How Long Does It Take For a Dog to Digest Food?

By: Spot & Tango

Follow this guide to learn about the process of digestion happening within your dog. Having a better understanding of your dog’s digestive system will help you to comprehend your dog’s overall health.

As a loving pet parent, you probably put a considerable amount of thought and effort into what you feed your pet. Of course, you know your best pal’s favorite snacks and his/her dinner time preferences too. But have you ever stopped to think about how long it takes for a dog to digest food? Or how their digestive system even works?
Having a better understanding of your dog’s digestive system and the process required for digesting food can help you better support your dog’s gut health. Your dog’s digestive system plays a major role in their overall health but can also contribute to issues such as allergies, skin health, joint health, and more!
Table of Contents
How Long Does It Take a Dog to Digest Food?
The time it takes for a dog to digest food can vary based on a few different factors, such as age, breed, current health conditions, and more. It would be almost too simple to say that there’s a set period of time that all dogs take to digest food.
As already mentioned, several factors such as age, breed, exercise frequency, diet, and your dog’s overall health will play a role in how long it takes for him/her to digest food (we will briefly discuss each of these factors in the next section).
This is why it’s essential to monitor your dog’s digestive system consistently so that you can pick up on any changes that may suddenly occur. Any changes in the digestive system should be seen as a red flag unless there is a good reason for it, of course.

That said, we can work on averages. For example, if you had to ask how long it takes for a puppy to digest food, the average answer would be around four hours.
Meanwhile, if you wanted to know how long it takes for food to digest in a fully-grown dog, the average answer would be around eight hours.
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How Does a Dog’s Digestive System Work?
A dog’s digestive system is a complex and efficient machine that’s built for one purpose: turning food into energy and nutrients while eliminating waste. Understanding the major organs involved helps explain not just how digestion works, but why your dog’s diet and mealtime habits matter.
Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of the process:
The Mouth: Where Digestion Begins
Digestion actually starts the moment your dog takes their first bite. Unlike humans, dogs don’t do much chewing. Their teeth are designed more for tearing than grinding. As your dog eats, enzymes in their saliva begin breaking down carbohydrates—setting the stage for the digestive journey ahead.
Fun fact: Dogs produce less saliva than humans because they rely more on stomach acid to digest food. That’s why gulping food doesn’t slow them down as much as it would for us.
The Esophagus: A Smooth Ride to the Stomach
Once swallowed, food travels down the esophagus—a muscular tube that acts like a conveyor belt. Through rhythmic contractions (called peristalsis), the esophagus moves food from the mouth to the stomach in just seconds.
This step is all about transport, but any hiccup here—like megaesophagus—can cause regurgitation or digestive delays.
The Stomach: The Real Workhorse
The stomach is where the magic happens. Dogs have extremely acidic stomachs, with a pH as low as 1–2. That’s powerful enough to dissolve bones and destroy harmful bacteria.
Here, proteins are broken down by gastric juices and enzymes like pepsin. Food is churned and liquefied into a substance called chyme, which is then gradually released into the small intestine for further digestion and nutrient absorption.
According to the American Kennel Club, food stays in a dog’s stomach for 4 to 8 hours depending on the meal's composition, breed, and activity level.
The Small Intestine: Where Nutrients Are Absorbed
The small intestine is the star of nutrient absorption. Enzymes from the pancreas and bile from the liver help break down fats, carbohydrates, and proteins into usable nutrients. These nutrients are then absorbed through the intestinal walls into the bloodstream, fueling your dog’s cells and supporting vital functions.
If your dog has a food sensitivity or allergy, this is usually where symptoms like diarrhea or malabsorption first show up.
The Large Intestine (Colon): Water Reclamation & Waste Prep
Once most nutrients have been absorbed, what remains moves into the colon. Here, water and electrolytes are absorbed, and beneficial bacteria help ferment any remaining undigested food. This process firms up the stool and helps maintain a balanced gut microbiome.
A healthy colon = healthy poop. It’s that simple.
The Rectum & Beyond: Time to Eliminate
Finally, the waste moves into the rectum and is expelled through the anus. Dogs typically defecate once or twice a day depending on their diet, hydration, and digestive health.
While this may seem like the end of the line, your dog’s poop can offer valuable clues about their digestive wellness. Changes in color, consistency, or frequency may signal it’s time to adjust their diet—or schedule a vet check-up.
Pro Tip: Dogs digest food differently based on whether they’re eating dry kibble, fresh food, or raw meals. Spot & Tango’s fresh dog food recipes are designed with highly digestible, whole ingredients—making it easier for your pup to absorb nutrients and maintain optimal gut health.
What happens when your dog eats a meal?
The first step in the process is eager anticipation. While you’re bustling around the kitchen, readying their food, your dog is gearing up for digestion.
The process only really begins the moment he/she takes his/her first bite, though. As he/she chews his/her food, it slides from the mouth down the esophagus and makes a beeline for the stomach. This is where the magic happens (the stomach, that is).
The esophagus is the gatekeeper of the digestive system – all food and water must pass through it. At this point, the journey is well underway already!
Once it reaches the stomach, the food is ready to be processed. Your dog’s system will store partially digested food in the stomach, where acids and enzymes are produced to break food down.
Some senior dogs experience problems with digestive function and require additives and supplements to stimulate digestion.
Once the acids and enzymes have done their work, the food is sent to the intestines to break it down further into nutrients that are easily absorbed by the body. And then, the colon steps up to play its role.
The colon is where all the food and treats your dog has ingested turns into waste. It’s stored there until it’s time to travel onto the rectum and beyond!
Of course, it should not be left unattended after re-entering the world as a waste product – as pet parents, we all know that!
You should collect the poop whether in the street or at home to dispose of it in an appropriate place. Plus, you should inspect it to see if it has any unusual color, as it might be a sign of a digestive anomaly.
Factors That Influence Your Dog’s Digestion
Some people wonder how long it takes for a dog to poop something out after eating and what factors actually influence that. The only way to answer this is to say that each dog and puppy has a unique system, and because of that, several factors can influence your pet’s digestion.
Depending on your dog’s unique circumstances, things might take a little longer. What takes one type of dog eight hours to digest could take your dog twelve hours to digest. Nonetheless, here are several influencing factors to consider:
Diet – it’s safe to say that some foods are more digestible than others. If you feed your dog food that’s packed with grain fillers, for instance, he/she may take a little longer to digest it.
Choosing a high-protein dog food that’s easy on the stomach, such as the Spot & Tango recipes range, will ensure that your dog gets a high-nutrient value and has no trouble with digestion.
Breed and size – the breed of your dog plays a big role in his digestive process. Some breeds of dogs require a certain diet; for instance, high energy breeds will need a foo
d source that’s high in protein and may therefore digest their food faster than a sedentary breed that’s not very energetic.
Age – age is quite an important factor, since a dog’s body changes as it gets older (much like ours does). You will notice that your dog’s digestive slows throughout his life cycle.
For instance, he/she may need frequent toilet trips as a puppy, fewer toilet trips as an adult, and then as a senior dog, his/her digestive system may slow down quite uncomfortably and need a bit of assistance to activate the need for toilet trips.
Exercise – people often overlook the fact that their dog is dynamic and full of energy and therefore works off his food-produced energy much quicker than expected.
Keep in mind that the more energetic your dog is, the faster his body will make use of the energy stored in the stomach and intestinal tract. Dogs that don’t do much exercise will digest their food considerably slower.
Supporting Your Dog’s Digestive Health with Vitamins & Supplements
Sometimes things don’t go as planned when it comes to a dog’s digestive system, and that’s okay.
By providing a better diet and ensuring that your dog has the correct vitamins and supplements for a healthy digestive system, you can get your dog’s digestive system back on track (and keep it that way).
Vitamins and supplements can help your dog enjoy more efficient digestion. Most multivitamins prescribed for dogs include a combination of vitamins A, B (especially B12), C, D, E, K, choline, and iodine. These vitamins can aid in a healthier digestive tract.
Of course, you don’t want to overdose your pet on vitamins and supplements – something that many people buy into because pet vitamin supplements are promoted so aggressively.

