# How much food and how many calories?



## Koicare (Jul 29, 2007)

Does anyone have a rough chart of how much food to feed per day, and how many calories to work on in terms of age and weight.
I have an 18 week old male weighing 19.5kg / a 7 year old female weighing around 31kg's and an 19 month old female weighing about 32 kg's.

I have read somewhere that a puppy needs as much as 10% of his body weight in food per day - that would equate to nearly 2kg's of food for the male. Then I read that they only need 2% body weight - that is only 390 grams of food per day - a huge difference. Does anyone have a rough guide to point me to. I realise that many factors come into play including age, activity levels, metabolism etc, but if I have a guide to start with I would feel more comfortable that I have started right and then I can make adjustments if we are gaining too much or too little etc.

Just a little lost here. I can not free feed with my lot - they will continue to eat.........

Anyone with a guide?


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

Does the food you feed (if in a bag) have any guidance? That is what I followed, then I kept an eye on his sides to make sure he was not getting too fat. I also watched his actions and I could tell when he got hungry. I would check out the Iams Large Breed Puppy chart on the Iams website. It is a good start for you to decide. Again....calories and how much metabolized energy is going to differ by brands. A candybar has lots of calories but isn't very good to eat as the whole meal.

I also looked at the images from the vet that showed "underweight, normal and obese" and that helped me decide on how to feed Angeles. He was fed three times a day and now, after migrating to Adult food he is free fed, which has helped my other dogs stop being so picky and getting back to what is left out. It is not optimum since I have to see how much he eats vs others. But with my dogs - its what I've had to do now. So far his waist line looks fine....more than I can say for me  I got the Wii Fit and it is happy to tell you if you weigh too much! LOL

Keep in mind some days your dog will be more hungry than others...so that is why I use the term "guidance"....just like some days we get more hungry than others - we have to listen to our bodies  and listen to our dogs 

Have a great day!


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## Koicare (Jul 29, 2007)

Sorry - I was not very clear. I meant in terms of raw food and not bagged commercial pellets.


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## CookieTN (Sep 14, 2008)

Here's a guide:
http://www.dogster.com/forums/Raw_Food_Diet/thread/491589
(Click on the link in the OP.)

I've always done a play it by ear thing myself. I started my dog on 3% of his body weight and I kept a close eye on his weight. If he started losing, I would adjust and visa versa. But then, my dog is an adult, not a puppy.


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## kallie (Sep 3, 2001)

I do anywhere between 2% and 3% for my dogs, my labs are are very active so they get more. This can also change depending upon the time of year, due to swimming, etc..

I started off higher, and worked from there. Higher being 3%, not 10 One of my labs may get almost 4% in the summer due to swimming a lot more. Max (GSD) has done well on 2%...

Calories would figure into the % you give, type of meat you give, etc, so not sure I could answer that one..Just watch their poop and you'll do fine..


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## mspiker03 (Dec 7, 2006)

Pups should be fed 2-3% of their EXPECTED adult weight.


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

AHHH...I guess I should have seen the area the post was in (RAW) LOL.... okay -well that makes sense now!


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

The basic rule of thumb is that pups are fed 2-3% of their *expected* adult weight or 10% of their *weight at 8 weeks*.

I find that you need to be MUCH more flexible.









Puppies go through growth spurts - when they seem to just sprout up over night. And they go through periods when they just seem to stay the same for weeks.

With Mauser I started at 7% of his 8 week old weight. I FEEL him every week to see how he is doing.

Too bony - increase the food. Too fat - maintain or MAAAAYBE cut back a little. Just right - keep the amount the same for the following week.

Also remember - raw fed pups tend to grow slower than their kibble fed kin.









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