How Often to Feed a Dog: Interesting New Research

What’s your pup’s feeding schedule? Breakfast and dinner? Just dinner? Many small meals throughout the day? Free-feeding? The question of how often to feed a dog is one that many pet parents wonder about.

In our house, we feed twice a day. Our girls get a small breakfast (about 50% of what they get later in the day), then a full meal around dinnertime.

Why?

Honestly, I couldn’t even tell you. It’s just the way we do it.

But should we put more thought into it?

A recent study involving more than 10,000 dogs reveals some surprising connections between how often dogs are fed and their overall health – and the main takeaway is certainly something to chew on.

How Often to Feed a Dog

The guidelines on how often to feed a dog depend on a variety of factors.

Age is an important one. Experts recommend that puppies eat several times a day. They need nutrients regularly to grow, but their bellies are smaller, so feeding several small feedings (3-4 for average-sized dogs, or even more for small or toy breeds) throughout the day is a good idea. This makes it easier for puppies to digest their food and helps keep energy levels consistent. 

Once they’re older, typically, vets recommend feeding twice a day. There seem to be a few reasons for this:

1. Feeding your adult dog at consistent times each day creates a sense of security and routine. Mealtimes become anchor points in their day, helping structure other activities and offering stability, especially during household changes. This is especially important if a pet struggles with some anxiety.
2. A regular feeding schedule also makes switching foods much easier. When dogs eat at specific times, their bodies naturally anticipate meals. That built-up hunger becomes a strong motivator, making it more likely they’ll accept a new food without fuss when it’s introduced at their usual mealtime.
3. Like humans, dogs have simple stomach anatomy. Once a meal is eaten, the stomach empties within a few hours as the food moves into the small intestine. After about 8 to 10 hours, an empty stomach begins to signal the brain, triggering hunger. That’s why feeding your dog at least twice a day is often considered ideal – it aligns with their natural digestive rhythm and keeps hunger at bay.
4. Lastly, sticking to a regular eating routine helps you quickly spot potential health issues. When your dog consistently finishes meals, it’s easy to notice when they don’t. A sudden change in appetite – leaving food behind or skipping a meal entirely – can be an early warning sign that something’s wrong.

Older dogs may also need to go back to smaller meals with more frequency, particularly if they develop sensitive tummies over time.

Furthermore, a study on Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus (AKA bloat) found that “dogs fed a larger volume of food per meal were at a significantly (P<0.05) increased risk of GDV, regardless of the number of meals fed daily. For both large- and giant-breed dogs, the risk of GDV was highest for dogs fed a larger volume of food once daily.” So, to help reduce the risk of bloat, it seems that feeding a few smaller meals, rather than one large one, may be highly beneficial, especially for those dogs prone to the condition.

Additionally, certain health conditions or even activity levels may dictate how often to feed a dog.

What New Research Says

Interestingly, a comprehensive new study analyzing data from over 10,000 dogs has uncovered intriguing associations between feeding frequency and canine health. The research suggests that adult dogs fed once daily may exhibit better health outcomes in several areas compared to those fed more frequently.

Key Findings

• Improved Cognitive Function: Dogs fed once per day scored lower on a cognitive dysfunction scale, indicating potential for better mental acuity.
• Reduced Health Issues: These dogs also showed lower odds of developing gastrointestinal, dental, orthopedic, kidney/urinary, and liver/pancreas disorders.
• No Significant Differences in Some Areas: The study did not find statistically significant differences in cardiac, skin, neurological health, or cancer incidence based on feeding frequency.

Study Limitations

• Self-Reported Data: Feeding frequencies were reported by dog owners, which may introduce recall bias or inaccuracies.
• Caloric Intake Not Measured: The study did not account for the total caloric intake, making it unclear whether the benefits are due to feeding frequency or overall calorie consumption.
• Observational Nature: Associations observed do not confirm that once-daily feeding causes better health outcomes.

Should You Switch How Often You Feed?

While the findings are compelling, researchers caution against changing your dog’s feeding routine. They note that further research into how often to feed a dog is necessary to understand the underlying mechanisms and to determine if these findings hold true across different dog populations. Regardless, it opens the door to reevaluating current feeding recommendations for adult dogs. Remember, “While a feeding frequency of one meal per day was linked with better outcomes for dogs in some areas, in other domains it wasn’t so clear. Measurements for disease risk in terms of cardiac, skin, and neurological health, as well as cancer incidence, didn’t show statistically significant effects.”

Will we change how often we feed our girls? No, we’ll stick with twice a day. They have their routine, and we focus on health in many other areas.

While this opens up new approaches on how often to feed a dog, those earlier-mentioned factors are what we’ll continue to base our feeding routine on. You have to do the same – you feed when you do for a reason, so don’t just go and change things up. But we will keep an eye on where the research goes. As always, as we learn more, we’re able to do better.