How We Score Dog Food
Every score on this site is computed from data, not written by hand. This page is the whole method. If you disagree with a band, you can see exactly which one and by how much it moved the number.
What goes into the score
| Component | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Protein, dry matter | 30 | Protein once the water is removed, so wet and dry foods are on the same scale. |
| Carbohydrate load | 25 | What is left after protein, fat, fibre, moisture and assumed ash. Nobody publishes this. |
| First five ingredients | 25 | Ingredients are listed by weight. Named animal proteins score; unnamed sources lose points. |
| Flagged additives | 10 | A specific list of preservatives, colours and sweeteners, each with a stated reason. |
| Brand recall history | 10 | FDA recalls matched to the brand, weighted towards the last three years. |
What we assume, and what we refuse to assume
Ash is the one figure we assume. It is not part of the guaranteed analysis, so no manufacturer publishes it, and the carbohydrate estimate cannot be closed without it. We use 6% for dry foods and 2% for foods above 40% moisture.
Everything else comes from the manufacturer. Where a figure is missing we say so and we do not score the product at all. A food with an incomplete guaranteed analysis gets no score rather than a low one, because ranking it against foods measured on more components would be misleading.
The additives we flag
- Bha BHA, a preservative the US National Toxicology Program lists as reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.
- Bht BHT, a preservative restricted in food use in several countries.
- Ethoxyquin Ethoxyquin, a preservative not permitted in human food and limited by the FDA in pet food.
- Propylene Glycol Propylene glycol, banned from cat food by the FDA and used as a humectant.
- Menadione Menadione (vitamin K3), a synthetic form linked to toxicity at high doses and not permitted in human supplements.
- Red 40 Red 40, an artificial colour that exists for the owner rather than the dog.
- Yellow 5 Yellow 5, an artificial colour that exists for the owner rather than the dog.
- Yellow 6 Yellow 6, an artificial colour that exists for the owner rather than the dog.
- Blue 2 Blue 2, an artificial colour that exists for the owner rather than the dog.
- Corn Syrup Corn syrup, an added sugar with no nutritional role in a dog food.
- Sodium Metabisulfite Sodium metabisulfite, a preservative that destroys thiamine.
What the score is not
It is not a health outcome. It measures what is measurable from a label and a recall record. It does not know your dog, and it does not account for price, palatability, availability, or a condition your vet is managing. A food scoring 60 that your dog thrives on beats a food scoring 90 that it will not eat.
Rubric version 1.0. When we change the method we change this number and every score is recomputed.