Instead, provide your dog with food that’s packed with the vitamins and supplements needed, without harmful chemicals and additives. Your dog should be able to get the majority of the required vitamins and minerals from his food, if he/she is eating the right food.
One way to do this is to introduce your pet to the Spot & Tango range of dry Unkibble and wet food recipes too. The Spot & Tango range includes 100% fresh human-grade ingredients that are easy to digest. This includes the likes of duck and salmon, beef and barley, and chicken and brown rice.
All of the food in this range promotes healthy digestion as a result of containing no artificial preservatives, additives, or fillers.
This non-GMO food, which is also hormone-free, is nutrient-dense, including potassium, magnesium, vitamin E and B12, zinc, iron, iodine, kelp (choline), and ensuring your dog gets the goodness he/she needs when he/she needs it.
The Benefits of Highly Digestible Food
Digestibility refers to the nutritional value provided to your dog through his meals and how quickly it can pass through the system. Foods that have a low digestibility typically take a long time to pass through the digestive system and don’t offer much in terms of nutrition.
Low digestibility refers to foods that aim to make your dog feel full instead of well-nourished.
The main benefit of highly digestible food is that your dog will derive more nutrients from it. This means that his immune system will get a boost, and he/she won’t be as prone to illness as dogs unable to derive much nutritional value from their meals.
In addition to that, highly digestible food will reduce flatulence, minimize waste (toilet time), and improve your dog’s stool (which makes it easier to pick up when required).
With a highly digestible diet, your dog’s gut won’t be overworked (overworking it can lead to uncomfortable conditions such as colitis). As a result, your dog will have a shiny coat, healthy skin, and sufficient energy to power him/her through every day’s adventures.
Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How long does food stay in a dog’s stomach?
A. Food stays in an adult dog’s stomach for anything between eight and ten hours. Of course, all dogs are different, so you should not be alarmed if your dog has not passed a stool up to 12 hours after consuming food.
Q. How long does it take for a puppy to digest food?
A. Generally speaking, puppies digest food in around four hours. While that may be true, the breed and size of the puppy may come into play. As a general rule of thumb, small breeds of puppies take on average four to six hours to digest food, while bigger breeds can take six to eight hours.
Q. How long does it take for a dog to digest raw food?
A. Dogs digest raw food a lot quicker than processed foods. For instance, a dog that usually takes around four hours to digest a processed meal may take one to two hours to digest raw food.
Q. How long does it take for a dog to digest raw bone?
A. A dog’s digestive system can digest a raw bone in around eight to twelve hours. As always, some factors come into play, such as the bone’s size, whether it was chewed or swallowed whole, age and breed, and so on.
Final Thoughts
Understanding your dog’s digestive system may not be the first thing on your mind every morning but paying attention from time to time can help you better understand your dog’s overall health and well-being.
As mentioned in previous articles, avoid giving human foods that can affect his/her digestive movements such as garlic and onion.
Plus, spend some time monitoring your dog’s digestive system and consider switching him/her to a highly digestible food complete with digestion-aiding vitamins and supplements.
Choose Spot & Tango and plan your dog’s meals according to his/her needs here.