If you have wondered what is REALLY the best dog food versus marketing HYPE, then this is for you. I started analyzing pet food ingredients months ago because people requested dog foods without copper added or low copper dog foods, and preservative-free dog foods.

Social Media and TV ads for dog foods are everywhere, I looked into many of them, including the different food types. From Raw to Fresh cooked dog food and freeze dried to air-dried dog food. Including Single protein source dog foods with veggies or pure meat-only dog food!

My 40 hours of research will cover:

• How copper levels are making dogs sick
• Why Human-grade dog food is important and the Laws they have to abide by
• Disgusting truths about Feed grade dog food
• No copper added Dog food
• Low copper dog foods
• Single protein source dog foods low in copper
• The 6 BEST low copper dog foods of 2025

Why is low copper dog food important?

Some dog breeds are predisposed, because of their genetic makeup, to copper toxicity. However that does NOT mean if you have that breed you will have the problem. On the flip side, if you don’t have a breed predisposed does NOT mean you won’t have the issue copper toxicity.

In studies done, it has shown that dogs’ copper levels have gone from 10 mcg to 453 mcg. The AAFCO has set a requirement for copper to be in pet foods, but they have not set a maximum limit!

Some vets think it is causing liver disease, contributing to neurological disorders, and more health issues.

Now it is up to pet parents to take control of the amount of copper our dogs are getting. To save you a lot of research, here are my choices for dog foods without copper.

Importance of Human grade dog food

Why is human-grade dog food important? Unfortunately, dog food or dog treats without this distinction may come from animal sources that have died other than by slaughter or from diseased animals. This has been admitted by the FDA.

Human-grade dog food is required to abide by US Federal food safety laws and is manufactured by the same safety standards as human food. Whereas feed grade does NOT have to abide by these laws or standards.

Finding human-grade dog food can be tricky because the FDA is strict about where the term can be used. The good news I have several blogs that list human grade dog food of all types (dry food, air dried, dehydrated, freeze dried, gently cooked or fresh and raw)

The best low copper dog foods

Did you know the World’s oldest dog, Bobi, who turned 31 years old in 2023, has eaten only fresh food?

In my cancer food blog, I found a common theme amongst the longest-living dogs, they all ate raw or gently cooked dog food, not kibble!

Dog food with low copper levels

1. Raw Venison dog food

• 25% off your first order
• Wild Game meat only
• No organs or vegetables
• Made in USA pet food
• Guarantee: 7-day money-back guarantee
• Low copper: Each package contains only 0.63 mg of copper, confirmed by a company employee. Also, no liver is added to the food to increase copper levels.

Wild game dog food is a great option for pet parents who want a good source of meat to make their homemade meals for their pets!

Human grade dog foods without copper 

2. Rabbit is The Best dog food for allergies

• Save 60% on your first 10 lb. sample box order OF VIVA RAW PET COUPON CODE HAPPYTRAILS
• Their Puppy Food received 4.5 of 5 stars in 2025 Pet food review
• 2024-2025 On Top lists of the Best dog food.
• Synthetic Free dog food: balanced without added supplements or minerals like copper.
• FDA – July 2023 inspection, they were told their results were better than many pet food companies!
• Batch tested for things like Salmonella and E. coli. They swab the production area regularly for Listeria. A Non HPP dog food.
• USDA Kitchen: 1st pet food company to be Made in a USDA kitchen. They hold themselves to the same Safety standards as human food.
• Humane dog food: Humanely raised animals verified by CEOs who visited the farm.
• 4 Versions: Raw dog food comes in smooth or chunked. Options also include dog food with fruits and veggies OR meat only!
• TRUE Single-source protein dog food. They offer single source protein dog food whereas other companies use other animal meats or organs.
• Certifications: Antibiotic and Hormone-free meat, Organic vegetables
• No Copper added raw dog food: If the profile shows copper, it’s because a food ingredient is a natural copper source. It is not coming from a synthetic copper supplement being added.
• Packaging: Easy-to-peel packaging comes in two 1 lb packs.
• Shipping facilities on the West Coast, Midwest, and East Coast. Shipments are packed with dry ice and shipped MO-WE via UPS or Fed-Ex to ensure delivery before the weekend.

Their dog or Cat food is differentiated with a dog or 🐱 on the packaging.

3. Copper free cooked dog food: This family-run business offers 10 dog foods without copper. This gently cooked dog food is frozen before shipping.

Dr. Becker and Ms. Thiston both have said they think the people at this company are wonderful.

