranges. Merck's table gives single values that sit inside them for neutered adults (1.6), intact adults (1.8) and puppies (3 under 4 months, 2 after), but a higher one for obesity-prone adults (1.4), so the calculator shows AAHA's range rather than one number.

AAHA's box adds a line every Indian flat owner should read: sedentary or indoor pets may need fewer calories than these factors suggest. Merck says the same of dogs kept in households compared with dogs in kennels.

Every formula here is an average. WSAVA's Global Nutrition Committee says individual dogs can need up to 50% more or less than the starting point; Merck puts it at as much as 30% either way. Activity, age, lean muscle and coat all change it. That is why the calculator gives a range and why the two-week check matters more than the first number.

The check is the body condition score. WSAVA scores it on a 9-point scale: 4 to 5 out of 9 is ideal, below 4 is underweight and above 5 is overweight. On WSAVA's dog chart, an ideal dog has ribs you can feel easily under a little fat and a waist you can see from above, with the belly tucked up seen from the side. Your vet can show you how to score your own dog. If your dog is gaining, feed towards the bottom of the range; if it is losing, towards the top.

The feeding guide on the pack is also a fair starting point, WSAVA says, because it is built on the calories an average dog of that weight needs. If the pack's grams and the calculator's grams are far apart, the pack is usually assuming a more active dog. Use whichever is lower, and let the body condition score decide.

WSAVA notes that calorie information is only required on pet food labels in the United States. Look for it on your pack all the same, and if it is not there, WSAVA's advice is to contact the manufacturer, who should be able to give it or work it out from the analysis. Without a calorie figure, no calculator can give you grams, so follow the pack's own feeding guide and your vet.

In many Indian homes the dog also gets a piece of roti, a spoon of curd, some rice, a biscuit with the evening chai or a little ghee on top. Each of these is part of the day's calories. WSAVA's rule is that treats, including human foods, stay at about 10% of the total, with the main food making up the rest. If your dog eats a lot from the family table, the calculator's grams of packaged food will overfeed it.

If you cook for your dog full time, the formula still tells you the calories, but it cannot tell you whether the food is complete. WSAVA warns that generic online recipes can include harmful ingredients, garlic among them, and miss essential nutrients when fed long term. Ask your vet to refer you to a veterinary nutritionist for a recipe. And if a sitter is feeding your dog while you are away, write the grams and the treat limit on the care sheet so the plan stays the same.