How Often Should You Feed?
Your pet's daily calorie intake can be broken into several meals throughout the day, depending on life stage. Your veterinarian can work with you on a feeding schedule that works for your pet, and your lifestyle. As a guideline:
Puppies and Kittens Up To 4 Months
Feed 4 times a day several hours apart, starting in the early morning.
4-6 Months
Shift to 3 meals a day, as they are now able to maintain their nutrient levels longer.
6 Months
and Older
Split up your pet's daily calories into 1-2 meals, or more depending on you and your pet's preferences.
What About Treats?
Used judiciously, treats can be a part of your pet's healthy diet. It's just a matter of accounting for the calories and making sure they don't contribute to more than 10% of your pet's daily intake.
Why People Food Isn't Always Ideal For Pets
Some human foods – even in small treat-sized amounts – can take up too many of your pet's daily calories, and quickly add up to extra pounds.
999
Daily calorie intake based on a
0lb pet
Test
2oz 2% milk:
30 cal
Test
2oz 2% milk:
30 cal
Test
2oz 2% milk:
30 cal
Test
2oz 2% milk:
30 cal
Body Condition Score
How do veterinarians size up your pet's weight? By using body condition scores from 1 to 5; 1 is very thin and 5 is obese; 3 is just right!
Very Thinheading
Severely defined ribs and waist.
Thin
Easily visible ribs and waist.
Ideal Weightheading
Ribs easily felt, but not seen.
Obvious waist.
Overweightheading
Ribs not easily seen nor felt.
Obeseheading
Waist absent.
Very Thinheading
Severely defined ribs and waist.
Thinheading
Easily visible ribs and waist.
Ideal Weight
Ribs easily felt, but not seen.
Obvious waist.
Overweight
Ribs not easily seen nor felt.
It's no joke. Overweight and obese pets are all too common in the USA. As pet owners, we owe it to our pets to help them be as healthy as they can.
-
Today,
1 in 3 dogs
are overweight
or obese*
-
Today,
1 in 3 cats
are overweight
or obese*
-
Across the USA overweight
and obesity has
increased 158%
in dogs since 2007*
-
Since 2007, overweight
and obesity has
increased 169%
in cats across the USA*
* All statistics are calculated by the Banfield Applied Research and Knowledge (BARK) Team, based on the 2.5 million dogs and 505,000 cats seen at Banfield Hospitals in 2016.
Other Resources
Below you’ll find links to other important organizations involved in the study and governance of pet food and nutrition standards for dogs and cats.
Pet feeding directions from the FDA, opens in a new tab
Feeding guidelines from the FDA, opens in a new tab
The nutrition content and tools provided on this site are for informational purposes only and should not be relied on as or substituted for veterinary medical advice. For nutrition information specific to your pet, please visit your Banfield veterinarian.