How Much to Feed a Puppy, According to Veterinarians

These are exciting times! As you prepare for your new family member and all the fun times ahead, many of your questions will involve feeding. How much to feed a puppy? Dry food or wet food? Kibble or fresh? What’s a puppy’s feeding schedule? The answer depends on a variety of factors.

Feeding is a crucial part of your pup’s current and future health. As puppies grow, they require different quantities and nutrients than adult dogs. Getting it right will allow them to develop in the healthiest way possible.

To help you find your way, we consulted our team of veterinarians to prepare this puppy feeding guide—but first, remember to follow you own veterinarian's advice.

Vet-Approved Puppy Feeding Guide

One of the most common questions new puppy parents ask is how much food should a puppy eat?

Dogs also have differing nutritional requirements at the puppy stage. Puppies are growing dogs, so they require a larger portion size of pet food than their adult counterparts. Feeding quantities actually reduce as they grow older—the same dog may eat 40 oz. a day as a puppy and 30 oz. of adult dog food later in life. Surprising, right?

Think of it as feeding for the future, rather than the size they are today. When researching how much a puppy should eat, there are different factors to consider, including:

• estimated weight at maturity;
• age;
• activity level;
• health issues, if any.

When researching how much should a puppy eat, there are different factors to consider including estimated weight at maturity, age, activity level and condition.

Puppy Feeding Calculations

How much food should I feed my puppy? Follow the steps below to calculate feeding quantities manually or skip forward to the calculator to avoid the math!

1. Find your puppy’s estimated adult weight
2. Determine their daily calorie intake using the puppy feeding chart
3. See food label for “calories per serving” to calculate the quantity needed to meet daily calories
4. Use the meal frequency chart to determine how many meals your puppy needs a day
5. Divide the weight of food calculated in step 3 by the number of meals in step 4.

When you’re calculating how much do you feed a puppy, always seek the advice of your veterinarian on:

• Your puppy’s activity level & energy requirements—active dogs require more calories, sedentary dogs, less.
• Your puppy’s body condition—underweight puppies require more calories and vice-versa.
• Your puppy’s breed—large breed puppies will have different requirements from smaller breeds.

Calculate the Easy Way with Our Puppy Feeding Calculator

Our JustFoodForDogs puppy feeding calculator is the easiest way to determine what amount of food to feed a puppy by weight.

Answer the simple questions, select “Puppy Health” as your goal, and the calculator will make daily feeding recommendations for your pup!

Puppy food calculator results include:

• Calories per day
• Best recipes for your dog
• Number of ounces/cups per day, per recipe.

Even if you plan carefully, don’t forget to monitor your dog’s growth and adjust as needed during its first year. You can return to the calculator as often as you like!

Puppy feeding chart by body weight

This chart is designed to help you calculate feeding of all food types, however, we do recommend feeding a fresh, proven healthy diet that’s formulated specifically for puppies. This will provide them with the highest-quality nutrients to support their long-term growth and overall health.

How Many Times a Day Do You Feed a Puppy?

When to Feed a Puppy

Structure is an important element in your pup’s education, so setting a solid puppy routine from the start creates a strong foundation for you to build on together. When it comes to feeding, developing a mealtime routine is simple. Consistency is key.

When should I feed my puppy?

The ideal time to feed your puppy is between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Feeding the last meal by 5 p.m. allows them enough time to digest and eliminate before bedtime, reducing the risk of nighttime accidents.

Using the chart above, calculate the number of meals your pup requires daily and distribute them evenly between 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. Stick to the same feeding times each day to reinforce the routine.

What Food Can Puppies Eat?

Puppies and their adult counterparts have different nutritional needs, so it’s important to ensure your pup gets the proper nutrition it requires to grow into a healthy and strong adult.

By choosing food that is specially formulated for puppies and nutritionally balanced for long-term feeding—like this Chicken & White Rice Recipe that’s high in calcium and phosphorus—you’ll be giving your pup the head start they need.

Puppy Treats

Yes, puppies can eat treats! Treats are important and can be used for training, but all in moderation—and always check with your veterinary nutritionist or trainer first.

When looking for good treats for puppies use these tips:

• Read the label: Nutrition is a defining factor in your puppy’s future health and happiness, so it’s essential to know exactly what goes into their food.
• Keep it natural: Treats made using human-edible, whole-food ingredients are the healthiest puppy treats. Checking labels is the best way to avoid unnatural ingredients and preservatives, as well as any unwholesome treats that market themselves as healthy.
• Think soft: The teeth of young puppies are not fully developed, so soft bite-sized treats for smaller mouths are recommended.
• Tailor treats to your pup: When choosing a snack, consider their age, weight, allergies, physical condition and activity level.
• Moderation: Over-snacking can lead to obesity and other health issues, so give dog treats wisely. Snacks should account for a maximum of 5% of your puppy’s daily calories. So if your puppy eats 400 kcals per day, then only 20 kcals should come from treats.

Opt for safe fruits and vegetables or other low-calorie snacks.

If your puppy suffers from medical conditions, check in with your veterinarian to find the treats that work best for their health.

How to Transition a Puppy to New Food

Transitioning from mother’s milk or formula to solid food is a gradual process.

Breeders start puppies on a mix of solid food and mother's milk as early as three weeks. Using the same high-quality food that the mother is fed can aid the transition. This is blended with a puppy milk replacer and warm water.

For orphaned puppies, weaning begins around 3-4 weeks of age. Small amounts of high-quality soft food—formulated to support healthy growth—are added to supplement their milk formula. This transitions pups gradually to solid food by 5-6 weeks of age.

When can puppies eat solid food?

When to start feeding puppies wet food will depend on the weaning process outlined above. Puppies usually transition to solid food at around 3-4 weeks of age. This is when they start to need more calories than they can obtain from their mother's milk or milk replacer. Most puppies are weaned and enjoying a solid food diet by around six weeks of age.

How To Keep a Puppy at a Healthy Weight with Puppy Food

Feeding your puppy a fresh, proven healthy diet that’s formulated specifically for very young dogs will provide them with the high-quality nutrients they need to support their overall health and long-term growth. Bear in mind that puppies develop at different speeds, so we always recommend asking your veterinarian for advice on assessing your puppy’s body condition score.

1. Underweight
2. Ideal Weight
3. Overweight

Puppy Weight Calculator

If you are looking for a puppy size estimator, we have provided you with a ‘How big will my puppy get?’ calculator below.

1. Measure your puppy’s weight in pounds at the following age:

• Small breeds - 12 weeks
• Medium breeds - 16 weeks
• Large breeds - 20 weeks

2. Divide weight by their age in weeks

3. Multiple by 52

This will give you a rough prediction of your pup’s estimated adult weight. As puppy growth is not linear, results will vary depending on growth spurts, sex, breed and overall health.

To make the transition, mix your puppy’s current food with their new adult food, gradually decreasing the amount of puppy food and increasing the amount of adult food over a period of 7 days.

This is an approximate guide to when to stop feeding dog puppy food. Always consult your veterinarian for tailored advice on changing your puppy’s diet.