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Dogs | Nutrition and feeding (including what owners get wrong most often)

獸醫百科編輯部2026-08-13About 9 min read

#獸醫百科 #犬 #營養 #餵食 #肥胖 #飼料選擇

From puppy to senior, the nutritional priority of each life stage and the specific warnings that go with it: large and giant breed puppies need a formula made for them and must not be given extra calcium or fed free-choice, toy breed puppies need small frequent meals to prevent hypoglycemia, energy requirements fall after neutering while the amount fed is often left unchanged, and protein should not be restricted in older dogs without a reason. Then comes the minimum bar for judging whether a food is adequate, followed by the 14 things owners most often get wrong — free feeding, feeding strictly by the bag chart, not counting treats as calories, home-cooked food that was never calculated, raw feeding, the grain-free myth, and switching foods too fast. It closes with why obesity is a disease.

Dogs | Nutrition and feeding (including what owners get wrong most often)

Compiled from the dog chapter of the veterinary animal encyclopedia. The same sign is managed differently in different species, and copying what is done for another species can do harm — confirm which animal you are dealing with first.

Basis in the source material: line 36 `Small Animal Clinical Nutrition`; line 305, where the WSAVA guideline topics include "nutrition". The source material contains 0 actionable items.

4.1 Life stages and differences in requirement

Stage	Priority	Specific warning
Puppy (weaning → completed growth)	High energy density, controlled calcium-phosphorus ratio and total calcium, small frequent meals	Large／giant breed puppies need a "large breed puppy" formula, with no extra calcium and no free feeding → overnutrition and calcium supplementation are the largest human-made cause of developmental orthopedic disease (DOD)
Toy breed puppy	Small frequent meals to prevent hypoglycemia	A missed meal ＋ excessive activity → hypoglycemic seizures (an emergency)
Adult dog	Adjust by BCS and the weight trend rather than feeding rigidly by the bag chart (the chart is a starting point, not an answer)	Energy requirements fall after neutering and the amount fed is often left unchanged → obesity
Senior dog	Protein should not be restricted without a reason (risk of muscle loss); individualize according to the presence of kidney disease, heart disease or tumors	"He is old so we switched to senior food" does not mean the actual disease has been addressed
Pregnancy／lactation	Requirements rise steeply, peaking in late pregnancy and lactation	Inappropriate calcium supplementation during pregnancy may instead raise the risk of postpartum hypocalcemia → follow veterinary guidance
Working／highly active dogs	The ratio of energy to fat, the interval between feeding and duty, and hydration	A large meal before duty → risk of GDV and vomiting
Therapeutic prescription diets	Kidney, heart, liver, pancreas, urolith, allergy, gastrointestinal and tumor conditions each have a dedicated formula	A prescription diet is part of the treatment; do not switch it on your own and do not mix in human food on your own; a change of diet needs veterinary assessment

4.2 The minimum bar for judging a food "adequate"

Checkpoint	How to read it
Complete and balanced statement	Whether the package states that it meets the nutritional standards of AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) or FEDIAF (European Pet Food Industry Federation) 【newly added · pending verification, the current edition needs to be checked】, and which life stage it applies to
Whether the applicable stage is stated	"All life stages" is not the same as "adult maintenance"; puppy and large-breed puppy differ further still
Whether the manufacturer can answer a nutritionist's questions	⚠️ Exists but the name needs correction: no single document called "the WSAVA Global Nutrition Guidelines manufacturer question list" could be found; the actual document is "WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee: Guidelines on Selecting Pet Foods" (Updated on 10 March 2021, official PDF on wsava.org, , verbatim: "1. Do they employ a Nutritionist? ... 2. How many calories per gram or serving of food? ... 3. Does the company provide immediate contact information such as a phone number or email address?" (the original reads "calories per gram or serving", not "per 1000 kcal"; the latter is common in the industry but does not appear verbatim in this document) source:
Caloric density	It should state kcal/kg and kcal per cup or can, otherwise the feeding amount cannot be converted
Storage	Reseal after opening and keep away from light, keep the original bag inside the container, and watch the shelf life and moisture (risk of mycotoxins／aflatoxin)

