Identify the product before asking
WSAVA's food-selection guidance discusses formulation expertise, quality control, research and information on the label. Our worksheet turns those themes into a household record without reproducing its clinical resources.
- Attach photos of the full label and record the brand, recipe, intended species, pack size and country of purchase.
- For a question about a specific package, include its lot or batch code and date marking. A barcode identifies a product differently from a batch code.
- Ask whether the reply applies to the formula currently sold in your market. Similar names can leave that unresolved.
Copy this message and fill in the product details
Hello, I am comparing your [exact formula] sold in [country]. I have attached its label. Please help me confirm the following details for this formula.
- What species, life stage and intended feeding role does it cover? Where is the relevant adequacy or complete/complementary statement?
- What is its calorie density, with units? Can you provide typical nutrient analysis, including moisture, and state the basis and date of those values?
- Who is responsible for formulation, and what relevant nutrition qualifications and role do they have?
- How are ingredients and finished batches checked? What product-specific research or supporting information can you share?
- Please identify anything unavailable or estimated, and tell me how to clarify an ingredient or possible formula change.
Record the answer without turning it into a score
Example: one manufacturer supplies typical analysis, while another supplies only guaranteed limits. You have different evidence, not necessarily different food quality.
- Keep the original reply with its date. Separate label statements, manufacturer explanations and your own observations.
- If a question was skipped, leave it unanswered and ask one focused follow-up. Do not translate silence into proof of a hazard.
- Take the remaining questions to your veterinary team when an individual medical or nutrition need affects the choice.
Print the manufacturer-question worksheet
A free original worksheet with space for the exact product, dated answers and unresolved questions. No app or account required.
Print the manufacturer-question worksheetFAQ
Does a detailed reply prove the food is best?
No. It improves the information available for comparison. Manufacturer information is not independent testing or an individual feeding recommendation.
Must I use NutriPet to use the worksheet?
No. Download and print it without an account. It can sit beside the physical label and a veterinary discussion.
Sources
NutriPet editorial reviewEvidence library