Wellness: Facts, Recalls & Verified Foods
Wellness is made by Wellness Pet Company (formerly WellPet), owned by Clearlake Capital Group, L.P., founded 1997 — it scores green on 2 of 5 WSAVA-aligned criteria we track (0 red, 3 undisclosed), 2 FDA recalls on record, and 4 of the 163 Wellness foods we've verified carry an AAFCO feeding-trial statement.
· 163 Wellness food labels checked
The scorecard
WSAVA-aligned criteria
The World Small Animal Veterinary Association's nutrition guidelines suggest questions to ask any pet food maker before you buy. Here are this brand's answers, each with its source, or marked undisclosed when we could not confirm one.
2 of 5 criteria confirmed yes · 0 confirmed no · 3 undisclosed. Undisclosed is common, especially for smaller brands — it means we couldn't confirm an answer from a public source, not that the answer is unfavorable.
We could not confirm this from a public source.
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Company owns and operates its own plants. (Wikipedia lists Arkansas/Minnesota/Netherlands — state naming differs by source, but both confirm company-owned manufacturing, not co-packers.)
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4 of 163 labels we checked carry an AAFCO feeding-trial substantiation statement.
source & quote
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Wellness safety page, WSAVA-compliance blog and FAQ describe HACCP, supplier requirements, audits and certifications, but no concrete ingredient or finished-product testing statement found (system-level only).
PubMed lists no animal or pet paper with Wellness Pet Company in an author address. Not proof no research exists — only that none is indexed under that company name.
source
These five checks come from WSAVA's guidelines on selecting pet foods — not our own opinion score. WSAVA does not approve or list brands. See how all 50 brands we track answer WSAVA's questions → · Our methodology →
The company
Who makes Wellness
Ownership and history, each sourced independently — private-label and co-packed brands often hide the actual manufacturer behind the name on the bag.
Parent company
Wellness Pet Company (formerly WellPet), owned by Clearlake Capital Group, L.P.
source
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Founded
1997
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Headquarters
Tewksbury, Massachusetts, USA
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The cost
What Wellness costs, against everything else we have priced
The median Wellness dry food we have priced works out at $2.22 per 1,000 kcal, against $2.17 for the median dry food we have priced — so it sits roughly level with the market. Cost per 1,000 kcal is the only basis that survives different bag sizes and moisture levels; per pound this comparison would mean nothing. On composition the gap is usually smaller than the price gap implies: 37.8% dry-matter protein against a median of 32.2%.
Wellness foods by cost per 1,000 kcal
What Wellness actually puts in its food
The ingredients this brand reaches for most across its 163 verified foods, counted once per recipe. Each links to what the ingredient is, what the evidence says, and how common it is industry-wide.
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Taurine (supplemental)
In 122 of 163 Wellness foods (75%).
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Flaxseed (ALA omega-3)
In 101 of 163 Wellness foods (62%).
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Mixed tocopherols (natural vitamin E)
In 100 of 163 Wellness foods (61%).
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Prebiotics (chicory root / inulin, FOS)
In 99 of 163 Wellness foods (61%).
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Guar Gum
In 87 of 163 Wellness foods (53%).
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Potato
In 75 of 163 Wellness foods (46%).
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Rosemary extract
In 70 of 163 Wellness foods (43%).
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Beet Pulp
In 67 of 163 Wellness foods (41%).
The safety record
FDA recall history
From the FDA's Animal & Veterinary recall list, last checked 2026-10-19, plus older FDA notices we added by hand. Wellness recall page →
Wellness 95% Beef Topper for Dogs, 13.2 oz cans (3 best-by codes)
Potentially elevated levels of naturally occurring beef thyroid hormone (FDA posted 02/08/2018; recall terminated)
Wellness Complete Health Super5Mix Large Breed Puppy (15 lb, 30 lb, and 5 oz sample bags; best-by Jan 9-11, 2013)
Precautionary recall after notification of Salmonella at the co-packing plant in Gaston, SC (the 2012 Gaston Salmonella event); no Wellness lot tested positive
The FDA's online recall list is complete for recent years but leaves out many notices from before about 2023. We add older FDA recall notices by hand when we find them.
The labels
What we've verified from Wellness's labels
Computed directly from the official-label data we've extracted for this brand — never estimated.
Foods verified
163
80 dog · 83 cat
Feeding-trial validated
4
of 163 (2%)
Formulated to meet
8
AAFCO paper calculation
Label transparency
50%
avg. fields disclosed
The foods
Foods from Wellness we've verified
Every one links to its own Verified Label — guaranteed analysis, AAFCO statement, and (where priced) cost per day.