Skin & Digestive Support Salmon & Brown Rice Recipe Medium & Large Breed Dry Dog Food, 8.8-lb bag
Optimeal Skin & Digestive Support Salmon & Brown Rice Recipe Medium & Large Breed Dry Dog Food, 8.8-lb bag earns a Sniff Score of 59/100 (C) with Fair evidence. Zero controversial ingredients flagged. Score capped at 59 due to no AAFCO statement.
Graded by The Sniff System
Reasonable protein quality. salmon delivers solid amino acid coverage.
Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Quality fat sources: named fat with marine oil (EPA and DHA source).
No AAFCO statement. Nutritional completeness unverified.
Controversial ingredients · 1
- sodium seleniteSynthetic 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 →
Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.
- 1protein animalsalmon
Real fish meat. Natural source of omega-3s, which kibble usually has to add back from oil.
- 2grainbrown rice
Whole grain that's easy to digest. Steady carb energy plus a little fiber.
- 3grainrice
Generic rice. Could be white or brown, the label doesn't say. Brown rice would be specified if it were.
- 4grainoats
Whole grain. Steady energy, soluble fiber, and well-tolerated by most dogs.
- 5protein plantpea protein
Concentrated plant protein. Inflates the protein number on the label without matching the amino acid quality of meat.
- 6protein animalchicken meal
Chicken with the water cooked out. Per pound, packs more protein than fresh chicken.
- 7poultry fat
- 8fatflaxseed
Plant source of omega-3. Helpful for skin and coat, though dogs absorb omega-3 from fish more efficiently.
- 9othernatural flavor
Legal term for animal-derived flavoring, usually hydrolyzed liver or broth. Adds taste, says nothing about quality.
- 10dried plain beet pulp
Beet fiber, with the sugar removed. Long unfairly maligned. It's a real soluble fiber that supports stool quality.
- 11grainbarley
Whole grain with a low glycemic profile and some soluble fiber. Easy on blood sugar.
- 12potato starch
Refined potato. Pure carb energy, low on other nutrition. Often used as a binder in grain-free recipes.
- 13protein animalturkey meal
Turkey with the water cooked out. Per pound, packs more protein than fresh turkey.
- 14mineralcalcium carbonate
Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.
- 15mineraldicalcium phosphate
Calcium and phosphorus combined. Required source of both minerals, especially in formulas without much bone content.
- 16dried chicken liver
Organ meat. Dense in protein, iron, vitamin A, and the B vitamins. Among the most nutrient-rich ingredients a dog can eat.
- 17dried egg product
Whole eggs with the water removed. Same nutritional value as fresh eggs, just shelf-stable.
- 18mineralsalt
Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.
- 19fatsalmon oil
Pure omega-3s. The thing skin-and-coat formulas are usually built around.
- 20fiberdried chicory root
Natural prebiotic. Feeds beneficial gut bacteria. The same compound (inulin) used in human gut-health products.
- 21brewer's dried yeast
- 22supplementcholine chloride
Essential nutrient for liver and brain function. Standard inclusion in complete dog foods.
- 23sodium hexametaphosphate
- 24fiberpowdered cellulose
Plant fiber, often from wood pulp. Cheap bulk filler. Not harmful, but a tell that the recipe is reaching for inexpensive bulk.
- 25mineralpotassium chloride
Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.
Showing first 25 of 54. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.
22 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.