The amount of food consumed by your pet is dependent on numerous factors like age, gender, health status, physiological requirements, breed, etc. The quantity and quality of nutrients you provide also plays a crucial role. |
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Listed below are some factors that affect the nutritional requirements of dogs:
Breed: If your pet weighs up to 10 pounds, a 1/3 to one full cup of food would suffice. If it weighs 10 to 25 pounds, you should give at least one to 2¼ cups of food. A 25 to 50 pound dog would require two to 2¾ cups of food. Larger sized animals weighing up to 75 pounds require three to five cups while dogs weighing beyond 75 pounds will require five to eight cups of food. However, you should always observe your dog’s hunger status. If you find him wasting food on a regular basis, it is advisable to decrease the quantity. On the other hand, if he looks constantly hungry, you can include a little extra.
Physical activity: If your dog is overly active and energetic, you have to feed him more. Extra energy expenditure automatically means that your dog is burning more calories. Therefore, the amount of food given should proportionately increase. A fat content of 20 percent is ideal for overly active dogs. If the dg exhibits normal activity, a nine percent fat intake would suffice.
Age: This plays a very important role in determining the amount of food the pet requires. You should a four-week puppy with some dry food. Once it is six to eight weeks old, you can increase the puppy food to three to four feeds per day. In between eight weeks to nine months, you should reduce the feedings to twice daily. A nine month old dog requires feeding once every day.
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If you are not too comfortable buying readymade commercial foods for dogs, you can always prepare them at home. However, remember to maintain the different nutrients requirements proportionately to prevent nutritional deficiencies. In general, dogs of any breed will require at least forty percent meat products, fifty percent vegetables and ten percent starch in their diet. Home made products do not stay longer like commercially prepared ones.