Dog Food Quantity Calculator

Work out dog food quantity instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Dog Food Quantity Calculator

Resting energy requirement is 70 times body weight in kilograms to the power 0.75; multiplying by the life-stage factor gives maintenance needs, which the food's energy density converts into grams. Energy needs scale with weight to the three-quarter power, not linearly, which is why a 40 kg dog needs far less than twice the food of a 20 kg one.

Formulas

Resting energy

RER kcal = 70 x (body weight kg) ^ 0.75

Daily food

grams = RER x life stage factor x 100 / kcal per 100 g

Worked example

With the default values below, Dog Food Quantity Calculator returns Food per day of 302.6. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Dog's weightminimum 0.5 kg: 20 kg
Life stage and activityone of Adult, neutered (factor 1.6), Adult, intact (1.8), Weight loss (1.0), Active / working (3.0), Puppy under 4 months (3.0): Adult, neutered (factor 1.6)
Food energy densityminimum 50 kcal/100g: 350 kcal/100g

Results

Food per day: 302.6 g
Maintenance energy requirement: 1,059 kcal
Resting energy requirement: 662 kcal
Approximate cups of dry food: 2.75

Step by step

1Values used
2Resting energy
3Daily food
4Food per day= 302.6 g
5Maintenance energy requirement= 1,059 kcal
6Resting energy requirement= 662 kcal
7Approximate cups of dry food= 2.75

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 3 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the Dog Food Quantity figure worked out?

RER kcal = 70 x (body weight kg) ^ 0.75. Resting energy requirement is 70 times body weight in kilograms to the power 0.75; multiplying by the life-stage factor gives maintenance needs, which the food's energy density converts into grams.

Why does this matter?

Energy needs scale with weight to the three-quarter power, not linearly, which is why a 40 kg dog needs far less than twice the food of a 20 kg one.

What do I need to enter?

Enter dog's weight, life stage and activity, food energy density. The defaults shown are a realistic worked example — swap in your own figures to get a result you can use.