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Cesar Porterhouse Flavor & Spring Vegetables Garnish Small Breed Adult Dry Dog Food, 5-lb bag
Cesar

Porterhouse Flavor & Spring Vegetables Garnish Small Breed Adult Dry Dog Food, 5-lb bag

Evidence Fair
AAFCO compliance inferred from product name
dry $2.40/lb

Cesar Porterhouse Flavor & Spring Vegetables Garnish Small Breed Adult Dry Dog Food, 5-lb bag earns a Sniff Score of 5/100 (F) with Fair evidence. 5 controversial ingredients flagged. Score capped at 39 due to 5 FLAG ingredients.

Graded by The Sniff System

Why this score

Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.

CQI

AAFCO formulation inferred from declared adult maintenance. Verbatim statement not published by retailer.

ACF

Score capped at 39 due to 5 FLAG ingredients.

CAP why?

Contains bha. IARC Group 2B probable carcinogen; CA Prop 65 listed; FDA reassessment announced 2025. Natural alternatives (mixed tocopherols) widely available..

CIP

Contains red 40. EU mandatory warning label since 2010. California AB 2316 banned 6 dyes from school foods (2024). HHS phase-out announced April 2025..

CIP

Controversial ingredients · 6

  • bha
    Synthetic preservative classified by the U.S. National Toxicology Program as 'reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.' Many premium brands have removed it.
  • yellow 6
    Artificial color with no nutritional value.
  • red 40
    Artificial color with no nutritional value. Linked to behavioral effects in children; relevance to dogs is unclear but the ingredient serves only marketing purposes.
  • yellow 5
    Artificial color with no nutritional value. Some dogs show allergic-type reactions.
  • blue 2
    Artificial color. A 1990s industry-funded study reported brain tumors in male rats; subsequent reviews disputed methodology, but the additive provides no nutritional benefit.
  • sodium selenite
    Synthetic selenium source. Selenium is essential, but sodium selenite has a narrower safety margin than organic alternatives like selenium yeast. Better-formulated foods use the organic form.

Every flagged ingredient has a published basis (confirmed harm / regulatory action / precautionary). See methodology →

Guaranteed analysis
Dry-matter protein: 30% ⓘ
Protein
26%
min (as fed)
Fat
12.5%
min (as fed)
Fiber
4.5%
max (as fed)
Moisture
12%
max
Ingredients

Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.

45 total
Good Neutral Watch Flagged
  1. 1
    beef

    Real meat. Dense in protein and iron. Some dogs are sensitive to it, but for most it's an excellent base.

  2. 2
    ground wheat

    Whole wheat. Fine for most dogs, though a portion are sensitive. Not a quality concern, just a fit-for-your-dog question.

  3. 3
    meat and bone meal

    Unnamed animal protein with bone included. Cheap, vague, and not traceable to a specific species.

  4. 4
    whole grain corn

    Whole corn with the kernel intact. Decent fiber and B vitamins, though it can crowd out meat in cheaper recipes.

  5. 5
    brewers rice

    Broken rice kernels left over from milling, usually destined for human beer-making. Cheaper than whole or even white rice. Same carbs, less nutrition than the brown version.

  6. 6
    chicken by-product meal

    Ground organs, bone, and tissue. Nutritionally dense, especially the liver and gizzard fractions. Named species ('chicken') is what matters. Generic 'poultry by-product meal' is the one to worry about.

  7. 7
    soybean meal

    Concentrated soy protein. Cheap plant protein that pads the label number, common in budget formulas.

  8. 8
    animal fat

    Unnamed fat source. The species matters: 'chicken fat' or 'beef fat' is fine, but 'animal fat' tells you nothing about origin.

  9. 8
    bha Flagged

    Synthetic preservative. Listed as a possible human carcinogen by the IARC. Banned from human food in Japan and parts of the EU, still permitted in US pet food.

  10. 9
    corn gluten meal

    Concentrated corn protein. Inflates the protein percent on the label without matching meat-quality amino acids.

  11. 10
    natural flavor

    Legal term for animal-derived flavoring, usually hydrolyzed liver or broth. Adds taste, says nothing about quality.

  12. 11
    dried plain beet pulp

    Beet fiber, with the sugar removed. Long unfairly maligned. It's a real soluble fiber that supports stool quality.

  13. 12
    water

    Just water. Counted on the label of any wet or fresh food. The number tells you the moisture content.

  14. 13
    chicken meal

    Chicken with the water cooked out. Per pound, packs more protein than fresh chicken.

  15. 14
    glycerin

    Humectant used in soft-moist foods to keep them chewy. Safe in moderation but a signal of a processed semi-moist product.

  16. 15
    salt

    Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.

  17. 16
    sugar

    Added sugar. No nutritional purpose for dogs. Most often found in budget semi-moist foods.

  18. 17
    potassium sorbate
  19. 18
    phosphoric acid
  20. 19
    potassium chloride

    Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.

  21. 20
    natural porterhouse flavor
  22. 21
    choline chloride

    Essential nutrient for liver and brain function. Standard inclusion in complete dog foods.

  23. 22
    dried peas

    Cheap protein bulk. Fine in small amounts, but when peas stack with lentils and chickpeas in the top ingredients, it's the pattern the FDA flagged in its heart-disease investigation. See why →

  24. 23
    calcium carbonate

    Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.

  25. 24
    dl-methionine

    Essential amino acid. Often added when plant proteins dominate, since methionine is naturally lower in pulses than meat.

Showing first 25 of 45. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.

22 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.