Cesar Original (Canned)

by Mike Sagman
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Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Cesar Original canned dog food gets the Advisor’s second-lowest rating of two stars.

The Cesar product line includes 18 canned dog foods… sixteen for adults, one for puppies and one for seniors.

Since we could not locate AAFCO nutritional adequacy statements for these products on the Cesar website, we’re unable to confirm life stage recommendations.

  • Cesar Original with Lamb
  • Cesar Original with Duck
  • Cesar Original with Beef
  • Cesar Original with Turkey
  • Cesar Original Filet Mignon
  • Cesar Original Top Sirloin Flavor
  • Cesar Original T-Bone Steak Flavor
  • Cesar Original with Chicken and Beef
  • Cesar Original with Chicken and Beef
  • Cesar Original with Chicken and Veal
  • Cesar Original Grilled Chicken Flavor
  • Cesar Original with Chicken and Liver
  • Cesar Original Porterhouse Steal Flavor
  • Cesar Original with Pork Tenderloin Flavor
  • Cesar Original Puppy with Chicken and Beef
  • Cesar Original Senior with Chicken and Rice
  • Cesar Original with Braised Beef and Garden Vegetables
  • Cesar Original with Braised Chicken and Garden Vegetables

Cesar Filet Mignon Flavor in Meaty Juices canned dog food was chosen to represent the others in the line for this review.

Cesar with Filet Mignon Flavor in Meaty Juices

Canned Dog Food

Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content

Protein = 44% | Fat = 19% | Carbs = 28%

Ingredients: Sufficient water for processing, beef by-products, liver, meat by-products, beef, chicken, chicken by-products, calcium carbonate, natural flavor, added color, sodium tripolyphosphate, carrageenan, dried yam, xanthan gum, potassium chloride, salt, erythorbic acid, natural filet mignon flavor, guar gum, zinc sulfate, vitamin A, D3, and E supplements, sodium nitrite (for color retention), d-calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1)

Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 5.6%

Red items when present indicate controversial ingredients

The first ingredient in this dog food lists water… which (of course) adds nothing but moisture to this food. Water is a routine finding in most canned dog foods.

Three of the next six ingredients are all animal by-products… or slaughterhouse waste. These are the inedible leftovers of slaughter deemed “unfit for human consumption”.

In other words, these are the residual body parts of slaughtered animals remaining after all the better cuts have been removed.

What’s worse, one of the items listed here is simply referred to as “meat” by-products.

Since (in this case) the source animal is not named, the meat can come from almost anywhere… even diseased or dying livestock.

With the exception of hair, horns, teeth and hooves, this stuff can include heads, ovaries or developing fetuses.1

Although meat by-products can be high in protein, we do not consider a generic ingredient like this a quality item.

Now, getting back to the list, the third ingredient is liver. Normally, liver can be considered a quality component. However, in this case, the source of the liver is not identified.

For this reason, it’s impossible to judge the quality of this item.

The fifth ingredient is beef. Beef is defined as “the clean flesh derived from slaughtered cattle” and includes skeletal muscle or the muscle tissues of the tongue, diaphragm, heart or esophagus.1

The sixth ingredient is chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”.3

Beef and chicken are naturally rich in the ten essential amino acids required by a dog to sustain life.

From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.

But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to have much of an effect on the overall rating of this product.

With three notable exceptions…

First, we’re always disappointed to find artificial coloring in any dog food.

Coloring is used to make the product more appealing to you… not your dog. After all, do you really think your dog cares what color his food is?

Next, we note the inclusion here of sodium nitrite… a controversial color preservative. Sodium nitrite has been linked to the production of cancer-causing substances (known as nitrosamines) when meats are exposed to high cooking temperatures.

And lastly, we find no detailed listing of the minerals included in this product. So, there’s no way for us to know with certainty if these minerals are chelated.

Non-chelated minerals are considered more difficult to absorb.

The Bottom Line
Cesar Original Dog Food

There’s certainly not much in the way of quality showing on this ingredients list of Cesar Original dog food.

But ingredient quality by itself cannot tell the whole story. We still need to estimate the product’s meat content before determining a final rating.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 44%, a fat level of 19% and estimated carbohydrates of about 28%.

As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 45% and a mean fat level of 22%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 25% for the overall product line.

Above-average protein. Average fat. And below-average carbs… as compared to a typical canned dog food.

