Food category
🍗 Meat & Poultry - Safe for Dogs & Cats?
Which meat & poultry are safe to feed, which need caution, and which are unsafe or toxic, broken down separately for dogs and cats, because the two species do not always share the same rating.
- Dog-safe
- 53%
- Cat-safe
- 53%
- Foods rated
- 34
- Unsafe / toxic
- 8
Short answer
53% of meat & poultry rated here are dog-safe; 53% are cat-safe.
According to PlainPetFood's meat & poultry ratings (17 dog + 17 cat), 53% are safe for dogs and 53% for cats, with 8 unsafe or toxic ratings across both species. Dogs and cats do not always share the same level for the same food. FDA and ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center citations appear on individual food pages when a public authority names the hazard.
Meat & Poultry vs all categories by food inventory
Where this category's rated-food count sits among every PlainPetFood category (archive depth, not a safety ranking)
17 3rd of 12 higher than 9 of 12 categories
Categories banded by distinct foods in the archive
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more categories. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source PlainPetFood food archive (ASPCA / FDA / editorial ratings) · 2026-08-29
Signature: inventory rank #3 of 12 categories
Low-hazard tercile here (24% unsafe or toxic). Dogs still split 9 safe / 4 caution / 4 hazard of 17; cats 9 safe of 17. The minority hazard rows still need a food-page check.
Meat & Poultry: safety breakdown, dogs vs cats
Counts of meat & poultry by safety rating for each species, from PlainPetFood's veterinary-toxicology ratings.
Decision guide
Archive-depth read of meat & poultry
Meat & Poultry skews safer in this archive
Low-hazard tercile (24%). Signature: inventory rank #3 of 12 categories. Still open the unsafe or toxic minority before treating a food as everyday.
Confirm the pet you mean
Ratings stay per-species even when this category looks calm (dog-safe 53%, cat-safe 53%).
Sourcing on food pages
Cited hazards point at FDA or ASPCA Animal Poison Control on the food page; uncited rows stay labelled editorial.
Named hazards cite FDA or ASPCA Animal Poison Control on the food page. Uncited rows stay editorial. Emergency: ASPCA APCC 888-426-4435.
🐕 Meat & Poultry for Dogs (17)
Bacon
UnsafeBeef
SafeBones
CautionChicken
SafeDeli Meat
UnsafeDuck
CautionHam
UnsafeHeart
SafeKidney
SafeLamb
SafeLiver
CautionPork
CautionRabbit
SafeSausage
UnsafeTripe
SafeTurkey
SafeVenison
Safe🐈 Meat & Poultry for Cats (17)
Bacon
UnsafeBeef
SafeBones
CautionChicken
SafeDeli Meat
UnsafeDuck
CautionHam
UnsafeHeart
SafeKidney
SafeLamb
SafeLiver
CautionPork
CautionRabbit
SafeSausage
UnsafeTripe
SafeTurkey
SafeVenison
SafeDisclaimer: This information is for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional veterinary advice. If your pet has eaten something dangerous, call the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435 or your nearest emergency vet immediately.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
PlainPetFood publishes an editorial food-safety compilation. When the FDA or ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center names a food as dangerous, that food's page links the source; other ratings are identified as editorial guidance. The category counts and dog-versus-cat percentages are calculated from the food-safety archive; individual food pages identify any named FDA or ASPCA hazard source. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, report a correction, the methodology behind these numbers, or contact the editorial team. Data current as of August 29, 2026.