BixbiPocket Trainers® for Dogs

A legume used as a carbohydrate and plant protein, common in grain-free foods. Chickpeas supply fiber, folate and protein that lifts the number on the bag without adding meat. Legume-heavy grain-free foods were part of the FDA's 2018 to 2022 look at diet-associated heart disease in dogs, which did not establish a cause. A food that lists chickpeas or peas in the first few ingredients is leaning on plant protein.

Starch from the cassava root, used to bind kibble and as a carbohydrate source, especially in grain-free foods. It is nearly pure starch with little protein, fiber or micronutrients, and it is one of the least likely ingredients to trigger an allergy. A food that leans on tapioca for carbohydrate is getting easy digestibility and little else from it, which is fine as long as the rest of the recipe carries the nutrition.

A spice added for color and for its curcumin, a compound studied for anti-inflammatory effects. In people and lab animals curcumin is poorly absorbed unless paired with black pepper or fat, and the amounts in a pet food are far below those used in supplement studies. It is safe and gives kibble a warm color, which is most of what it is doing here; the joint and anti-inflammatory claims rest on doses far higher than a food provides.

Almost always rosemary extract, used as a natural antioxidant to keep fats fresh, usually alongside mixed tocopherols. The amounts are tiny. A persistent internet claim links rosemary to seizures in dogs; there is no published evidence for it at food levels. If your dog has epilepsy, ask your neurologist rather than avoiding foods on this basis alone.