When we read an ingredient list, 11 names get a flag.
None of them is illegal, and a flag is not a verdict that a food is unsafe. They are
there because each one does a job that a better ingredient could do, or no job the dog
needs at all. Here is every one, what it is doing in the bag, and how often we find it.
11
NAMES FLAGGED
248
FOODS WITH AT LEAST ONE
89%
OF FOODS HAVE NONE
2,331
FOODS CHECKED
01 // SYNTHETIC PRESERVATIVES
Keeping the fat from going rancid
Kibble is coated in fat, and fat oxidizes. Something has to slow that down. These three do it cheaply and well. Most makers have moved to mixed tocopherols, a vitamin E based preservative, which appear in 1,813 of the foods on this site.
BHA
Butylated hydroxyanisole
502% OF FOODS
WHAT IT IS
A synthetic antioxidant added to fats and oils, often inside another ingredient: "animal fat (preserved with BHA)".
WHY WE FLAG IT
The U.S. National Toxicology Program lists BHA as reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen, based on animal studies at high doses. It is still permitted in pet food. Safer alternatives are widely used, so its presence tells you something about the formula.
BHA's close relative, used for the same job and often listed alongside it.
WHY WE FLAG IT
The evidence against BHT is weaker than for BHA, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer does not classify it as a carcinogen. We flag it for the same reason as BHA: it is an avoidable synthetic where a natural preservative works.
A strong synthetic preservative, most often used to stabilize fish meal before it ever reaches the pet food maker.
WHY WE FLAG IT
In 1997 the FDA asked manufacturers to voluntarily halve the maximum level in dog food, and in 2017 the European Union suspended it as a feed additive. Because it is usually added upstream, a food can contain it without it appearing on the label.
Semi-moist foods and chewy treats need to hold water without growing mold.
Propylene glycol
A humectant
11<1% OF FOODS
WHAT IT IS
A synthetic liquid that holds moisture in soft kibble, jerky style treats and some toppers.
WHY WE FLAG IT
The FDA bans it in cat food because it damages cats' red blood cells. It is allowed in dog food and dogs tolerate it far better, but it has no nutritional value and is only there for texture.
Listed on the bag as "menadione sodium bisulfite complex" or "menadione dimethylpyrimidinol bisulfite".
Menadione
Vitamin K3
1978% OF FOODS
WHAT IT IS
A synthetic form of vitamin K added to the vitamin premix as cheap insurance.
WHY WE FLAG IT
AAFCO sets no vitamin K minimum for dogs, who get what they need from food and gut bacteria. Toxicity has been reported at high doses in other species, but not at the levels used in dog food. We flag it as an avoidable synthetic, not as a proven harm.
Dogs see mostly in blues and yellows, and do not choose food by color. Dyes are there to make kibble look like meat and vegetables to the person holding the bag.
Red 40
Allura Red AC
392% OF FOODS
WHAT IT IS
The most common red dye, used to make kibble pieces look like meat.
WHY WE FLAG IT
FDA-certified and permitted. It adds nothing to the nutrition of the food.
Some older labels say only "artificial color" without naming the dye.
WHY WE FLAG IT
Flagged for the same reason as the named dyes, and because the label does not tell you which one.
READ THIS BEFORE QUOTING A COUNT
What a flag is not
Not a safety verdict
Every name on this page is legal in U.S. dog food at the levels used. A flag means "worth knowing", not "dangerous". A food with no flags is not automatically a good food.
Only what the label says
We match the words on the published ingredient list. An additive put into an ingredient before it reached the maker, as ethoxyquin often is in fish meal, can be in the food without being on the bag.
Not veterinary advice
If your dog has a diagnosed condition or a sensitivity, the right food is a conversation with your vet, not a count on a web page.
Check a food you already buy.
Every product page lists its ingredients in order, and the compare tool shows which flags each food carries side by side.
Ten everyday foods. Safe, In Moderation or Never. No googling, no second guesses.
Then share your score with your friends, however embarrassing it turns out to be.
115 foods in the deck. Grapes are in there. So is cheese.
Cheese?Avocado?Grapes?
Flashcards
Think You Know?
Ten foods, one at a time. Call each one Safe, In Moderation or Never, then flip
the card to see if you had it right. The ones you miss are listed at the end.
Card1/10
Right0
Streak0
Keys: 1 Safe 2 Moderation 3 Never Enter Next
SafeNever
Can dogs eat
0/10
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