Choice Cuts in Gravy Chicken, Bacon, & Cheese Flavors Adult Soft Wet Dog Food, 3.5-oz pouch, case of 16
Graded by The Sniff System
Pedigree Choice Cuts in Gravy Chicken, Bacon, & Cheese Flavors is a wet food in pouches, formulated for adult maintenance, with chicken as a primary protein.
This formula includes quality carbohydrate sources that provide fermentable fiber, which is good for gut health. It also contains organ meat, specifically animal liver, which adds some diverse, high-bioavailability protein to the mix.
A main concern is the low protein quality, as the chicken in this formula delivers limited bioavailable amino acids. The ingredient deck also lists 'meat by-products' from an unspecified species, making their quality and consistency hard to audit.
Good fit for adult dogs who are not sensitive to unspecified ingredients. Less ideal if you prioritize high-quality, traceable protein sources.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Good fit for active large sporting breeds like Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, and English Setters navigating skin allergies. The protein deck is built around a single species (chicken). For Labrador Retrievers with suspected cutaneous adverse food reactions, a strict elimination diet trial must last a minimum of 8 weeks to reliably diagnose or rule out a food-based trigger. The National Research Council (2006) recommends a minimum of 2.6 grams of linoleic acid (an omega-6) per 1000 kcal of metabolizable energy to maintain skin barrier function in adult dogs (NRC, 2006) .
Looking at this for adult Labrador Retrievers or Labrador Retrievers with skin allergies ? We are building dedicated pages for these combinations.
Auto-matched from this product's measurements (ingredients, life stage, calorie density) to a breed archetype. Not a substitute for vet input on your specific dog.
Sniff scored this formula 39/100, landing in D-tier territory. The biggest contributor was carbohydrate quality (+12 points): Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber. The biggest detractor was protein quality (-17 points): Low protein quality. chicken delivers limited bioavailable amino acids. To reach C-tier, this formula would need to gain about 6 points, most likely through protein quality.
Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.
AAFCO formulation inferred from declared adult maintenance. Verbatim statement not published by retailer.
Low protein quality. chicken delivers limited bioavailable amino acids.
No declared omega-3 source. Fish oil, salmon oil, and algae oil all absent.
Contains meat by-products. Unnamed by-products lack species traceability. Named by-products (chicken by-products) are CLEAR..
- Bottom 1% for fat quality in grain-inclusive wet foods (4/16)
- Top 10% for overall Sniff Score in Pedigree's lineup (39/100)
- Bottom quartile for protein quality in grain-inclusive wet foods (8.2/27)
Computed against the rest of our catalog. Percentiles refresh on each catalog update.
Similar dog foods worth considering
Three lenses on products with formulation profiles similar to this one.
Pedigree High Protein Variety Pack Adult Dog Wet Food Pouches, 3.5-oz pouches, 18 count
Scores 8 points higher with a similar formulation profile.
Pedigree Choice Cuts in Gravy Prime Rib, Rice & Vegetable Flavor & Roasted Chicken Adult Canned Wet Dog Food Variety Pack, 13.2-oz, case of 12
$2.01/lb vs your seed's $4.98/lb (60% less) at a comparable score.
Surfaced from a vector similarity search across 3,491 scored dog foods. How this works.
Controversial ingredients · 1
- meat by-productsUnspecified species. AAFCO definition allows organs, blood, bone. but the lack of a named source means quality and consistency are not auditable.
Every flagged ingredient has a published basis (confirmed harm / regulatory action / precautionary). See methodology →
Wet and fresh foods contain more water than kibble (typically 65-78%). On a dry-matter basis, this food's protein content is roughly 44%, comparable to premium kibble (typically 30-45% DMB protein).
Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.
- 1sufficient water for processing
- 2protein animalchicken
Real meat. Primary protein source, with the amino acid profile dogs actually evolved to eat.
Position 2: co-primary protein. Two named animal proteins in the top 2 is a strong protein build.
- 3animal liver
- 4protein animalmeat by-products Flagged
Unnamed organ meats and tissue. Could be nutritious, but no species is listed, so quality varies by batch.
Position 4: significant protein contributor. Adds amino-acid diversity to the top of the deck.
- 5poultry by-products
- 6wheat flour
Refined wheat, usually used as a binder. Cheap, not harmful, not a nutrition contributor.
Position 6: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 7protein plantwheat gluten
Concentrated wheat protein. Like other plant gluten meals, it pads the protein number on the label without contributing meat-quality amino acids.
Position 7: moderate plant-protein boost. Less likely to materially shift the protein profile.
- 8dried plain beet pulp
Beet fiber, with the sugar removed. Long unfairly maligned. It's a real soluble fiber that supports stool quality. See why →
Position 8: functional fiber for digestion or satiety.
- 9corn protein meal
Concentrated corn protein. Similar in role to corn gluten meal, pads the protein number on the label without matching meat amino acids.
Position 9: minor grain inclusion.
- 10corn starch
Position 10: minor grain inclusion.
- 11animal plasma
- 12soybean oil
Plant oil. High in omega-6, which is required but commonly oversupplied. Fine in moderation.
Position 12: trace fat. Below the level that materially shifts the fat profile.
- 13mineralcalcium carbonate
Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.
- 14mineralsodium tripolyphosphate
Preservative and texture agent in wet food. Functional at small doses, not a major concern, but some brands avoid it.
- 15mineralsalt
Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.
- 16natural bacon flavor
- 17natural cheese flavor
- 18supplementcholine chloride
Essential nutrient for liver and brain function. Standard inclusion in complete dog foods.
- 19mineralpotassium chloride
Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.
- 20fiberxanthan gum
Thickener common in wet food and gravies. Same emulsifier-microbiome conversation as guar gum, not a clear flag. See why →
- 21added color
Generic coloring. Doesn't say if natural or artificial. Dogs are color-blind, so any added color is for the human shopper.
- 22vitaminascorbic acid
Vitamin C. Pulls double duty as a natural antioxidant preservative.
- 23mineralmagnesium oxide
Inorganic magnesium. Functional at AAFCO doses, less efficiently absorbed than chelated forms.
- 24zinc oxide
Inorganic zinc. Cheapest mineral form on the market. Functional but less bioavailable than chelated alternatives.
- 25mineralcopper sulfate
Inorganic copper. Standard, effective at small doses. Premium formulas tend to use copper proteinate instead.
Showing first 25 of 26. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.
18 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.