Cat Food Portion Calculator

Indoor cats often need about 3–4% of ideal body weight in food per day depending on activity — lower for couch potatoes, higher for playful or outdoor cats. The percentage converts to ounces or grams before you split across meals.

AAFP feline life-stage guidance stresses maintaining lean body condition rather than a fixed scoop. Free feeding can work for some cats but often leads to weight gain — measured portions are safer for most households.

Example: a 10 lb moderately active cat at 3.5% needs about 0.35 lb (5.6 oz, roughly one 6-oz cup of dry food) per day. A 4.5 kg cat at the same level needs about 158 g.

Indoor sedentary cats may need the low end of the percentage range; active outdoor cats the high end.

Wet food portions by weight differ in calories — follow can labels when mixing wet and dry.

Worked example: 10 lb cat, moderate → ~0.35 lb/day (~5.6 oz).

Overweight cats need a vet target weight entered, not current weight — feeding 10 lb cat portions to a cat that should weigh 8 lb slows weight loss. Body condition scoring (ribs palpable) beats scale weight alone. Target weight may differ from scale weight — feed eight-pound goal portions to a ten-pound overweight cat per vet guidance, not current weight.

All-dry versus half-wet diets change calorie absorption and satiety — 0.35 lb/day dry equivalent differs from two 3 oz cans plus kibble topper even when total calories match. Transition slowly over 7–10 days when changing formats. Wet plus dry mixes need label kcal — 0.35 lb/day dry equivalent differs from two cans plus kibble topper even when calories match.

Ten-pound cat, moderate activity → ~0.35 lb/day (~5.6 oz dry). Indoor-only sedentary cats may need 0.30 lb at the same weight — adjust after monthly weigh-ins on a baby scale. Ten-pound moderate cat ~0.35 lb/day (~5.6 oz dry) — sedentary indoor cats may need 0.30 lb at the same weight after monthly weigh-ins.