Calculate Dog Calorie Needs Daily (Amounts)

If you want to calculate the daily caloric requirements of your dog, you need to understand that the figure is a result of various variables which we’ll discuss in detail here. I have also explained how you can calculate the daily caloric requirements of your dog.

What are calories?

Calories are units of energy. In the context of nutrition, calories refer to the energy from the food and drinks consumed, and the energy they use in physical activity. The energy required by a dog is provided in the diet from protein, fat, and carbohydrates.

How to determine caloric intake in dog food:

Bomb calorimetry:

The most direct way to measure the energy value of food is by bomb calorimetry. This involves burning a known quantity of the food in a special instrument (a bomb calorimeter) and measuring the heat released. The energy content of the food can then be calculated from the heat released.

The problem with bomb calorimetry is that it only measures the energy available from the food once it has been digested and absorbed by the body. This may not be the same as the energy value of the food as eaten by the animal, because some of the energy in the food may be lost in feces or unavailable for absorption by the gut.

In addition, bomb calorimetry only measures the energy content of the food, not how well the animal can use that energy. For example, a food that is high in fat may have a high energy content but be low in digestibility, so the animal may not be able to use all of the energy in the food.

Atwater factors:

The energy content of food can also be estimated using the Atwater factors. The Atwater factors are a set of values that are used to calculate the energy content of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

To calculate the energy content of a food using the Atwater factors, you need to know the percentage of each nutrient in the food. For example, if a food contains 10% carbs, 20% protein and 30% fat, the energy content of the food would be:

• 4 x 10% = 0.4 kcal/g for carbohydrates
• 4 x 20% = 0.8 kcal/g for proteins
• 9 x 30% = 2.7 kcal/g for fat

Total energy content of the food = 0.4 + 0.8 + 2.7 = 4.1 kcal/g.

Using the Maintenance Energy Requirement formula:

Another way to calculate the daily caloric requirements of your dog is to use the Maintenance Energy Requirement (MER) formula. The MER formula takes into account the dog’s body weight, body condition score, activity level and the climate in which they live.

To use the MER formula, you need to know the following:

• -Your dog’s body weight in kilograms (kg)
• -Your dog’s body condition score on a 3-point scale
• -Your dog’s activity level
• Signalment – neutered vs intact dog

I have described each of the above variables used to calculate MER in detail below but first, let’s look at factors that will influence how much energy your dog will need every day;

Factors that influence the energy requirements of dogs:

There are several factors that influence the daily caloric requirements of dogs, including:

• -Size: The smaller the dog, the less energy they need.
• -Age: Puppies and young dogs need more calories than adults because they are growing. Senior dogs may need fewer calories than adult dogs because they are less active.
• -Activity level: Active dogs need more calories than sedentary dogs.
• -Temperature: Dogs need more calories in cold weather because they use more energy to keep warm.
• -Pregnancy and lactation: Pregnant and nursing dogs need more calories than non-pregnant dogs.
• -Disease: Dogs with certain diseases may need more or fewer calories than healthy dogs.

Calculating daily caloric requirements (MER) of a dog using adjusted RER:

You can calculate the daily caloric requirements also known as the Maintenance energy requirement of a dog using their resting energy requirement (RER) and their signalment, body condition score (BCS), and activity level.

What is MER?

The Maintenance Energy Requirement (MER) is the amount of energy needed by a dog to maintain its weight and body condition. The MER includes the energy needed for all of the dog’s normal body functions, including digestion, metabolism, respiration, circulation, temperature regulation, cell growth and repair, and physical activity.

What is RER?

The Resting Energy Requirement (RER) is the amount of energy needed by a dog to maintain its body functions at rest. The RER includes the energy needed for the dog’s heart to beat, lungs to breathe, kidneys to filter blood, and brain and other organs to function.

The activity level of a dog is used to estimate its energy requirements above their RER. The activity level is a measure of how much physical activity a dog gets in a day. It can be estimated from the dog’s weight, body condition, and lifestyle.

