petsupplies.co

Rubric v1 · 526 products scored

Dog food rubric

Every product in this category is scored against the same rubric. Weights sum to 100. A hit on any disqualifier forces a "skip" verdict regardless of the point total.

Criteria & weights

  1. 1. AAFCO adequacy statement

    Weight 20/100

    Signal: label

    1. 10Feeding-trial verified for target life stage
    2. 6Formulated to meet
    3. 0No statement

  2. 2. Named animal protein as first ingredient

    Weight 15/100

    Signal: label

    1. 10Named whole muscle meat first
    2. 6Named meat meal first
    3. 2Meat by-product or plant first

  3. 3. Protein and fat levels vs life stage minimums

    Weight 10/100

    Signal: label guaranteed analysis

    1. 1015%+ above minimum
    2. 5At minimum
    3. 0Below AAFCO minimum

  4. 4. Recall history

    Weight 15/100

    Signal: FDA recall database

    1. 10Clean 5+ years
    2. 5Recall 24-60 months ago
    3. 0Any recall in last 24 months

  5. 5. Manufacturer transparency

    Weight 10/100

    Signal: manufacturer site

    1. 10Owns manufacturing + publishes plant location
    2. 6Discloses co-manufacturer
    3. 2No disclosure

  6. 6. Sourcing disclosure

    Weight 10/100

    Signal: manufacturer site

    1. 10Names country and supplier tier for primary proteins
    2. 6Country only
    3. 2Global sourcing

  7. 7. Ingredient specificity

    Weight 10/100

    Signal: label

    1. 10Every top-10 ingredient specific (e.g. chicken thigh)
    2. 3Generic terms present (meat, animal fat, poultry by-product)

  8. 8. Preservative and additive profile

    Weight 5/100

    Signal: label

    1. 10Mixed tocopherols / rosemary extract only
    2. 2Includes BHA / BHT / ethoxyquin

  9. 9. WSAVA-aligned nutritional support

    Weight 5/100

    Signal: manufacturer site

    1. 10Full-time board-certified veterinary nutritionist (DACVN or ECVCN)
    2. 5Consulting nutritionist only
    3. 0None disclosed

Disqualifiers

Any of the following forces a "skip" verdict, no matter how well the product scores on other criteria. Non-negotiable.

  • No AAFCO statement
  • Active FDA recall
  • Marketing claims that violate FDA labeling rules

Verdict thresholds

Total score cutoffs for each public verdict tier. Sum of weighted criterion scores maps directly onto these bands.

Editors' pick
≥ 85
Solid buy
≥
Situational
≥

Below , or any disqualifier hit → verdict: skip.

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