I think the question we answer most often revolves around knowing how much food a dog should eat in a day, and how automatic pet feeders can help regulate their eating – especially if they can get to it any time they want. Overfeeding is a big deal, and can cause problems for your dog, so this is a great question.

Based on lots of years of experience, here’s our advice (we think you should ask your vet too):

The amount of food your dog eats in a day depends on his size, age, activity level and the type of food he eats. For example:

• Small adult dogs up to 10 pounds should eat 1/3 to 1 cup of dry food.
• Small adult dogs 10 to 25 pounds should eat 1 to 2 ¼ cups of dry food.
• Medium adult dogs 25-50 pounds should eat 2 ¼ to 3 ¾ cups of dry food.
• Large adult dogs 50-75 pounds should eat 3 ¾ to 5 cups of dry food.
• Large adult dogs over 75 pounds should eat 5-8 cups of dry food.

How automatic pet feeders change eating habits

Here’s how an automatic pet feeder works: You fill the reserve with dry dog food, and when your dog is ready to eat, he simply opens the feeder door and eats what he wants.

You would think with so much food being available, he would eat even more, right? That’s not the case. It will take a few days, but using an automatic dog feeder can modify your dog’s eating behavior. What we’ve seen on a regular basis is that initially the dog eats like he’s used to. Then, by about the 3rd to 5th day, he begins to figure out that every time he opens the feeder door, fresh food is there. Dogs are wise – they figure it out. And, typically they’ll start eating smaller meals (but more frequently) – the ideal way to eat. Right now if you’re overfilling his dog food bowl at the beginning of the day, more than likely he’s eating it all right away (or the stealthy critter that only comes out when you’re not home is eating it for him).

Here’s my advice: Throw away the old stand-by dog food bowl and get a dog feeder – make life a little easier (and healthier).