How is RER Calculated:

For medium-size dogs, use this more accurate formula;

• 30 x (body weight in kilograms) + 70 = RER for medium-sized dogs and cats

For small and large-breed dogs, use this formula;

• 70 x body weight in kilograms to the ¾ power = RER for small/large dogs and cats

RER Calculators:

There are online RER calculators. Below are some good ones I found online;

• Pet Nutritional Alliance: Calorie Calculator for Dogs

How do you calculate MER?

There are a number of different formulas that can be used to estimate the MER of a dog. The most common formula is the Resting Energy Requirement (RER), which is based on the dog’s body weight, body condition, and activity level.

This is the formula: MER=RER*Signalment*Activity level*BCS

RER which stands for Resting Energy Requirement is calculated using the following formula:

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

For example, a 10 kg dog would have an RER of:

70 x (10 kg)^0.75 = 175 kcal/day

How to calculate RER:

To calculate the RER, you need to know the dog’s weight in kilograms. You can convert pounds to kilograms by dividing the weight in pounds by 2.2.

For example, a 10 kg dog would have an RER of:

70 x (10 kg)^0.75 = 175 kcal/day

The activity level factor is used to adjust the RER for dogs that are more or less active than average. The activity level factor is usually expressed as a number between 1 and 2. For example, a dog that is twice as active as an average dog would have an activity level factor of 2.

Signalment:

The signalment factor is used to adjust the RER for different breeds of dogs. Smaller breeds of dogs have a higher metabolic rate than larger breeds, so they need more calories per kg of body weight.

The signalment factor is usually expressed as a number between 1.6 and 1.8 in dogs and 1.2 to 1.4 in cats. For example, an intact/non-neutered adult dog with an RER of 175 kcal/day would have a signalment factor of 1.8, which would give it a MER of:

175 kcal/day x 1.8 = 315 kcal/day

Activity level:

Dog that regularly exercises requires much more energy daily compared to those that are inactive.

For the MER formula, the following classifications have been developed with each activity level assigned a factor score;

• Seldom or never active (e.g. pet dog that is mostly inactive indoors) = 1
• Somewhat active activity (e.g. pet dog that goes for a daily walk) = 1.2
• Active (e.g. working dog that does strenuous exercise 4-5 times per week) = 1.4
• Very active (e.g. sled dog that pulls a heavy load every day) = 1.6

Body Condition Score(BCS):

The body condition score (BCS) is a way of estimating the amount of fat on a dog’s body a numerical score from 0.8 to 1.2. Fat or obese dogs don’t need a lot of energy but underweight dogs require more caloric intake.

To represent this in an equation that would make MER calculations easier, the following scores have been assigned to each activity level;

• Underweight gets a factor of 1.2
• Ideal weight gets a factor of 1
• Overweight or obese get a factor of 0.8

Putting all these together to calculate the MER:

Again the formula for MER is;

MER = RER x Signalment Factor x Activity Level Factor x Body Condition Score (BCS)

For a 10 kg, adult, pet dog that is mostly inactive indoors and has an ideal body condition score, the calculation would be:

10 kg x 70 = 700

700 kcal/day x 1.8 (Signalment Factor for an adult pet dog) = 1,260

1,260 kcal/day x 1 (Activity Level Factor for a mostly inactive dog) = 1,260

1,260 kcal/day x 1 (Body Condition Score Factor for an ideal weight dog) = 1,260

Therefore, the MER for this dog would be 1,260 kcal/day.

To calculate the daily caloric intake for a dog, you will need to know the MER. Once you have the MER, you can then add in the calories needed for physical activity and growth (if applicable). For example, a 10 kg, adult, pet dog that is mostly inactive and has an ideal body condition score would need 1,260 kcal/day.

