Feeding Guidelines & Conversions

Maintenance Feeding
An accepted guideline for maintaining a dog's weight is that feeding should be roughly 2% - 2.5% of their total body weight.  For example, if a dog weighs 50 lbs, their feeding requirements should be approximately 1 lbs of Nature's Kitchen® per day.  

In the case of puppies, after 6 weeks the requirement is roughly  4-6% of their body weight until 4 months. Remember, this increases as the dog's weight increases. Similarly, nursing bitches require up to 6% of their body weight while producing milk. After nursing has ceased, a gradual return to their recommended daily maintenance feeding portion should take place over 5 - 10 days.

Gradual Conversion
While it is popular in the veterinary community to instruct owners to convert a dog from one food to another in a gradual manner, it is not necessary to do so with Nature's Kitchen®. Our evidence doesn't support the need for a gradual transition. If an owner prefers to do so, it is still considered reasonable, but typically unnecessary.

Weight Loss/Gain
In the instances where a dog needs to get to an ideal weight, we recommend either reducing or increasing their maintenance portion by 10% - 25% daily and remaining at that level until desired weight is achieved. Once the ideal weight is achieved, then return to recommended daily portions.

*All feeding recommendations are based on weight and activity of the dog. Adjust feeding up or down accordingly.