🦴 Dog Calorie & Food Portion Calculator
Enter your dog's weight and activity level to estimate daily calorie needs (using the standard Resting Energy Requirement formula) and how many cups of food to feed per day.
Resting energy requirement, then a multiplier
The calculator runs the standard two-step veterinary estimate: resting energy requirement (RER) from body weight, scaled by the life-stage factor you pick, then divided by the calorie density of your food.
RER = 70 × (kg ^ 0.75)
kcal = RER × factor
cups = kcal / kcal per cupA 10 kg dog has an RER of 70 × 5.623 = 394 kcal. On the neutered adult factor of 1.6 that is 630 kcal a day, and at 350 kcal per cup, 1.80 cups. The exponent matters: a 20 kg dog needs about 1.7 times a 10 kg dog's calories, not double.
The inputs
- Weight in kilograms. Divide pounds by 2.2046 - a 44 lb dog is 19.96 kg.
- Factor: 1.2 weight loss, 1.6 neutered adult, 1.8 intact adult, 2.0 active or working, 3.0 puppy under four months.
- Kcal per cup is on the bag as metabolizable energy. Dry foods run 325-450, so a guess here shifts the portion by a third. Cups mean nothing for wet food - feed that by the can's kcal.
- For weight loss, enter the target weight, not today's.
- Treats count: keep them under about 10% of the day's calories.
Frequently asked questions
How many calories does a 10 kg dog need per day?
Its resting requirement is 394 kcal. A typical neutered adult at 1.6 times that is about 630 kcal a day; the same dog working hard at 2.0 would be near 790.
How much food is that in cups?
Divide daily calories by the kcal per cup on your bag. 630 kcal on a 350 kcal per cup food is 1.80 cups, best split into two meals; on a 450 kcal food the same dog gets 1.40 cups.
Why is my dog gaining weight on the calculated amount?
The multiplier is an average and dogs vary around it. Weigh monthly and adjust by about 10% at a time. Steady gain on a measured portion is worth raising with your vet.