Sticker shock
- Thread starter lucille
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well i'm not her but it's based on their size, age, and activity level (and sometimes pregnancy). for example my 4 y.o., 65 lb., moderately exercised dog gets between 1000-1400 calories a day (really depending on how much he feels like eating that day).
if this is incorrect or questionable somebody please chime in
if this is incorrect or questionable somebody please chime in
the daily caloric requirement of a dog is the amount of food he needs in order to maintain weight. if you feed more than that, he will gain weight, and if you feed less, he will lose weight.
of course the number of calories required per day depends on many different factors, such as age, gender, breed, activity level, metabolism, whether the dog lives indoors or outdoors and the climate and so on.
if you feed commercial food, it's relatively simple to determine the caloric requirement, since you know the daily feeding amount and the caloric content of the food. if you feed X cups of a food, and the food has Y calories per cup, you multiply the two and that's your result.
if you feed a home prepared diet, you also need to know the amounts of whatever you feed, and how many calories per weight unit they contain.
guidelines exist for calculating baselines for puppies and adults by weight, established for example by the national research council.
of course the number of calories required per day depends on many different factors, such as age, gender, breed, activity level, metabolism, whether the dog lives indoors or outdoors and the climate and so on.
if you feed commercial food, it's relatively simple to determine the caloric requirement, since you know the daily feeding amount and the caloric content of the food. if you feed X cups of a food, and the food has Y calories per cup, you multiply the two and that's your result.
if you feed a home prepared diet, you also need to know the amounts of whatever you feed, and how many calories per weight unit they contain.
guidelines exist for calculating baselines for puppies and adults by weight, established for example by the national research council.
Along with the day to day cost factor in using a high quality feed as opposed to the others, there is the consideration of long-term health care costs. I know I have seen a very significant reduction in veterinary costs, and fully expect to have fewer long term problems such as skin conditions as my dogs age.
