National Dog Day: What We've Learned From Feeding Dogs With Different Appetites, Sizes, and Routines

Written by Kelly Gredner, RVT, VTS (Nutrition)

This National Dog Day, we're taking a step back from birthday hats and puppuccinos to talk about something every dog parent asks eventually: how to feed my dog the right way.

There's no single formula for every dog. A twelve-pound terrier, a ninety-pound mastiff, a food-motivated Labrador, and a notoriously picky senior dog all need different amounts of food, different schedules, and sometimes different conversations around the bowl.

What we've learned from feeding dogs with different appetites, sizes, and routines is that good feeding isn't about finding one perfect formula. It's about understanding a few key principles, then applying them to the dog actually sitting in front of you.

How to Figure Out How Much to Feed Your Dog

How much to feed your dog starts with their weight, but weight alone doesn't tell the whole story. Several factors work together to determine how many calories they actually need each day:¹

• Body size and current weight

• Activity level and exercise routine

• Age and life stage

• Spay or neuter status

Most healthy adult dogs need somewhere around 25 to 30 calories per pound of body weight just to maintain their current weight, though this shifts significantly for very active or very sedentary dogs.¹ A dog on daily runs burns through calories differently than a dog whose exercise consists of a lap around the yard.

The most reliable approach is to start with the feeding guide on your dog's food, then adjust based on how your dog actually looks and feels.² If ribs are hard to find under a layer of fat, it may be time to scale back. If a waist has disappeared entirely, the same is true in reverse.

Why Small and Large Dogs Have Different Appetites

Small and large dogs have different appetites largely because their metabolisms work at different speeds. Smaller dogs tend to have a higher metabolic rate relative to their body weight, which means many small breeds actually need more calories per pound than large breeds do.³

This is part of why a ten-pound dog and a ninety-pound dog can't simply be fed proportional scoops of the same food. Large and giant breeds tend to have slower metabolisms and are more prone to weight gain, so portion control and lower-calorie-density meals often matter more for them.⁴

For many large-breed dogs, a full fresh diet can get expensive simply because of how much food they need day to day. A practical middle ground is using it as a topper instead of a full replacement. Adding a spoonful of Tom&Sawyer's gently-cooked meals over your dog's regular kibble helps boost the nutrients in every bowl, giving large dogs the benefit of human grade, whole food ingredients, without the cost of feeding a full fresh diet at their size.

Toy and small-breed puppies can also be more sensitive to gaps between meals, since their small size gives them less energy in reserve.⁴ This is one reason feeding frequency, not just amount, plays such a big role in getting a dog's diet right.

How Age Changes Your Dog's Appetite

A dog's appetite changes significantly across their life, and feeding amounts should change right along with it. Puppies need considerably more calories per pound of body weight than adult dogs, since their bodies are building bone, muscle, and tissue at a rapid pace.⁴

Adult dogs at a healthy weight generally settle into a more predictable calorie range, though this can still shift with changes in activity, spay or neuter status, or underlying health conditions.

Senior dogs often need fewer calories as muscle mass and activity naturally decline, even if their appetite at the bowl doesn't change much. Because these needs shift so much over a dog's life, it's worth reassessing portions any time your dog moves into a new life stage, rather than assuming what worked at one year old will still work at eight.

A Quick Feeding Guide by Life Stage

Choosing a Feeding Schedule That Fits Your Dog's Routine

This is often where the real answer to how to feed my dog comes together: not just what goes in the bowl, but when. The best feeding schedule for most dogs is two measured meals a day, spaced roughly eight to twelve hours apart.⁵ Puppies typically need more frequent meals, often three to four times a day, to support their higher calorie needs and prevent energy dips between feedings.⁶

Scheduled feeding, rather than leaving food out all day, makes it much easier to monitor how much your dog is actually eating.⁵ A sudden drop in appetite is often one of the earliest signs that something is wrong, but that's hard to catch if a bowl is always full.

For multi-dog households, scheduled meals also help make sure every dog gets their own proper portion, rather than the most food-motivated dog helping themselves to everyone else's share.⁶

What to Do When Your Dog Is a Picky Eater or a Heavy Eater

A picky eater and a heavy eater need very different approaches, but both start with the same first step: ruling out a medical cause with your veterinarian before assuming it's just personality.

For picky eaters, consistency helps more than variety. Constantly switching foods or offering extra toppers to coax them into eating can actually reinforce the pickiness, so it often helps to stick with a palatable, nutritious meal and resist the urge to sweeten the deal every time they hesitate.

For heavy eaters, the challenge is usually portion control rather than persuasion. Measuring meals precisely, feeding on a schedule instead of free feeding, and using slow feeders or food puzzles can help food-motivated dogs feel satisfied without overeating.

In both cases, paying attention to your individual dog, not just the general rule, is what actually works.

What Makes a Dog Food Good for All Dogs

There's no single best food for all dogs, but there are principles that hold true across every size, age, and appetite. A dog food that works well broadly isn't defined by a single ingredient or trend. It comes down to whether the recipe is complete and balanced, meaning it delivers every nutrient a dog needs, in the right proportions, for their life stage.

High-quality, easily digestible protein is a common thread across dogs of every size and appetite, supporting lean muscle whether you're feeding a six-pound senior or a sixty-pound athlete.

From there, the best fit for your individual dog comes down to matching calorie density, portion size, and feeding frequency to their specific body, age, and routine, the same principles covered above. That's really the heart of what feeding well means: not chasing a single "best" food, but consistently meeting your own dog's needs.

Celebrating National Dog Day With Meals Made for Every Dog

This National Dog Day, however you're celebrating, from an extra walk to a special treat, it's worth remembering that one of the most meaningful things you do for your dog happens every single day at the bowl.

At Tom&Sawyer®, we believe good feeding starts with good recipes. Every meal is gently-cooked with human grade ingredients and formulated to be complete and balanced, whether you're feeding a picky eater, a food-motivated Labrador, or a senior dog who needs a little extra support.

If you're not sure where to start, our meal plan questionnaire can help match your dog's age, weight, and activity level to the right recipe and portion size. Italian Beef Pasta Dinner is a favourite for picky eaters, while Classic Pork Stew is a go-to for growing pups, just be sure to mix in our Puppy Booster to meet their nutrient requirements. And for dogs who never miss a meal, Turkey Gobbler Feast is always a solid choice. 

At the end of the day, how to feed my dog isn't a question with one universal answer, and it doesn't need to be. However your dog eats, our full collection of meals is built to help support happier, healthier, longer lives™.

References

1. PetMD - How Many Calories Does a Dog Need? https://www.petmd.com/dog/nutrition/how-many-calories-does-a-dog-need

2. Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP) - Dog Feeding Calculator, based on the 2021 AAHA Nutrition and Weight Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats. https://www.petobesityprevention.org/dog-daily-feeding-calculator

3. American Kennel Club - Dog Food Choice: Four Factors to Consider. https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/nutrition/every-dog-is-different-factors-that-could-affect-your-choice-in-dog-food/

4. PetMD - Nutritional Differences for Small, Toy, and Large Breed Dogs. https://www.petmd.com/blogs/nutritionnuggets/jcoates/2012/feb/nutrition_differences_for_small_toy_large_breeds-12459

5. VCA Animal Hospitals - Feeding Times and Frequency for Your Dog. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feeding-times-and-frequency-for-your-dog

6. Purina - How Often Should I Feed My Dog? Free vs. Schedule Feeding. https://www.purina.com/articles/dog/feeding/guides/free-feeding-dogs