Dog Calorie Calculator by Breed
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Choose a breed and the dog's status
Only used where the source gives separate male and female ranges. Rows marked M/F in the table below do.
This is the band the main calculator on the front page uses. Nothing else is added here.
If you have weighed the dog, put it here. The calculator then uses that weight instead of the breed band, and the answer narrows to the factor band alone. Leave it blank to use the breed.
Everything is calculated in your browser. The numbers you type are not uploaded and not stored.
Daily calories
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kcal per day
RER and the daily figures are rounded to the nearest whole calorie, the same rule the front-page calculator uses. The band is hundreds of kcal wide, so only the leading digits carry information.
Choose a breed to see the weight band and the calories.
Two dogs at the same weight can need different amounts of food, and one dog can need a very different amount per pound than another. The pages here deal with the two reasons why. The breed page starts from a breed's published adult weight range and gives the daily calories at both ends of it, because a breed whose adults run from 25 to 35 kg does not have one answer. The small-dog page takes the other direction: calories per pound rise as size falls. Both print the equation and the factor they applied.
Constants this page uses, and where each one comes from
| Constant | What it is | Named source |
|---|---|---|
| 70 | RER scaling constant, 70 × kg0.75 | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
| 0.75 | exponent applied to body weight in kilograms | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
| 1.0–1.2 | factor band for sedentary, or prone to weight gain | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
| 1.4–1.6 | factor band for typical adult, spayed or neutered | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
| 1.6–1.8 | factor band for typical adult, intact | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
| 1.6–2.0 | factor band for light work | AAHA 2021, Box 1 — Energy Requirement Calculations |
Where to start
Open the Dog Calorie Calculator by Breed first. It starts from the breed's published adult weight range and gives the requirement at both ends of it, which is the spread the rest of this family assumes you have already seen.
What every tool here assumes
One set of inputs and one set of published constants, listed once here rather than repeated on every page.
- Resting energy requirement. RER = 70 × (body weight in kg)0.75 — with an exponent below 1 the requirement grows more slowly than weight, which is why the per-pound figure falls as a dog gets bigger.
- Where the breed weight ranges come from. The adult weight ranges are taken from the breed articles on English Wikipedia, used at both ends so you see the lightest and heaviest typical adult rather than a midpoint invented for the page.
- Calories per pound rise as size falls. A 5 lb dog can need more than 40 kcal per pound while a 50 lb dog needs about 23, and the small-dog page tabulates that from 5 to 50 lb.
- Activity factors. 1.0–1.2 × RER for an inactive dog or one prone to weight gain, 1.4–1.6 for a neutered adult, 1.6–1.8 intact, 1.6–2.0 for light work — the same table the rest of the site uses.
- Premise. A breed's weight range describes the breed, not your dog, which is why both pages ask for a condition score rather than trusting the number on the scale alone.
The other tool families
Breed & Body Condition is one of six families on the site. The other five are Calories & Feeding, Age & Growth, Feline, Pregnancy & Special Conditions, and Food Safety.