Chicken

4,061 foods contain this ingredient

Protein Poultry allergen group

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About Chicken

Chicken appears on pet food labels as fresh chicken, chicken meal, or chicken by-product meal, forms that differ in moisture and protein concentration.

Chicken is a common animal-based protein in dog and cat foods, supplying essential amino acids, B vitamins, and energy-dense fats that support muscle maintenance, growth, and overall health; for cats it also contributes toward dietary taurine but must be present in sufficient amounts or provided via supplementation. It is prized for its digestibility and palatability, though some pets develop sensitivities or allergies to chicken, and nutritional value and safety depend on ingredient quality and processing—raw chicken carries pathogen risks and whole bones can pose choking or GI hazards.

Related ingredients

Artificial Chicken Flavor Chicken Bone Chicken Bone Broth Chicken Bone Marrow Chicken Breast Chicken Broth Chicken By-Product Chicken Cartilage Chicken Collagen Chicken Drumstick Chicken Egg Chicken Fat Chicken Flavor Chicken Flavored Broth Chicken Flavored Gravy Chicken Giblet Chicken Gizzard Chicken Heart Chicken Jerky Chicken Liver Chicken Liver Flavor Chicken Meat By-Product Chicken Neck Chicken Offal Chicken Organ Chicken Protein Chicken Skin Chicken Tendon Chicken Thigh Chicken White Meat Deboned Chicken Enzymatic Digest of Chicken Grilled Chicken Flavor Ground Chicken Hydrolyzed Chicken Hydrolyzed Chicken Flavor Hydrolyzed Chicken Liver Natural Chicken Flavor Natural Grilled Chicken Flavor Natural White Meat Chicken Flavor Rotisserie Chicken Flavor

Derived from: Poultry meat, or rendered chicken meal/by-product meal (Gallus gallus domesticus)
Primary role: Primary animal protein source supplying essential amino acids and energy

Why it's used

Chicken is one of the most widely used animal proteins in commercial dog and cat food because it is broadly available, generally well accepted by pets, and supplies essential amino acids needed for muscle maintenance and, in cats, contributes toward the dietary taurine that is required in their diets. AAFCO nutrient profiles set minimum protein levels for dogs and cats (for example, a minimum of 18% crude protein for adult dog maintenance under AAFCO's dry matter basis), and chicken-based ingredients are commonly formulated to help meet those thresholds.

Common concerns

Documented allergen frequency A review of confirmed cutaneous adverse food reaction cases found chicken was identified in about 15% of 297 dogs and about 5% of 78 cats, making it one of the more frequently reported food allergens in dogs, behind beef and dairy.
Raw handling and pathogen risk The FDA and CDC do not recommend feeding raw diets to pets in part because raw chicken, including raw pet food, has been linked to documented Salmonella and Campylobacter contamination and outbreaks, including a multistate Salmonella Infantis outbreak tied to raw chicken products.
Bone hazards Whole or cooked chicken bones can splinter and pose choking or gastrointestinal injury risks, which is why whole or cooked bones are kept out of a pet's food, while rendered chicken ingredients like chicken meal may include ground bone that has been processed to a fine, uniform texture.

Also relevant

Chicken by-product meal (organs and other non-muscle tissue in addition to meat) can carry meaningfully higher taurine content than muscle meat alone, which is relevant to formulating complete cat diets, though finished products are still tested and supplemented as needed to meet taurine requirements.

6 sources cited