4.3 The 14 things owners most often get wrong (the full version of Mistake 4 in §0.3)

#	Common practice	Why it is dangerous	What to do instead
1	Free feeding (food left in the bowl at all hours)	Obesity; and a change in appetite becomes invisible (one of the earliest signals of illness)	Fixed times and fixed amounts, checking whether each meal is finished
2	Feeding by the bag chart to the end, without looking at the body	The chart is a population average and individual variation is large	Feel the ribs ＋ weigh the dog monthly, and adjust by BCS
3	Not counting treats／human food as calories	Treats and human food often take up a large share of the calories without balanced nutrition	Treats should be limited to a small part of the daily calories (no more than 10% of daily total calories: the UC Davis veterinary teaching hospital states "Treats and additional food items should not exceed 10% of the daily caloric intake" vetmed.ucdavis.edu (treats-guidelines-for-dogs-2020.pdf), , and should be deducted from the main diet
4	Home-cooked food not calculated by a veterinary nutritionist	Calcium-phosphorus imbalance, deficiency or excess of vitamin D／E and iodine, insufficient essential amino acids → skeletal deformity in puppies and cardiomyopathy in adults	To cook at home → have a veterinary nutritionist write the recipe and repeat blood work periodically
5	Raw feeding	Salmonella, Campylobacter, Listeria, E. coli and resistant bacteria → a two-way risk for the dog and the people in the household (especially infants, pregnant women and immunosuppressed people); raw bones cause tooth fracture, intestinal perforation and constipation-type obstruction	If you insist, understand the risk and apply strict hygiene; it is strongly discouraged when a household member is immunocompromised
6	Supplementing calcium in a large-breed puppy, or feeding adult／high-calorie food directly	Growth that is too fast plus excess calcium → hip/elbow abnormalities, osteochondrosis, DOD	A formula made for large-breed puppies, and keeping the body condition slightly lean is better
7	Treating "grain-free" and "high-protein" as proof that a food is healthy	Grain allergy is in fact uncommon in dogs; and for the association between certain formulations (mainly legume／potato based) and DCM: the evidence is still insufficient either to confirm or to exclude a causal relationship (the FDA position of 2022-12-23, as cited by AVMA: "adverse event numbers…by themselves, they do not supply sufficient data to establish a causal relationship" avma.org/news/until-more-science-available-fda-will-end-public-updates-potential-link-between-certain-diets, ; the FDA has stopped routine updates, which is neither "the association has been excluded" nor "harm has been demonstrated")	Look at nutritional standards and at whether the manufacturer can answer questions, not at marketing words
8	Switching food all at once	Acute gastroenteritis, diarrhea	Mix gradually over several days
9	Feeding cow's milk	Most adult dogs digest lactose poorly → diarrhea	Water is enough
10	Feeding cooked bones, chicken bones, large pork bones, rawhide chews	Fragment perforation, tooth fracture, esophageal and intestinal obstruction, swelling after swallowing causing obstruction	Choose chews accepted by veterinary dentistry, and watch the dog while it chews
11	High-fat human food (fried food, fatty meat, gravy, leftovers)	Acute pancreatitis (especially dangerous in hyperlipidemic breeds such as the Miniature Schnauzer)	Explain it clearly to the whole family and to older relatives before the holidays
12	Vigorous exercise right before or after a meal, or one large meal a day	Risk of GDV in large deep-chested dogs (the level of causal evidence 【verification result: no single authoritative effect size — the same conclusion as the verification at line 167; PMC studies confirm that the risk factors exist but give no unified cross-study measure of causal strength, 2026-07-30】, but the cost is so low that it is worth doing)	Divide the meals, and keep the dog quiet before and after eating
13	Adding supplements／fish oil／vitamins at will, and several at once	Toxicity from excess fat-soluble vitamins, interaction with prescription drugs, excess fish oil affecting coagulation	Ask the veterinarian before any supplement; bring a list of everything the dog is taking
14	Sharing a bowl in a multi-dog household, or not knowing who ate how much	Food stealing, resource guarding, and no way to track appetite or whether medication was taken	Feed in separate areas, one bowl each

4.4 Obesity — the most common nutritional disease in dogs

Item	Content
Why it is a disease	It is associated with osteoarthritic pain, difficulty breathing (especially in brachycephalics), diabetes mellitus, anesthetic risk, certain tumors, and reduced quality of life and lifespan (the specific effect size 【verification result: no single authoritative effect size — the influence of obesity on each comorbidity appears across heterogeneous studies, and the effect size varies with breed, degree and the combination of comorbidities, so no single cross-study value applies, 2026-07-30】)
Common hidden causes	The amount fed not being reduced after neutering, family members feeding on the side, treats not counted, less exercise, hypothyroidism and Cushing's disease (rule out disease before starting weight loss)
Principles of weight loss	The veterinarian sets the calorie target and the timeline, using a therapeutic weight-loss diet (simply feeding less causes nutrient deficiency); re-weigh and record at fixed intervals (the interval is set by the veterinarian 【no single authoritative figure for this item: whitelisted sources provide no dog-specific reference value for the re-weighing interval】); increase low-impact activity; keep the whole family to the same rules
Contraindications	Rapid fasting, human weight-loss drugs, "slimming supplements" of unknown origin

Limits of this content

This content comes from the dog chapter of the veterinary encyclopedia (the original location and the content hash are recorded in the evidence chain). The sources listed at the end are the authoritative materials cited by that chapter; the correspondence is chapter-level, which does not mean that every sentence is traced sentence by sentence to a given source. This material is for education and cannot replace diagnosis and prescription by a licensed veterinarian; in an emergency seek care immediately. It has not been clinically reviewed by a named veterinarian.

