liver

What it is

"Liver" — or "dried liver" — is liver from an unspecified species. The nutrition is real liver nutrition; the label simply declines to say which animal it came from, and the source can change between batches.

Why it's in pet food

Unnamed liver appears where flavor and nutrient density are wanted at flexible sourcing — treats especially. The same one-word transparency gap as "meat": nothing wrong with the tissue, everything unknown about the origin.

How Bowlmark scores it

Scores are deterministic math over the printed label — the rules below apply to every product identically, and nothing estimates or fills in a blank.

Plain "liver" carries no flag today: it names no species, so it earns no named-protein bonus, but it is also not among the unnamed-source terms the engine deducts for ("meat by-product", "animal digest", and their kin). The term lists are versioned, advisor-tuned config — if an unnamed-organ rule is added, this page changes with the rule, never ahead of it.

Read the full methodology

Foods that list liver

Ranked by score where scores exist. Placement here is never sold.

• Purina ONE True Instinct Classic Ground Grain-Free Wet Dog Food Formula With Real Beef & Wild-Caught Salmon86
• Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals Natural Trout & Tuna Recipe85
• Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals Natural White Meat Chicken Recipe85
• Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals Natural Whitefish Recipe85
• Fancy Feast Gourmet Naturals Natural Wild Alaskan Salmon Recipe85
• Purina ONE Beef & Barley Entrée Tender Cuts In Gravy83
• Purina ONE Chicken & Brown Rice Entrée Tender Cuts in Gravy83
• Purina ONE +Plus Healthy Weight Tender Cuts In Gravy Lamb & Brown Rice Entrée83

Sources

• WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee — Selecting a pet food
• ACVN — by-products explained

Related ingredients

• lamb liver
• lamb lung
• lamb tripe
• pork liver
• tripe
• turkey gizzard

Further reading

• By-products and meals, without the panic
• Protein quality vs quantity — why the % is only half the story