Everyday feeding for your dog or cat: the label, the amount, water, and what you can share

Choosing a food and reading the label

We do not rank brands: look at this instead.

• "Complete and balanced." This is the statement that matters: it says which species and which life stage the food is made for. Without it, nothing tells you the food is a complete meal. "All life stages" includes growth: it suits an adult, but ask your veterinarian whether it is the right choice.
• A food your veterinarian chose. If your veterinarian picked one for a medical condition, follow the plan: treats, leftovers and any food switch are decided together.
• What the law requires, and the rest. In Canada, the law requires three things: the common name in English and French (for example, "cat food"), the net quantity, and the company's name and address. Everything else (guaranteed analysis, ingredients, the "complete and balanced" statement, feeding directions) comes under a voluntary federal guide.
• Calories. They are not mandatory in Canada. If they are missing, ask the manufacturer: that is the number you need to compare two foods and to build a plan with your veterinarian.
• Words that guarantee nothing. "Holistic" or "premium" require nothing more in the bag; "light," "spayed/neutered" or "indoor" tell you who the maker has in mind, not the calories: compare those. No Canadian pet food rule defines these words.
• Ingredients. The list follows their weight, water included (so fresh meat comes ahead of a dry meal), not their quality.
• The manufacturer. They should be able to say who formulates their foods and how they check quality.

Keep the food in its original bag: its lot number matters if there is a recall (you can check the federal Recalls and safety alerts (opens in a new tab) site).

How much, and when

• The chart on the bag is a starting point. Suggested amounts are not standardized and are aimed at an average animal. From there, you adjust to his shape, with your veterinarian (Is my dog or cat a healthy weight?).
• Measure. Every portion gets measured, with a measuring cup or, for more accuracy, a kitchen scale, especially for a cat's small portions.
• How many meals. Once or twice a day suits most adult cats, but many prefer small, frequent meals: the day's amount can be split into several small portions. An adult dog usually eats once or twice a day; a large, deep-chested dog does better with several small meals than one big one, with no hard exercise around meals (gastric torsion).
• Measured meals rather than a bowl that is always full. A full bowl no longer tells you what he ate, and many cats and dogs overeat from it. If you keep a bowl of kibble out, put only the day's amount in it, refreshed every day. Wet food left over comes out after the meal, an opened can goes in the fridge, covered, and bowls get washed in hot, soapy water.
• Make him hunt for his food. A food-dispensing toy or a slow-feeder bowl keeps your pet busy and slows down one who gobbles: start with an easy one, and check that he eats his whole daily amount.
• Several pets. Each gets his own share and the food made for his species: separate spots or rooms if needed, the cat's food out of the dog's reach, or a feeder that opens only for one pet's microchip.

Kibble, wet food and your cat's water

Kibble and wet food can both be complete and balanced. The difference is water: wet food brings far more water than kibble, even when the water bowl is full.

• The cat who barely drinks. A cat who eats mostly wet food drinks very little from the bowl, and that is normal: his water is in his dinner. A cat on kibble needs to drink more.
• Helping him drink. Fresh water always available, changed every day; bowls away from his food and his litter box; a fountain, if he likes one; a little water in his wet food, or wet food for part of his daily amount, introduced gradually. No broth, no soup, no baby food: several contain onion or garlic, which are toxic to dogs and to cats, even in small amounts for a cat. The juice from his own wet food is perfectly fine.
• Dogs too. Fresh water always available, changed every day, and on walks when it is hot; in winter, a bowl left outside freezes, and snow does not replace water.
• When to worry. He is drinking clearly more than before, and no food change explains it: book an appointment this week. His gums are dry or sticky: call right away, us during our hours, otherwise a 24/7 emergency centre. He has stopped drinking, or he is drinking a lot and vomiting, off his food or lethargic: go now to a 24/7 emergency centre; during our hours, call us on the way instead (My cat stopped eating).

Switching foods gently

A sudden change can bring on vomiting or diarrhea.

• Dogs. Mix a small amount of the new food into the old and increase it little by little, over about a week.
• Cats. Serve the new food in a separate bowl, next to the old one, without mixing them, and let him set the pace: some accept it quickly, others need several weeks, especially for a new texture.
• Slightly softer stools? Go back to the last step that agreed with him, then move ahead more slowly. Repeated vomiting, watery diarrhea or a lethargic pet: see the box above.
• Not while he is unwell. A cat who feels nauseous can turn against whatever food he is offered at that moment.

Treats and food from your kitchen

• The 10% rule. Treats and extras should stay at about 10% or less of his daily calories. The simple way: in the morning, set aside part of his daily amount for rewards; an extra treat comes out of a meal.
• Cats first. A cat needs no fruit or vegetables: his treat is a few pieces of kibble or a little of his wet food, taken from his daily amount. For a cat, a small piece of human food can already fill, or exceed, that 10%. A treat stays a top-up, never a meal.
• The bite that hides a pill counts too: a small separate treat, never his usual meal (Giving oral medication).
• If you share, in small pieces and plain (no salt, butter, sauce or seasoning): for cats, a little cooked chicken or turkey, no skin or bones; for dogs, also carrot, green beans, cucumber, apple without the core or seeds, blueberries, watermelon without the rind or seeds, plain cooked, puréed pumpkin (never pie filling).
• Never bones, cooked or raw, or corn cobs: they can break teeth and block or tear the digestive tract. Antlers, hooves and very hard nylon bones break teeth too. For cats, no milk (most adult cats digest lactose poorly), and no canned tuna meant for people as a habit. No fatty leftovers (poultry skin, gravy, roast fat): in dogs, a classic trigger for pancreatitis, especially over the holidays.
• Toxic foods (grapes and raisins, chocolate, xylitol, onion and garlic, among others) have their own guide and printable fridge sheet: Toxic foods and dangerous plants.
• Home-cooked diets. Recipes from books and the internet are almost always incomplete. A home-cooked diet means a recipe from a board-certified veterinary nutritionist, followed to the letter: talk to your veterinarian. Cats are strict carnivores and cannot be vegetarian.

No home medications

No supplements, and nothing from the medicine cabinet, without your veterinarian.

Frequently asked questions