Fresh Dog Food Portions by Weight (Singapore Guide)
You just unpacked your first Bon Pet delivery, laid a 300g pouch of gently cooked chicken on the counter, and realised you have no idea how much of it your Corgi actually needs. Scoop the whole pack? Half? A palmful? Kibble bags come with a chart on the side. Fresh food doesn't work quite the same way, and if you're feeding by eye, you're either underfeeding a growing pup or slowly padding a senior's waistline.
Portioning fresh dog food isn't complicated once you know the maths. It's just different from kibble, because fresh food is denser in real nutrients and much lower in fillers. Here's how to size meals for your dog in Singapore, using our 300g packs as the reference unit.
Why fresh food portions look smaller than you expect
Kibble is roughly 8-10% moisture. Bon Pet gently cooked meals are 65-70% moisture, which is the natural water content of real meat and veg. That means gram for gram, kibble is more calorie-dense on the label, but it's also packing carbs, binders, and starch fillers your dog doesn't really need.
Fresh food gives you cleaner calories: 70% protein, 25% veg and fruit, 5% supplements. Your dog absorbs more of what you're feeding, so the daily gram count is smaller than a kibble portion. If you're switching over from kibble and the fresh pack looks tiny, that's normal. You're not shortchanging your furkid.
The 2-3% rule (and when to break it)
The working baseline for adult dogs on fresh food is 2-3% of body weight per day, split across two meals. That range exists because activity level, age, and metabolism swing the number:
- Sedentary / senior dog: aim for the low end, 2%
- Average adult (2-3 walks a day, HDB flat living): 2.5%
- Active / working / young adult (long runs, dog sports): 3% or slightly higher
- Puppies: significantly higher (5-10% depending on age), split across 3-4 meals
So let's plug in real dogs.
5kg dog (Toy Poodle, small Shih Tzu)
2.5% of 5kg = 125g/day. That's roughly half a 300g Bon Pet pack, split into two ~62g meals. One pack lasts two days for a small breed.10kg dog (French Bulldog, Corgi, medium Shih Tzu)
2.5% of 10kg = 250g/day. That's a little under one full 300g pack. Two meals of ~125g each. One pack per day, give or take.15kg dog (Cocker Spaniel, small Aussie)
2.5% of 15kg = 375g/day. 1.25 packs a day. Two meals of ~185g.20kg dog (Border Collie, Springer)
2.5% of 20kg = 500g/day. 1.6 packs a day. Two meals of ~250g.30kg dog (Golden, Lab, Husky)
2.5% of 30kg = 750g/day. 2.5 packs a day. Two meals of ~375g.Those numbers assume your dog is at their ideal weight, not their current weight. If your Frenchie should weigh 10kg but currently weighs 13kg, portion for 10kg. Feeding to the goal, not the reality, is how you get there.
The Singapore adjustments most guides skip
Generic portion charts are written for temperate climates and yards. Singapore dogs live differently, and it affects energy needs.
HDB flat living cuts activity. Most SG dogs get their exercise on scheduled walks, not free roaming. A Corgi in a landed home in Melbourne runs laps around a garden all day. The same Corgi in a Bukit Timah HDB does two 30-minute walks. Same breed, meaningfully different calorie burn. Trend toward the lower end of the 2-3% band unless your dog is genuinely active.
Humidity suppresses appetite. In the peak of April or October, when it's 33°C and pouring, plenty of dogs eat less. That's normal. Don't force a full portion if your dog leaves food in the bowl for two days running. Adjust down 10-15% and see if the residue drops.
Air-con changes things too. Dogs sleeping in fully air-conditioned rooms burn slightly more calories thermoregulating than dogs on fan-only. It's a small factor but real for skinny breeds.
Grooming and coat clips matter. A shaved Poodle in June needs a touch more food than an uncut one because they're not insulated. Small margin, but if you've noticed weight drop after a summer clip, that's why.
Puppies need their own maths
Puppies are not small adults. A 3-month-old Golden pup at 10kg does NOT eat like a 10kg adult. Growth burns calories fast, and underfeeding a puppy can hit their adult skeletal development.
Rough puppy guide by age:
- 8-12 weeks: 8-10% of current body weight, split across 4 meals
- 3-6 months: 6-8% of body weight, 3-4 meals
- 6-12 months: 4-5% of body weight, 3 meals
- 12+ months: transition to adult 2-3%, 2 meals
Full working example in our puppy feeding guide for fresh food in Singapore.
