After nearly three decades in the veterinary field, I never expected dog food research to change my mind. But it did. I think the dog food aisle has been lying to us.
That may sound dramatic, but stick with me.
One bag says “Holistic.” Another promises “Ancient Grains.” Another boasts “Human Grade.” Then there are “Superfoods,” “Wild-Caught Salmon,” and enough pictures of majestic wolves to make you wonder if your golden retriever secretly dreams of living
in Alaska.
Until I started researching this article, I believed many of the same things most pet owners do. I figured the more expensive foods had to be better. I paid attention to ingredient lists. I thought corn was mostly filler, meat by-products were the scraps nobody wanted, and fresh or freeze-dried diets had to be healthier than kibble.
Then I did what veterinary technicians tend to do: I went down a rabbit hole. I started gathering information from veterinary schools, board-certified veterinary nutritionists, and dozens of dog foods. I spent hours checking sources, comparing recommendations, and looking for agreement. I had fully expected to finish this project feeling pretty confident that I’d found the “best” premium food. Instead, I spent several hours realizing I was wrong about more than a few things.
I was trying to answer one simple question: If I were feeding my own healthy dog on a reasonable budget, what would I buy?
I expected the answer to come in an expensive bag. Instead, it was sitting on a shelf at Walmart, looking completely unimpressed with itself.
Maybe we’re all easier to influence than we’d like to admit. Give us pretty packaging, a celebrity endorsement, heartwarming commercials, and words like “natural” or “premium,” and it’s easy to assume we’re buying the best. I realized I’d made those same assumptions.
Science instead of advertising
The companies that consistently impressed me weren’t necessarily the ones with the flashiest advertising. They were the ones investing in veterinary nutritionists, feeding trials, quality control, and decades of nutrition research.
One name kept showing up: Purina Dog Chow.
Believe me, I checked again because I thought I’d missed something.
It meets the needs of most healthy dogs, has decades of research behind it, and costs about a dollar a pound.
Purina ONE builds on that same foundation with formulas for different life stages and health needs. Some formulas include more protein, probiotics, omega fatty acids, or joint-support ingredients. It costs 50% to 100% more than Dog Chow. But seeing an ingredient on the label doesn’t mean there’s enough of it to make a meaningful difference. Sometimes it’s more practical to feed a research-backed diet and add supplements only
when needed.
That doesn’t mean premium or boutique foods are bad. Many are excellent, and plenty of dogs do well on them. I just couldn’t find convincing evidence that paying two to four times as much consistently produces healthier dogs.
That’s when something finally clicked: Marketing sells dog food. Science tells us what works.
How do you recognize a science-backed food? Look for companies that follow World Small Animal Veterinary Association guidelines, conduct Association of American Feed Control Officials feeding trials, employ veterinary nutritionists, and invest in nutrition research.
Another surprise? Ingredient lists don’t tell the whole story. Take meat by-products. They often include nutrient-rich organs like liver, heart, kidneys, and lungs — the very parts wild canids eat first. Corn — including cornmeal — has gotten an undeserved bad reputation. Properly processed, it provides valuable nutrients and energy, not simply filler. The same is true of kibble. Yes, it’s processed. But nutrients are added to make it complete and balanced, and current evidence doesn’t support dismissing a quality kibble simply because it’s processed.
Fresh, freeze-dried, raw, and balanced home-cooked diets can all be excellent choices. But if those aren’t in your budget, don’t feel guilty. For my dogs,
I’d feel good about rotating science-backed kibbles and adding healthy extras like cooked eggs, plain kefir, pumpkin, berries, and other dog-safe fruits
and vegetables.
No dog food can make up for obesity, skipped preventive care, poor dental care, or too little exercise. Those things have a much bigger impact on your dog’s health than whether the bag says “premium” or “holistic.”
Besides, your labrador would probably trade gourmet freeze-dried elk for the dead squirrel he found in the backyard.
After spending too much time reading dog food research, I didn’t come away with a favorite brand. The dog food aisle may have lied to me, but the
science didn’t.
I came away with a better question:
Instead of asking, “What’s the best dog food?” I’ll ask, “What’s the evidence?”
Julie Bjorland is a Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT) and has been working alongside Goutam Mukherjee, DVM, MS, Ph.D. (known as Dr. G) for the past 20 years. To suggest a topic for discussion, email [email protected]