Dog Food Energy Calorie Calculator

Daily Calorie Requirements for Dogs

Body weight in pounds	Pupppy up to 4 mos.	Puppy over 4 mos.	Neutered adult	Intact adult	Obese prone	Weight loss
1	115	77	61.5	73	58	X
2	194	129	104	123	97	X
3	264	176	141	168	132	X
4	330	220	176	198	154	110
5	390	260	208	234	182	130
6	447	298	238	268	209	149
7	501	334	267	301	234	167
8	552	368	294	331	258	184
9	603	402	322	362	281	201
10	654	436	349	392	305	218
11	702	468	374	421	328	234
12	750	500	400	450	350	250
13	795	530	424	477	371	265
14	840	560	448	504	392	280
15	885	590	472	531	413	295
16	930	620	496	558	434	310
17	972	648	518	583	454	324
18	1017	678	542	610	475	339
19	1059	706	565	635	494	353
20	1098	732	586	659	512	366
25	1299	866	693	779	606	433
30	1491	994	795	895	696	497
35	1674	1116	893	1004	781	558
40	1848	1232	986	1109	862	616
45	2019	1346	1077	1211	942	673
50		1458	1166	1312	1021	729
55		1566	1253	1409	1096	783
60		1670	1336	1503	1169	835
65		1774	1419	1597	1242	887
70		1876	1501	1688	1313	938
75		1976	1581	1778	1383	988
80		2074	1659	1867	1452	1037
85		2170	1736	1953	1519	1085
90		2264	1811	2038	1585	1132
95		2358	1886	2122	1651	1179
100		2450	1960	2205	1715	1225

Daily Calories to Achieve Weight Loss

If you want to manage your dog’s weight, you need to reduce their daily caloric intake by giving your pet a starting diet that is 80% of the dog’s RER.

Ideal or Target Weight	RER to Feed for Weight Loss	80% RER	70% RER	Maintenance Diet
(lbs)	(kcals per day)	(kcals per day)	(kcals per day)	(kcals per day)
5	138	111	97	166
6	152	121	106	182
7	165	132	116	199
8	179	143	125	215
9	193	154	135	231
10	206	165	144	248
11	220	176	154	264
12	234	187	164	280
13	247	198	173	297
14	261	209	183	313
15	275	220	192	329
16	288	231	202	346
17	302	241	211	362
18	315	252	221	379
19	329	263	230	395
20	343	274	240	411
21	356	285	249	428
22	370	296	259	444
23	384	307	269	460
24	397	318	278	477
25	411	329	288	493
26	425	340	297	509
27	438	351	307	526
28	452	361	316	542
29	465	372	326	559
30	479	383	335	575
31	493	394	345	591
32	506	405	354	608
33	520	416	364	624
34	534	427	374	640
35	547	438	383	657
36	561	449	393	673
37	575	460	402	689
38	588	471	412	706
39	602	481	421	722
40	615	492	431	739
41	629	503	440	755
42	643	514	450	771
43	656	525	459	788
44	670	536	469	804
45	684	547	479	820
46	697	558	488	837
47	711	569	498	853
48	725	580	507	869
49	738	591	517	886
50	752	601	526	902
51	765	612	536	919
52	779	623	545	935
53	793	634	555	951
54	806	645	564	968
55	820	656	574	984
56	834	667	584	1000
57	847	678	593	1017
58	861	689	603	1033
59	875	700	612	1049
60	888	711	622	1066
62	915	732	641	1099
64	943	754	660	1131
66	970	776	679	1164
68	997	798	698	1197
70	1025	820	717	1229
72	1052	841	736	1262
74	1079	863	755	1295
76	1106	885	774	1328
78	1134	907	794	1360
80	1161	929	813	1393
85	1229	983	860	1475
90	1297	1038	908	1557
95	1365	1092	956	1639
100	1434	1147	1004	1720
105	1502	1201	1051	1802
110	1570	1256	1099	1884
115	1638	1311	1147	1966
120	1706	1365	1194	2048

Video Guide on How to Calculate Dog Food Caloric Intake Daily: