Ingredient file // Fruit or vegetable
Bok Choy
A leafy extra with modest nutritional impact
Bok choy is a leafy Chinese cabbage that adds some fiber and a recognizable vegetable name to dog food. It contains vitamins and plant compounds, but no feeding trial shows that bok choy in kibble improves a dog's health.
- What it is
- The edible leaves and thick stalks of a Chinese cabbage, used fresh or dried in pet food.
- Made from
- Bok choy leaves and stalks
- Main job
- Small vegetable and fiber addition
- Typical amount
- Not published
- Watch for
- Large servings of fermented bok choy
- Not the same as
- Napa cabbage
Our read // In our catalog
In 1 of every 94 foods we track
Share of foods that list it
1%
27 of the 2,533 foods with an ingredient list on file, from 1 brand. All dry dog food.
Each square is 1% of the catalog
Where it sits on the label
Median position 13. In the top five of 0 foods, so it is usually a minor ingredient.
Above the salt
Almost always listed before the salt, so there is more of it than a pinch.
Price per lb
Median of the cheapest bag price across 12 priced foods, about level with the catalog. The price is the food's, not the ingredient's.
Who leans on it
100%
of the foods that list it are from Horizon. 1 brand use it in total.
What it is
How it is made
Bok choy is grown for its leaves and stalks, rather than recovered as a processing leftover. Suppliers offer it dehydrated for pet food. The label does not reveal whether a maker used fresh or dried bok choy.2,4,5
- 01 // Source Leafy plants Growers harvest the leaves and thick stalks while bok choy is still a leafy vegetable.
- 02 // Process Cleaned and cut Harvested plants are cleaned and cut into pieces before sale or further processing.
- 03 // Process Dehydrated A pet food supplier offers dried bok choy among its dehydrated vegetables.
- 04 // Output Dry bok choy Dried vegetable reaches the kibble plant, where dry ingredients are commonly ground before mixing.
What is in it
Composition, dry matter
21.4
% fiber
Dietary fiber as a share of raw bok choy's dry matter. Its fresh weight is mostly water, so the recipe amount matters.
Why it is in the bag
What the manufacturer gets
-
01
Adds some fiber
Bok choy contains dietary fiber. Its contribution to the finished food depends on the recipe amount, which the ingredient list does not disclose.2,3
-
02
Names a familiar vegetable
Brands describe bok choy as a source of vitamins and minerals. That gives shoppers a recognizable ingredient, but its name alone says nothing about the vitamin dose.3,10
-
03
Fits dry mixing
A supplier offers dehydrated bok choy for pet food, and dry vegetables are commonly ground before mixing. Neither source reports its price or production volume.4,5
How much No standard recipe percentage is published; ingredient order shows relative weight, while the absolute amount remains undisclosed.3
Our read // The claims
What the evidence supports
Strong: controlled studies in dogs agree. Some: small or mixed dog data. Thin: mechanism or lab work only. None: nothing, or the evidence points the other way.
-
Brands say
Bok choy adds dietary fiber
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
A university table lists 1 g of dietary fiber per 100 g of raw bok choy, equal to about 21.4% of its dry matter. The content is clear; the amount a dog receives depends on the undisclosed recipe amount.2,3
-
Owners say
Bok choy is dangerous for dogs
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
One dog developed methemoglobinemia after eating a large volume of fermented bok choy. The authors could not prove that bok choy caused it. A case involving fermented leftovers does not show a risk from ordinary kibble amounts.1
-
Owners say
Its antioxidants protect dogs from disease
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
Researchers tested extracts from 3 pak choi cultivars in laboratory antioxidant assays. They did not feed bok choy to dogs or measure disease. Activity in a test tube does not demonstrate protection from bok choy in food.6,8
-
Owners say
Bok choy in kibble damages the thyroid
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
A review describes a thyroid mechanism for raw cruciferous vegetables and one human case after months of large intake. It reports no dog trial showing thyroid harm from bok choy in kibble.9
-
Owners say
Its vitamin C strengthens dogs' immunity
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
Pet advice links bok choy's vitamin C to immune support. Dogs make vitamin C in their liver and have no AAFCO dietary requirement for it. No bok choy feeding trial demonstrates an immune benefit.7,8
Straight answers
What owners ask
-
Q01
Is it just filler?
Mostly garnishIt supplies fiber and plant material, so it has a nutritional role. Its recipe amount is undisclosed, though, and the vegetable name should carry less weight than the food's main ingredients and nutritional adequacy statement.2,3
-
Q02
Does fresh versus dried matter?
YesFresh bok choy is mostly water; drying removes that weight before mixing. If the label says only bok choy, its position cannot tell you how much dry vegetable went into the recipe.2,3,4
-
Q03
Should thyroid dogs avoid it?
No proofHeavy intake of raw cruciferous vegetables has a plausible thyroid mechanism, but no dog study shows that bok choy in kibble worsens thyroid disease. Judge a thyroid diet by its full formulation.9
Who uses it
Brands, best sellers and the company it keeps
Top brands, by foods that list it
Usually listed with, share of the foods that list it
- Flaxseed 67%
- Chicken Fat 59%
- Carrots 56%
- Chicken Meal 56%
- Red Lentils 56%
- Peas 52%
- Pea Starch 48%
- Egg Product 44%
- Chicken 44%
- Whole Grain Rye 37%
- Alfalfa Meal 37%
- Pea Fibre 37%
Our read // On the bag
Read the main ingredients before the greens
Bok choy low on the list is a small vegetable addition, not a reason to buy the bag. Look first at the main protein and fat sources and the nutritional adequacy statement. Treat claims about its antioxidants or vitamin C as marketing until dog feeding evidence exists.
Sources
What we read
Checked September 1, 2026.
- 1 Transient methemoglobinemia suspected secondary to ingestion of Brassica species in a dog
- 2 Bok Choy, an Asian Leafy Green Vegetable Emerging in Florida
- 3 Reading Labels
- 4 How dry pet food is made
- 5 Products
- 6 Metabolomic analysis reveals the interaction of primary and secondary metabolism in white, pale green, and green pak choi (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis)
- 7 Nutritional Requirements of Small Animals
- 8 Can Dogs Eat Bok Choy? Vet-Verified Health Facts & FAQ
- 9 The role of nutrition on thyroid health and disease: myths and facts
- 10 Bok Choy in Dog Food