With no evidence of any plant-based protein boosters, this looks like the profile of a canned dog food containing a sizable amount of meat.

Yet it’s difficult to ignore the presence of so many inferior Red Flag meat ingredients.

Bottom line?

Cesar Original is a meat-based canned dog food using a significant amount of species-specific and generic by-products as its main sources of animal protein… thus earning the brand two stars.

Not recommended.

Those looking for a higher rated food from the same company may wish to visit our review of Cesar Gourmet Filets canned dog food.

A Final Word

This review is designed to help you make a more informed decision when buying dog food. However, our rating system is not intended to suggest feeding a particular product will result in a specific health benefit for your pet.

For a better understanding of how we analyzed this product, please be sure to read our article, “The Problem with Dog Food Reviews”

Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt consult a veterinarian for help.

Have an opinion about this dog food… or maybe the review itself? Please know… we welcome your comments.

Notes and Updates

01/14/2010 Original review
08/18/2010 Review updated

  1. Association of American Feed Control Officials ↩
  2. Association of American Feed Control Officials ↩
  3. Association of American Feed Control Officials ↩
Dog Food Advisor IconThe Dog Food Advisor publishes independent reviews to help pet owners make better choices when shopping for dog food.


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  • Lucy

    My small Yorkie-Maltese mix, started life on dry Science Diet at the breeders. I switched him to dry Wellness Puppy Formula during a four day period. He discovered “people food” via some unhelpful relatives and began to turn up his nose at the dry Wellness after a few months.

    I began to use Cesars because it was available almost every where I turned. I noticed my puppy started defecating a great deal more on Cesars and reverted back to eating his own feces — something he stopped doing after the switch from Science Diet to Wellness. I believe it was because he wasn’t getting enough nutrients from Cesars. I researched Cesars and promptly disposed of the packets I’d bought. I was so horrified and pale that my sister thought I was ill. I got the puppy canned Wellness Stews and Core. I plan on alternating to Merrick next and then Blue Buffalo.

    Thank you, Mike. I feel much better about feeding my little guy. I worry over past mistakes I clearly made with my childhood dog. I plan on printing some of your articles and pinning them to the bulletin board in my local dog run.

  • Phyllis

    My female Shih Tzu was a very picky eater and would only eat Cesar. My boy seemed to have more allergies on Cesar so I switched him to Freshpet Select. I can’t say Cesar was bad for Wendy as she lived to be 15 1/2 eating it but after reading this article I wouldn’t want Cody to have a steady diet of Cesar with it’s questionable ingredients.

  • Solomohn Ennis

    I recently started feeding my dog Caesars. I started 3 days ago and everything was fine until I fed my 7-year-old Rat Terrier the senior Caesar food; hence my 4AM entry to this board. I awakened this AM to what I thought was a cat mewling on the patio, to my shock it was Crophy’s stomach. I rushed him outside and he started chewing grass like there wasn’t a chance of survival without it. I will stop feeding him this food. After hearing my baby’s stomach and reading that there’s everything in this stuff from cow vaginas to Chinese food–he will not eat another bite.

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Lynda… The Senior product is included in the review listed as Cesar Original. Hope this helps.

  • Lynda Burgiss

    Do you have a Cesar’s Senior dog food review?

    Thanks! :-)

  • Brianna

    I should, also, add that I know it wasn’t from transitioning too fast because the Chihuahua was previously on Cesar, too, he just wasn’t eating from the pack. (But the single trays that you can buy from the store)

  • Brianna

    Normally, I don’t buy this kind of dog food. But my family has fell upon some hard times and we just want to make sure our dogs are fed, you know. I check the recall lists frequently so that I can avoid buying a recalled food. About four days ago, I bought one of the 12 packs of Cesar dog food (Filet Mignon, Porterhouse Steak) and two of the Bistros for my Corgi mix. My Corgi happily ate both Bistros and had no problems at all. Now, to understand my Corgi completely you’d have to know that she is a very intelligent dog. If she smells something “off” about a food even if she normally likes the food, she WILL refuse to eat it. When I gave her the first can from the pack, she acted as if she was excited to be getting it and then sniffed it and walked away. She did not eat. She did not touch her food that evening, the next morning or evening, or this morning. I decided that, maybe, she just didn’t like the flavors. I didn’t put two and two together right away. My mother, realizing that my dog was not eating the food, decided to give it to her Chihuahua. He happily chowed it down. Ten minutes later, he was sick. He was shaking pretty badly, throwing up, and lethargic. He is still acting listless, we’re keeping a close eye on him. We might have to rush him to the emergency vet but he has been acting better. I have been trying to find out if there has been a recall on Cesar recently but I have not found anything. Other than this site, I haven’t found much on the brand at all. My mother contacted the company, but I suspect they might deny it. A lot of the “big brand” pet food companies do. But her Chihuahua was just fine before he ate the Cesar and all our other dogs are fine, too, and they did NOT eat the Cesar. The ONLY difference between them and him is the Cesar. Mostly, what I was wondering is, has ANYONE else had a similar experience recently with Cesar? I think I’ve learned my lesson from this experience. I’m going to find an affordable, decent food. I have saved the pack of Cesar just in case we need the UPC.

