Dog Activity & Energy Needs

The organism can be compared to a factory capable of producing indispensable energy for its own functioning. Any animal needs energy, especially to maintain its body temperature or to move. This quantity of necessary energy will vary according to the surroundings (climate, place, type and duration of the activity) and different criteria proper to each animal (physiological state, size, temper, etc.). Feeding consists in proportioning a raw amount of energy, which through digestion, will turn into energy that the body can use which is enough to cover the animal's calorific necessities. We can calculate the difference between raw energy and the energy that can be metabolized and deduct the index of digestibility from the food source. In the case of humid food, the difference between raw energy and metabolized energy for sugars is of -20% for the proteins, to -15% for the sugars and approximately -10% for the fats. Dry foods are for the most part easier to digest. There is no miraculous formula to determine the dog's exact necessities, since there are a lot of factors that are susceptible to modifying the outcomes. We know that they are in function of the animal's corporal surface, therefore we have this formula: 132 kcal/(weight) 0.73 . This calculation permits us to determine with certain security the energetic needs of maintenance. Nevertheless, people will want to compose their dog's ration according to the following graphic.

Dog's weight in Kg Type of dog Energetic necessities in the adult In kcal/kg In kcal 1 Chihuahua 132 132 5 Schipperke, Shih Tzu 96 480 10 Bedlington Terrier, Basenji, Whippet 77 770 15 Beagle, English Epagneul 62 1,050 25 Bulldog, Siberian Husky, Dalmatian 60 1,500 30 Braco, Boxer, Golden Retriever 56 1,680 35 German Shepard, Labrador 52 1,820 40 Doberman, Beauceron 50 2,000 50 Rottweiler. Bullmastiff, Irish Wolfhound 45 2,250 60 Terranova 40 2,400

That is how we can establish with certain reliability the energetic necessities of our adult dog that has a minimum amount of activity and lives I warm climate. Thanks to these calculations we will be able to grant the dog the exact amount of energy that it needs. If it was less, the body would suffer and the dog would get tired easily. If the amount of energy was superior, the dog would get fatter and would end up suffering upheavals which in the end would affect its health seriously.

Canine Nutritional Necessities