nutrition
How much should I feed my dog or cat?
Use BCS, not the label
Body condition score is a 1–9 (or 1–5) scale your vet uses to assess fat cover. A healthy adult dog or cat sits at 4–5/9: you can feel ribs easily under a light layer of fat, see a tucked-up abdomen from the side, and see a waist from above. If you can't feel ribs, your pet is overweight no matter what the bag says.
Recalculate every 6–8 weeks. Activity changes (a colder winter, an injury, a new puppy in the house), metabolism shifts with age, and feeding amounts need to shift with them.
Meal frequency
- Puppies under 4 months: 4 meals/day.
- Puppies 4–6 months: 3 meals/day.
- Adult dogs: 2 meals/day (twice daily lowers bloat risk in deep-chested breeds vs once daily).
- Cats: 2–4 small meals/day, closer to their hunting evolution and reduces gorge-vomit cycle.
- Seniors: 2–3 meals/day, often with reduced calories and a senior-formulated diet.
Sources
Related questions
Conditions this bears on
renal
Chronic kidney disease (CKD)
urinary
Feline lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD)
metabolic
Feline hyperthyroidism
metabolic
Diabetes mellitus (dogs and cats)
metabolic
Canine obesity
metabolic
Feline obesity
gastrointestinal
Canine pancreatitis
gastrointestinal
Bloat and gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV) in dogs
metabolic
Hypothyroidism in dogs
urinary
Urinary tract infection in dogs
gastrointestinal
Pancreatitis in cats
gastrointestinal
Feline hepatic lipidosis
Breeds this comes up for
Related glossary terms
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