FAQ

How many treats can a dog have?: Treats should be limited to a small part of the daily calories. The UC Davis veterinary teaching hospital advises that treats and additional food items should not exceed 10% of the daily caloric intake, and that they be deducted from the main diet. Treats and human food often take up a large share of the calories without providing balanced nutrition, which is why many dogs gain weight for no apparent reason.; 犬のおやつはどのくらいまで与えてよいですか。 — おやつは 1 日の熱量の一部にとどめます。UC Davis 獣医教育病院は、おやつと追加の食べ物を 1 日の総熱量摂取の 10% を超えないようにし、その分を主食から差し引くよう勧めています。おやつと人の食べ物は熱量の多くを占めるのに栄養が均衡しておらず、多くの犬が理由もなく太る原因になっています。; How many treats can a dog have? — Treats should be limited to a small part of the daily calories. The UC Davis veterinary teaching hospital advises that treats and additional food items should not exceed 10% of the daily caloric intake, and that they be deducted from the main diet. Treats and human food often take up a large share of the calories without providing balanced nutrition, which is why many dogs gain weight for no apparent reason.
Should I feed the amount recommended on the bag?: The chart on the bag is a population average, a starting point rather than an answer. Individual variation is large, so feel the ribs and weigh the dog monthly and adjust by body condition score. Also avoid keeping the bowl permanently full for free feeding — it not only leads to weight gain but also hides changes in appetite, and a change in appetite is one of the earliest signals of illness.; フードは袋に書かれた推奨量どおりに与えるべきですか。 — 袋の表は集団の平均値であり、出発点であって答えではありません。個体差が大きいため、毎月、肋骨に触れて体重を量り、ボディコンディションスコアに応じて調整してください。器にいつもフードを満たして自由に食べさせるのも避けてください——太りやすいだけでなく、食欲の変化が見えなくなり、食欲の変化は病気の最も早い兆候の一つだからです。; Should I feed the amount recommended on the bag? — The chart on the bag is a population average, a starting point rather than an answer. Individual variation is large, so feel the ribs and weigh the dog monthly and adjust by body condition score. Also avoid keeping the bowl permanently full for free feeding — it not only leads to weight gain but also hides changes in appetite, and a change in appetite is one of the earliest signals of illness.
Can I cook fresh food for my dog myself?: Yes, but the recipe has to be calculated by a veterinary nutritionist first, with periodic blood work afterwards. Home-cooked food that was never calculated commonly shows calcium-phosphorus imbalance, deficiency or excess of vitamin D, vitamin E or iodine, and insufficient essential amino acids, resulting in skeletal deformity in puppies and cardiomyopathy in adults. When changing food, mix it gradually over several days as well, since switching all at once readily causes acute gastroenteritis and diarrhea.; 犬に手作りの食事を作ってもよいですか。 — かまいませんが、先に獣医栄養学の専門家にレシピを計算してもらい、定期的に血液検査で確認する必要があります。計算していない手作り食では、カルシウムとリンの不均衡、ビタミン D、ビタミン E、ヨウ素の不足または過剰、必須アミノ酸の不足がよく見られ、その結果として子犬では骨が変形し、成犬では心筋症が起こります。フードを替えるときも数日かけて少しずつ混ぜて移行してください。一度に全部替えると急性の胃腸炎や下痢を起こしやすくなります。; Can I cook fresh food for my dog myself? — Yes, but the recipe has to be calculated by a veterinary nutritionist first, with periodic blood work afterwards. Home-cooked food that was never calculated commonly shows calcium-phosphorus imbalance, deficiency or excess of vitamin D, vitamin E or iodine, and insufficient essential amino acids, resulting in skeletal deformity in puppies and cardiomyopathy in adults. When changing food, mix it gradually over several days as well, since switching all at once readily causes acute gastroenteritis and diarrhea.

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獸醫百科編輯部・《Dogs | Nutrition and feeding (including what owners get wrong most often)》・IDAEO 知識庫・2026-08-13・https://km.idaeo.ai/post/vet/dog-nutrition

Updated 2026-08-14

更新 2026-08-14T04:47:48.629Z · server-rendered · four-language · IDAEO 知識庫