  • Janice Kirk

    I have 2 Shih-tzu dogs. Mickey is going on 7 and Oliver is going on 4. The first time I opened a “ceasar for dogs” to give to my “boys’ I almost threw up. How disgusting, seeing parts of windpipe from god only knows what!!!!. I would never feed that garbage to anything except the garbage pail itself. You should be ashamed of yourself trying to pass off this crap as good for dogs. SHAME ON YOU.Shame on me for buying this s_ _ _ in the first place!!!

  • melissa

    Hi Lisa-

    I too have a very picky dog and it took quite a while to find foods that he likes(and he gets bored quickly!) I found that he gobbles up canned foods such as Merrick(no buffalo please!) 4health chicken/rice or lamb/rice pate style, and most 95% meat canned foods. I switch the flavors and brands for him every three days and he has been eating just fine since. I would suggest starting with a good canned to mix with the dry and once you find something that your dog likes, start looking for a better dry product to go with it. I also found that the smaller the nuggets, the better he eats-

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  • Lisa Palacios

    I have a very similar problem with my dog as well. She is a malti-poo who loves Caesar. I stopped feeding it to her about 6 months ago, after finding many pieces of by-product I myself find disgusting..I switched her to Science Diet. I have had some success with it, but find it non-constistant when it comes to her eating it. I have tried so many different foods and she will just not eat it. What am I doing wrong?

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Beverly… According to the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition, small to medium breeds may be considered adults after about six months of age. But large and giant breeds shouldn’t be fed as adults until they reach about one to two years (depending upon the breed). Hope this helps.

  • Beverly Clark

    How old should a dog be to eat the little trays of dog food instead of the puppy one–I can’t find this info anywhere

  • melissa

    Suzanne-

    Why not just buy a few cans of other,(better quality) foods and try them with your picky two? We have found that one extreme picky eater loves the Merrick cans,& Nature’s Variety-These are a bit pricier however. He also LOVES the By Nature cans($1.20 or so in my part of Ny) AND the 4health canned(4 1/2 star rated, and only 99 cents per can!!!) The 4health is a complete diet, not just a meat topper or “intermittent” feeding food. Mix them if you feel the need to encourage them to eat a better quality and fear that they won’t, but even a 50/50 mix to start with(LC and a better food) is still better than just this stuff!

  • Christine Cooke

    I usually have been feeding a good supermarket brand of dog food in small foil trays. When they ran out recently I bought some little foil trays of Cesar & to my disgust found that they were little more than jellied vegetables. You could see that the meat content was MINIMAL. I opened them & threw them away. I could have made this from a cheap tin of mixed veg & put it in aspic jelly. This is not nutricious dog food. I have kept dogs all of my 62 years, have shown & bred dogs & am an experinenced dog owner & dog lover. I would not feed this sort of rubbish to my dogs. In my opinion a dog fed on this would be seriously malnourished.

  • Suzanne

    Thank you Barbara. I’m not surprised. I am beginning to wonder if Cesar adds MSG to their food to hook dogs and to give it the flavor. They refused to respond to my inquiries about the beef or chicken FLAVOR, and many manufacturers refused to give their sources, as they did when dogs and cats died from out of the country additives to the food. I am feeding C&P dry and canned to all my dogs, but am ashamed that I feed Cesar to two dogs, one weakened with extreme age and the other one physically and neurologically damaged from extreme abuse and couldn’t even stand up when I got her at 2#. These two dogs will only eat Cesar and I don’t want their health declining by their refusing to eat at all, so I feed them this. If there is ANY dog food that is extremely tasty to dogs and still high quality PLEASE TELL ME. Frankly, I have decided dog food isn’t that flavorful, and the dogs can’t really tell us, and they force themselves to eat what we give them. That is why I wonder about the Cesar, and why it is so enticing to dogs. I wonder if they would be prosecuted if really bad things are in that food, and I find it very suspicious that they don’t list ingredients properly.

