How Much Is Safe? A Portion Guide for Pet Owners
For adult dogs and cats only: puppies and kittens have different needs, so ask your vet instead of using this guide. This page covers safe amounts, not whether a food is safe at all. If a food page marks something as toxic or an emergency, this guide doesn't apply. Skip straight to that food's page and call your vet.
“Safe in moderation” is one of the most common verdicts on this site, and one of the least useful on its own. A square of dark chocolate could put a 3kg cat in real danger. The same square is barely worth mentioning to a 35kg Labrador. Bodyweight changes everything, but most feeding advice skips straight past it.
Vets don't weigh their advice against your dog's bodyweight. We do. This page turns “a little” into an actual amount, for dogs and cats of different sizes.
The 10% treat rule
Treats, including human foods, should make up no more than 10% of your pet's daily caloric intake.
That's the whole rule, and it's the one worth remembering. A few things make it easier to apply:
- It's a daily total, not a per-meal limit. A bit of chicken at lunch and a bit of cheese at dinner both count towards the same 10%.
- It covers everything extra: treats, table scraps, training rewards, the lot. Not just what comes out of a treat bag.
- It's the baseline behind every “safe in moderation” verdict on this site. When a food page tells you something's fine in small amounts, this is the rule it's using.
The sections below turn that percentage into real quantities, for dogs and cats.
How to work out a safe amount
- 1
Find your pet's weight band
For dogs: small (up to 10kg), medium (10–25kg), or large (25kg+). For cats, use the average adult weight of 4–5kg unless your cat is notably outside that range.
- 2
Look up the daily calorie estimate for that band
Each weight band has an approximate daily calorie range (for example, a medium dog needs roughly 700–900 kcal a day; an average cat needs roughly 200–250 kcal a day). These are estimates for a healthy adult pet, not exact figures.
- 3
Calculate 10% of that daily calorie estimate
Take 10% of the daily calorie range to get the maximum calories that should come from treats and human foods that day.
- 4
Convert that into a familiar food amount
Translate the calorie allowance into a concrete, familiar quantity (for example, grams of cooked chicken, a tablespoon of peanut butter, or a small handful of blueberries) using the weight-band examples on this page.
Dogs: guide by weight band
Three weight bands, because a 6kg terrier and a 35kg retriever have very different daily budgets.
| Weight band | Daily calorie needs (approx.) | 10% for treats | What that looks like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (up to 10kg) | ~250–400 kcal | ~25–40 kcal | A couple of small pieces of cooked chicken, or a few blueberries |
| Medium (10–25kg) | ~700–900 kcal | ~70–90 kcal | A small handful of cooked chicken, or a teaspoon of peanut butter |
| Large (25kg+) | ~1,200–1,700 kcal | ~120–170 kcal | A generous handful of cooked chicken, or a tablespoon of peanut butter |
These are estimates for a healthy adult dog, not exact figures: activity level, breed and metabolism all shift the real number. Treat the table as a sense-check, not a calculator.
Cats: guide by size
Cats are less variable in size than dogs, so one band covers most of them.
An average adult cat weighs 4–5kg and needs roughly 200–250 kcal a day. Ten per cent of that is a small amount: think a teaspoon of plain cooked chicken or a couple of small cat treats, not a saucer of anything.
Cats have stricter nutritional needs than dogs and can't compensate as easily for extra calories, so the 10% rule matters more here, not less. A little goes further with a cat, in both directions.
One-off treats vs. regular treats
The 10% rule is about habitual feeding patterns, not a single day's maths. A spoonful of plain yoghurt once, even if it tips that day over 10%, isn't a problem. Giving your dog a grape once, on the other hand, is a poisoning risk regardless of quantity, because grapes aren't a “moderation” food at all.
So: use this rule to guide how you feed day to day, not as a strict limit to panic over if you go over it occasionally.
When to call a vet
This guide is for foods already marked “safe in moderation” on this site. If any of the following apply, skip the maths and call your vet instead:
- The food page for what your pet ate says toxic or emergency (for example, chocolate).
- Your pet has eaten a much larger amount than the guide above, regardless of the food.
- Your pet is showing any symptoms: vomiting, lethargy, unusual behaviour.
- You're not sure what your pet ate, or how much.
This is a general guideline, not a veterinary standard, based on guidance from the PDSA and BSAVA. Your vet can give advice tailored to your pet's specific diet and health.