Body condition beats the scale
The scale is a rough proxy. What actually matters is body condition score. Every two weeks:
1. Feel the ribs. You should feel them under a thin layer of fat, without visible ridging. If ribs are visible from across the room, feed more. If you can't find them at all, feed less.
2. Look from above. There should be a visible waist tuck behind the ribs. A straight line from shoulder to hip means it's time to portion down.
3. Look from the side. The belly should tuck up toward the hips, not sag parallel to the ground.
Adjust portions by 10% at a time and give it two weeks. Weight changes on fresh food are usually cleaner than on kibble because you're not fighting sodium bloat, but the process still takes time.
Working out the exact number: use the calculator
The 2-3% rule gets you close. For a precise daily calorie target based on your dog's Resting Energy Requirement (RER) and activity multiplier, our feeding calculator does the maths. Pop in weight, age, and activity level, and it spits out grams per day.
For the theory nerds, our how much to feed a dog in Singapore portion guide breaks down RER and MER (Maintenance Energy Requirement) and where the multipliers come from.
Transition portions if you're switching from kibble
Day one on fresh food is not full-portion day. If your dog has been on kibble their whole life, their gut needs 3-5 days to adapt. The classic mix:
- Days 1-2: 25% Bon Pet, 75% old food
- Days 3-4: 50/50
- Day 5+: 100% Bon Pet
Storage between portions
A 300g pack thaws overnight in the fridge. Once open, it keeps for 2-3 days sealed in the fridge. Do not refreeze. For a 5kg dog eating half a pack per day, that's exactly the right pack size, portion out morning and evening from one thawed bag over two days.
For larger dogs eating 2+ packs a day, thaw one at a time. Full storage guide: fresh pet food shelf life for freezer and fridge.
Common portioning mistakes
Eyeballing instead of weighing. Get a $10 kitchen scale. It pays for itself in six months of not overfeeding.
Not counting treats. Treats can easily add 15-20% to daily calories. Reduce the meal portion accordingly if you train with high-value rewards.
Feeding current weight instead of goal weight. If your dog needs to lose weight, portion for the target, not what the vet said last visit.
Ignoring the poop test. Consistent, formed, easy-to-pick-up stool = right portion and right food. Loose stool = too much or too fast a transition. Small hard stool = not enough. Your dog's toilet is telling you.
What one Bon Pet customer noticed
> "Tried 3 other fresh pet food brands in Singapore before landing on Bon Pet. The sous vide texture is different, you can smell it. AAFCO certification + PhD formulated was the clincher." - Wei Ming L., pawrent to Niko (Shiba, 6y)
Niko is a 10kg Shiba on a full 300g pack per day, split morning and evening. Right in the middle of the 2.5% band.
Not sure yet? Try a trial pack first
If you're new to fresh feeding, the dog trial pack gets you five different proteins (chicken, beef, kangaroo, fish, pork) at 300g each. That's enough to test palatability, portion by weight, and figure out which recipes your furkid actually finishes clean. Intro savings apply at checkout.
You can also browse the full dog collection if you already know which proteins your dog does well on.
Portioning fresh food takes a bit more thought than pouring kibble, but it's not hard once you've done it a week. Weigh, watch the poop, feel the ribs. Adjust every fortnight. Your dog will settle into their proper weight and stay there.
❤️ The Bon Pet team
Frequently asked questions
How much fresh dog food per day for a 10kg dog?
About 250g per day, split across two meals. That's roughly one full 300g Bon Pet pack daily for an average adult dog. Adjust down to ~200g for a sedentary or senior dog, up to ~300g for a very active one.
Is fresh dog food more calorie dense than kibble?
No, the opposite. Fresh food is 65-70% moisture (real meat and veg), while kibble is 8-10%. Fresh portions look smaller by weight, but calories per gram of nutrient are similar and absorption is higher.
How often should I feed my dog fresh food in Singapore?
Twice a day for adult dogs, morning and evening, roughly 10-12 hours apart. Puppies need 3-4 meals a day depending on age. Once-a-day feeding is not ideal for most dogs.
Do I need to adjust portions for Singapore's climate?
Slightly. Most SG dogs live in HDB flats with scheduled walks rather than free-roam gardens, so trend toward the lower end of the 2-3% band. Humidity can also suppress appetite; adjust down 10-15% if your dog is leaving food behind.
Can I feed fresh food as a topper instead of a full meal?
Yes. Many pawrents start with fresh food as a topper on kibble, using 25-50% of the daily fresh portion. It's a lower-cost entry point and still delivers a nutrition upgrade, though full fresh feeding gets the biggest results.
