When it’s time to feed your beloved pup, it’s all too easy to mindlessly scoop dry food into their bowl. But do you know whether they’re getting the right portion size?
A new study, funded by the pet food company Royal Canin, suggests that they probably aren’t. Your scoop may put too much or too little in their dog bowl, which could lead to weight gain or undernourishment.
The researchers randomly asked 100 pet parents to use one of three measuring methods when feeding dry food. Some were given a one-cup dry food measuring cup or a two-cup food scoop with markings. Others had to rely on a two-cup graduated-liquid measuring cup, much like those used for baking. The team then asked each group to portion out ¼, ½ or 1 cup of food into their pup’s bowl. The resulting portions were weighed on a food scale to determine how accurate they were.
The pet parents were remarkably inaccurate, according to the study. The measured serving sizes ranged from a 48 percent underestimation to a 152 percent overestimation.
The smallest amount was the hardest for people in the study to measure. Those attempting to portion out ¼ cup of food were more likely to give the wrong amount. The two-cup liquid measuring cup and two-cup food scoop were also the most inaccurate. Those who used the one-cup measuring cup were most accurate, particularly when measuring one cup of food.
A food scale, however, is the gold standard for ensuring correct portion sizes, the study’s authors wrote. If pet parents tend to overestimate how much to feed their pet on a daily basis, it can lead to an excess of daily calories that can result in weight gain.
With NomNomNow, meals are pre-portioned based on your pet’s caloric needs and sealed individually (one bag = one meal). There’s no need for pet parents to measure anything, which eliminates the risk of over or underfeeding.
