Raw, Fresh, Kibble or Canned?

Dogs do well on many kinds of diets. Kibble, canned, gently cooked and raw can all keep a dog healthy, and they can all go wrong. What matters most is that the food is complete and balanced for your dog’s life stage, made by a company that knows what it is doing, and fed in the right amount. Here is a fair look at each option.

Dry food (kibble)

Pros: Affordable, convenient, easy to store and measure, and widely available in complete and balanced formulas. Cooking during manufacturing kills most germs.

Cons: Calorie-dense, so it is easy to overfeed. Low in moisture (usually around 10%). Quality varies a lot between companies.

Canned and other wet foods

Pros: Very palatable, high in water (often around 75%), which can help dogs who do not drink much, and lower in calories per bite, which some dogs find more filling. Canning is a heat process that makes the food shelf-stable.

Cons: More expensive per calorie, needs refrigeration once opened, and creates more packaging waste.

Many owners mix wet and dry. That works well, as long as you count the calories of both.

Fresh or gently cooked diets

These are the refrigerated or frozen meals sold in stores or delivered by subscription, usually portioned for your dog.

Pros: Dogs tend to love them, and portion-packed meals make it easy to feed a set number of calories. Because they are cooked, they avoid most of the germ risks of raw food.

Cons: They cost much more than kibble, need freezer and fridge space, and spoil quickly once opened. Independent research on long-term health benefits is still limited. Much of what has been published is about digestibility, and many studies are funded by the companies themselves.

If you choose one, apply the same tests as any other food. Look for a “complete and balanced” statement for your dog’s life stage, and ask who formulates the recipes. WSAVA suggests looking for a qualified nutritionist (a PhD in animal nutrition, or board certification in veterinary nutrition). “Fresh”, “real food” and “human-grade” are not measures of nutrition.

Home-cooked diets

Cooking for your dog can work, but it is harder than it looks. A 2025 Texas A&M study of 1,726 home-prepared diets reported through the Dog Aging Project found that only about 6% had the potential to be nutritionally complete. Leaving out supplements such as calcium is a common pitfall.

If you want to cook, have a recipe made for your dog by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist, follow it exactly, and do not skip the supplements.

Raw diets

Raw feeding has a devoted following, and we understand why owners are drawn to it. The research, though, points mostly to risks rather than proven benefits.

What the experts say:

• The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (2023) says there is “compelling evidence” of health risks to pets fed raw meat-based food and to the people who handle it. It found only limited evidence of meaningful benefits over appropriate cooked diets.
• The Public Health Agency of Canada “does not recommend feeding your pets raw food or treats.”
• The U.S. FDA and CDC both advise against raw pet food. The American Veterinary Medical Association also discourages feeding dogs any animal protein that has not been treated to kill germs.

Why: Raw meat can carry Salmonella, Listeria and harmful E. coli, as well as parasites. An FDA study of 196 commercial raw pet food samples found 15 positive for Salmonella and 32 for Listeria monocytogenes. Raw food was more likely to be contaminated than the other pet food types tested.

Dogs eating raw food can carry these germs and spread them in their stool even when they look perfectly healthy. In 2023 and 2024, PHAC investigated an outbreak of extensively drug-resistant Salmonella in Canada linked to raw pet food and contact with cattle. Many of the people who got sick were young children.

Freeze-dried and frozen are not the same as cooked. The CDC notes that freezing, freeze-drying and dehydrating only reduce germs. They do not kill them all.

Bird flu is a newer concern. H5N1 avian influenza has sickened and killed cats in the U.S. that ate contaminated raw food. The FDA says dogs can also catch it by eating raw products from infected poultry or cattle, though dogs usually show milder signs. Since 2025 the FDA has required U.S. pet food makers that use uncooked poultry or cattle ingredients to account for H5N1 in their food safety plans.

Who is most at risk: PHAC lists children 5 and under, adults over 65, pregnant people and anyone with a weakened immune system. If someone like that lives in your home, raw feeding is a much bigger gamble.

If you choose to feed raw

If you decide raw is right for your household, these steps from PHAC, the FDA and the CDC lower (but do not remove) the risk:

• Keep raw food frozen until you need it. Thaw it in a sealed container on the bottom shelf of the fridge, never on the counter or in the sink, and only thaw what you need.
• Use separate bowls, utensils and cutting boards for your dog’s food, and wash them separately from your own dishes.
• Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after handling the food, the bowls, or your dog’s poop.
• Clean, then disinfect, counters and anything else the food touched.
• Pick up uneaten food promptly and throw it away. Do not refreeze leftovers.
• Do not let your dog lick your face, especially right after eating.
• Supervise young children around the dog’s food and bowls.
• Watch for recalls on the food you buy.

It is also worth letting your daycare, groomer and dog walker know your dog eats raw, so they can take sensible hygiene steps.

Whichever you choose

Look for a complete and balanced diet for your dog’s life stage, feed for a healthy body condition, and talk to your vet before making big changes, especially for puppies, seniors and dogs with health problems.

This guide is general information, not veterinary advice. Talk to your veterinarian about your own dog.