  • Barbara B

    I buy Caesar Dog Food for my dog 6-8 cans a week. I opened one the other day to put on top of her dry dog food and there was a rubber band in it. Thank God I stirred it and saw the rubber band. Otherwise, she could have choked to death. Should I file a complaint against the company?

  • Suzanne

    Thank you, Mike, and thanks for all you do for animals. What you do in checking out and evaluating food is really hard work, so I know it is a labor of love for animals. Plaudits to you!

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Suzanne… Thanks for sharing your story and for rescuing so many dogs. Good news… there are lots of great dog foods. And many not especially costly. Unfortunately, I cannot provide customized reviews and product recommendations for each reader. Please check out my reviews and visit our FAQ page and look for the topic, “Help Me Choose a Dog Food” for more information. Or check back for a possible response from one of our other readers.

  • Suzanne

    I need some help on Cesars, and this is why.

    My dogs are all rescues from horrible situations. They went through a lot, I love them and devote my life to them, and they are happy. But, we have had some really hard times trying to find the right food, most of which is inferior, and has wheat, corn, additives, fillers and bad presesrvatives. Now all my dogs are on Castor and Pollux, thanks to information you provided.

    Now to the Cesar. A few months ago I had to take in two very sick dogs, one couldn’t stand up, only weighted 2 lbs., and had been beaten to the point of neurological damage.
    She would not touch food until I offered her chicken flavored Cesar, and still that is all she will eat, and she has gained a half a pound now and can stand up and walk some. She will still only eat the Cesar.

    The other dog was sick with infections, heart worms, abscessed teeth and cataracts, all of which I have fixed, but she doesn’t like the Castor and Pollux, and I changed her to the Cesar. She did fine for a few days, but then was spitting up bile. Now she has diarrhea. The worse problem I have with my dogs is finding safe food for them. However, the very sick and weak little dog has had no digestive problems or stomach upset with Cesar.

    This is my problem. I have never trusted Cesar food because of the suspicious ingredients and because instead of saying “real chicken” or “real beef” it says on the carton that the food is “chicken flavor and beef flavor”. FLAVOR? So what are they eating that is flavored like the real thing but is something else? If all dogs love to eat Cesar, whether it is good for them or not, what is in it that dogs like so much? I am in a trap on this, because the tiny dog will not touch any other food, I tried for two days.

    I also have a 14 year old Peke who now will only eat the Cesar and who eats little, so I have three dogs on Cesar, against my judgement, but have found no other food that these three at risk dogs who have to eat, will accept.

    My other dogs, large and small, are thriving on Castor and Pollux. Frankly, I trust few dog foods now, think there is too much stuff like berries and vegetables, taking up too much space when meat in my view is more important. I don’t think dogs in the wild were seeking out vegetables and fruit. My dogs get canned and dry food. I would like to see more meat in both and less what I consider garbage.

    Any dog food, in my opinion, that has wheat, corn, additives, preservatives and fillers should not be bought. I am looking for something for my small dogs that they find as tasty as Cesar that is of a higher quality. Thank you for any advice and comments you can offer me.

  • cathy

    ok i have 2 dogs , one was a lhasa , the other is a Corgi , My lhasa lived to be , 14 yrs old , & was on it til she passed away this , June , she lOVED IT NO problems at all .. now my corgi is on it , HEARD too much of the many recalls on Eukanuba, & many others so far with CESARS it hasnt been recalled my corgi has tried many others too , ( DOESNT LIKE THE TASTE / OR GETS SICK .. ) so I will stick with it ..

  • Amy

    Lisa, sorry your Boston Terrier became ill, hopefully he is doing much better now. Not sure which Eukanuba you went with, but according to this site they are rated as low as Cesar. For the same price you can find many higher quality foods.

  • Lisa Boone

    My Boston Terrier loved Little Cesar’s but became ill after eating it for one month. Vet called it fast food for dogs, high calorie with little energy output so dog is constantly hungry after consuming product. Will not go back to this food and do not recommend it to anyone else. Going to feed higher quality Eukanuba food.