Glucosamine

Glucosamine appears on the labels of 23 of the 244 recipes we have read and scored (9 percent of the database), in label forms including Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chicken By-Product Meal (source of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate), Chicken Meal (source of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate), Fish Meal (Source Of Glucosamine), Poultry By-product Meal (Source Of Glucosamine), glucosamine hydrochloride and 4 more label forms.

What it is

A compound from cartilage or shellfish, a building block of the cartilage matrix, added as glucosamine hydrochloride or sulfate.

Why makers use it

Joint support positioning for large breed, senior and active recipes.

What to watch for

Labels name its presence but rarely its dose, and dose is where the joint literature lives. Treat its presence as intent, and ask the maker for milligrams per kilo if joints are the reason you are buying.

Highest scoring recipes that carry it

The full database, filterable by brand, format, life stage and grains, is the reviews index; the food finder answers it by the proteins a dog must avoid.

Often on the same panels

Choline Chloride, Vitamin Supplements (the Vitamin Pack), Selenium Yeast and Sodium Selenite, Natural Flavor. The full dictionary is the ingredient index.