How This Started
It was a Tuesday in March 2019. I was managing the front desk at a busy veterinary clinic in Portland when Dr. Henderson called me into Exam Room 3. A golden retriever named Max — not my Max, a different Max — was sitting on the scale looking deeply offended. The number read 94 pounds. Max's owner, a kind woman named Patricia, was near tears.
"I followed the bag exactly," she said, pointing at the feeding chart on a 30-pound bag of kibble. "Two cups twice a day. Just like it says."
Dr. Henderson pulled out her calculator. RER. Multipliers. Body condition score. Patricia's eyes glazed over. I watched this scene play out three or four times a week. Well-meaning owners, confusing labels, and dogs who were quietly gaining weight while everyone blamed "slow metabolism" or "big bones."
That same week, my own golden retriever Murphy — yes, I named him after the law because he is chaos incarnate — came back from his annual checkup 8 pounds overweight. I was mortified. I literally worked in a vet clinic. I had access to board-certified nutritionists. And I was still overfeeding my own dog by 30% because I eyeballed his portions.
Here is the thing. Feeding a dog is not guesswork. There is actual math. Vets do it every day. But regular people? We pour food until the bowl looks right. Which is how Murphy got to 87 pounds when he should have been 75. My rescue mutt Scout, a terrier mix who eats like she is training for an eating competition, was somehow underweight at the same time. I was failing both of them in opposite directions.
The Education Behind the Tools
I earned my BS in Animal Science from Oregon State University in 2014, then spent six years managing a high-volume Portland veterinary clinic. I saw everything: diabetic dachshunds, obese Labradors, underweight rescues, performance dogs on precision diets, and puppies growing so fast their owners could not keep up. I worked directly with three board-certified veterinary nutritionists who reviewed cases with us weekly.
In 2019 I completed my NASC (National Animal Supplement Council) Certified Pet Nutritionist credential. That same year I transitioned to full-time pet nutrition consulting. Since then I have managed dietary cases for over 400 dogs, ranging from simple weight management to complex renal diets, food allergies, and performance nutrition for agility competitors.
I still attend the North American Veterinary Community (NAVC) conference every January. I still call Dr. Henderson when I hit a weird case. I still weigh Murphy and Scout every Sunday morning before breakfast.
Why I Built This Site
The existing tools were either too simple — "feed 2 cups" — or too clinical, buried in medical jargon that made regular owners feel stupid. I wanted something that felt like a friend explaining it over coffee, not a textbook scolding you from a lectern.
Every calculator on this site uses the same RER x multiplier formula that veterinary nutritionists use. Every article is based on either my direct clinical experience, peer-reviewed research, or consultation with practicing veterinarians. Nothing here is made up. Nothing is sponsored by a pet food brand. I call the bag guys "the bag guys" because they are not your nutritionist.
Murphy is 76 pounds now, by the way. Still majestic. Just less... round. Scout is a solid 22 pounds and no longer tries to eat the furniture. I built these tools because I needed them. I am sharing them because you probably need them too.
That is it. No startup. No investors. No pitch deck. Just one woman, two dogs, and a spreadsheet that turned into a website.