Skip to content
2xKit

Pet Daily Food Portion Calculator

Estimate your pet's daily calorie needs and food portion using the resting energy formula.

Formula v1.0.0GlobalMethodologyReport an issuepet-daily-food-portion-v1
How this is calculated
RER = 70 × Weight(kg)^0.75; Cups/day = RER ÷ kcal per cup

Assumptions used in this calculation

  • Resting Energy Requirement (RER): Uses the standard veterinary RER formula for a resting adult pet, active pets need more, always confirm with your vet, especially for puppies/kittens, weight loss, or medical conditions.

About this calculator

Feeding guidelines printed on pet food bags are often generic ranges that don't account for your specific pet's weight, so it's easy to over- or under-feed without a proper baseline to work from. This calculator uses the standard veterinary Resting Energy Requirement (RER) formula, 70 times body weight in kilograms raised to the power of 0.75, which is the accepted way to estimate the calories a pet burns at rest, then divides that by your food's energy density (kcal per cup) to translate it into an actual daily portion size. That exponent makes RER awkward to compute by hand, since it's not simple multiplication, so this gives you an instant, formula-accurate baseline instead of eyeballing a scoop size. From there you can scale up for activity level, since RER is a resting baseline and active pets typically need 1.2 to 1.6 times that amount, or more for growing puppies and kittens.

Worked example

10 kg pet, 350 kcal/cup food

Result: ≈ 394 kcal/day, 1.1 cups/day

Was this helpful?

Frequently asked questions