Personalized Dog Food: Why Tailoring It to Your Dog Matters

No two dogs are alike, even if two dogs are the same breed, weigh the same, and are the same age. A calm indoor dog and a dog that runs for hours every day have completely different energy requirements, just like a growing puppy and a senior dog that is less active. Personalized dog food, tailored to your dog, is exactly what you need: instead of a standard amount based on a weight chart, the portion is adjusted to your dog's actual needs. In this article, you'll learn which factors play a role, why standard feeding recommendations are often only a rough guideline, and how individual calculation works in practice.

Personalized dog food means that the amount and sometimes the recipe of a meal are calculated based on specific information about your dog, rather than following a general rule of thumb such as "X grams per kilogram of body weight". Such standard statements on the packaging are intended as a guideline for an average dog, but in practice, your dog's actual needs often differ significantly.

Individually tailored dog food, on the other hand, takes into account factors such as weight, age, activity level, breed or size, and, if applicable, special circumstances such as neutering or pregnancy, to determine an appropriate daily amount and, depending on the provider, an appropriate recipe.

The feeding chart on the packaging is based on a statistical average dog. However, your dog is highly likely to fall somewhere outside this average. The following factors mean that two dogs of the same weight can require very different amounts of food:

• Activity level: A dog that runs for several hours every day or works as a sports, hunting, or service dog has a significantly higher energy requirement than a predominantly calm dog (National Research Council, 2006).
• Age and life stage: Growing puppies, adult dogs, and seniors have different energy and nutrient requirements, including for protein, calcium, and phosphorus (World Small Animal Veterinary Association, 2021).
• Neutering status: On average, neutered dogs have a lower energy requirement than intact dogs of the same weight, partly due to a changed metabolism (Jeusette et al., 2004).
• Breed and body type: Larger and smaller breeds, as well as different body types (e.g., very muscular vs. rather slender breeds), differ in their metabolic rate and food utilization.
• Individual constitution: Even within the same breed and weight class, some dogs are naturally more efficient at utilizing food than others, much like humans.

Feeding too much for too long leads to obesity, one of the most common health problems in dogs in Western countries. Obesity is proven to increase the risk of joint problems, diabetes, and a shorter life expectancy (Colliard et al., 2006; Laflamme, 2006). On the other hand, feeding too little or an unbalanced diet can lead to underweight, muscle loss, or growth disorders in puppies due to insufficient nutrient supply. Both can be significantly reduced by feeding tailored to the actual needs.

A reliable individual calculation is usually based on the following information:

In practice, this is usually done using food calculators or configurators: You enter information about your dog's weight, age, breed, activity level, and special circumstances, and a suitable daily amount or portion is calculated from this. The basis is usually the maintenance energy requirement, which is estimated based on body weight and then multiplied by a factor for activity, age, and neutering status (National Research Council, 2006). What is important here: A good individual calculation is a starting point, not a rigid guideline. You should regularly check your dog's weight and condition and readjust the amount if necessary.

This is exactly the principle we apply at HelloBello in our food calculator: You enter information about your dog's weight, age, breed, activity level, and special circumstances, and we calculate an individual daily portion from this and put it together for you in appropriate portions. The goal is that you don't have to guess or calculate yourself, but get a recommendation tailored to your dog that you can adjust at any time if necessary, for example if your dog's weight or activity level changes.

Personalized dog food is not a marketing buzzword, but a sensible response to a simple fact: Every dog has its own energy and nutrient requirements, which depend on its weight, age, activity level, spay status, and individual constitution. A standard amount according to the packaging instructions may meet these requirements, but it does not have to. If you instead calculate the amount of food based on your dog's actual characteristics and review it regularly, you reduce the risk of being overweight or underweight and lay a solid foundation for your dog's long-term health.

Sources:

• Colliard, L., Paragon, B. M., Lemuet, B., Bénet, J. J., & Blanchard, G. (2006). Prevalence and risk factors of obesity in an urban population of healthy dogs in France. Journal of Nutritional Science, 45(2), 135–139.
• Jeusette, I., Detilleux, J., Cuvelier, C., Istasse, L., & Diez, M. (2004). Ad libitum feeding following ovariectomy in female Beagle dogs: effect on maintenance energy requirement and on blood metabolites. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition, 88(3-4), 117–121.
• Laflamme, D. P. (2006). Understanding and managing obesity in dogs and cats. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, 36(6), 1283–1295.
• National Research Council. (2006). Nutrient requirements of dogs and cats. National Academies Press.
• World Small Animal Veterinary Association. (2021). WSAVA global nutrition guidelines.