• Save 20% with the code PETS20 on your first full order!
• In TWO 2025 Trusted Pet Foods lists, on lists for last several years
• Samples: No free samples, but you can buy a sample box with 4 packages.
•  100% human edible ingredients
• Transparency: traceable ingredients
• Proteins: Several protein options, all single-source protein dog foods.
• Life Stages: Puppies and adults. 7 adult dog foods and 3 raw puppy foods. Vet recipes for Kidney & Pancreatic issues
• Lab tested: each batch is tested for pathogens and never shipped until the results came back.
• Formulated by a holistic vet and a long-time pet nutritionist.
• Delivery is free in the USA. Alaska & Hawaii have a shipping fee.
• Sustainability efforts: I LOVE that the package liner is compostable and they offset their carbon emissions ( Carbon free shipping) and Plastic neutral Certified..
• Ordering: Pause and reactivate your order or change your address right from your account.
• No Synthetic vitamins: Achieved AAFCO nutritional requirements using only food!
• Ingredients typically included meat, organs, and a small amount of produce, eggshell, and kelp.

This gently cooked dog food is frozen before shipping.

Fresh dog foods without copper added

These dog foods without copper added is a dog food made from whole foods.

Not the grocery store, I mean it is made using only whole foods vs, synthetics to balance it.

4. Humanely Raised Dog food made with whole food This gently cooked dog food can be good for dogs with food sensitivities to dental issues.

• 15% off ALL not select products of Evermore dog foodCoupon code: HAPPYTRAILS15
• 4.8 out of 5 stars by Dr. Karen’s 2025 dog food Review
• On Recommended Pet Food List for several years
• Cooper amount: (per 1000 kcal) beef = 4.18 mg, Turkey = 1.7 mg, Lamb = 4.44 mg, and Chicken = 1.70 mg
• Samples: NO free samples. However, you can buy a small order and pick your 4 packs of food.
• Cooking method: Low-temperature cooked dog food, sous vide
• Options: 4 dog foods without copper, including turkey and lamb
• Nutrition from whole foods. Learn the percentage of meat and produce.
• Sourcing information is shared
• Certifications: Humane Certified, and Organic produce
• Manufacturing: Made in USDA human kitchen
• NO meat meals, cheap by-products, added vitamins and minerals, or common allergens such as corn, wheat, and soy
• Testing: done on every batch.
  • Nutrtional
  • Bacteria like E. coli, salmonella, listeria
  • Total coliforms, and aerobic plate count
  • Mold and yeast

2 female owners ate their dog food for 1 month, proving it is human edible. 🤣

Freeze dried dog food without copper

5. Humanly raised beef dog food

This makes a good low-copper wet dog food. Crumble the patties and add water.

• 4.1 out of 5 stars by Dr. Karen’s 2025 dog food Review. The lower score was for the feeding instructions. As of 3/10/25 they are being updated which is good news. It will likely make it more affordable for 50+ lbs dog owners to feed this regularly 
• Ranked #1 in 2023 Best freeze-dried dog food and on another list for top dog food 2025.
• Grade: Human grade freeze dried dog food
• About: A family-run business since 2006
• Ingredients: organs, vegetables, herbs, and other ingredients like bee pollen.
• Vitamins & Minerals: Vitamin E, which is usually used as a preservative, has been added. NO copper supplement was used
• Options: 6 dog foods without copper in this shape aka sliders, or 5 bite sized options

Air dried dog food without copper

6. Air dried food without copper added

The Sundays Dog Food discount will be reduced to 30% on 4/16/26 so ACT FAST to get the biggest discount!!

Sunday’s dog food is a one of the air dried dog foods without copper that is actually human grade.

• Get 50% off your order. SUNDAYS DOG FOOD COUPON Code: happytrails50  (if the code doesn’t let you override it, try to X out the box and retype the code)
• Human Grade ingredients. made with Whole Food
• Manufacturing made in USDA-inspected, human-grade kitchens.
• Feed Less: You’ll likely have to feed less because it’s more nutritionally dense!
• No synthetic vitamins or minerals were added, including no copper.
• No artificial colors, preservatives, or flavors.
• 🚫 Prep time: No refrigeration is required, put the box right on your shelf.
• Ingredients you recognize: Only ingredients you can pronounce like meat, vegetables and. fruit!
• Shipping: FREE shipping in the US including Alaska and Hawaii.
• Schedule: Change your delivery schedule whenever you need to.
• Options: 3 different proteins options
• Sizes: recommendations will be based on your dog(s) size during the quiz. However, I believe they offer 2 sizes for savings.

Kibble 

Kibble is the most recalled dog food, as you can see in my 2025 worst dog foods. For that reason, I will not cover that type of “food” in this blog.

What foods naturally contain copper

A few examples of food that contain copper naturally are:

1. Liver: Each animal liver contains different amounts of copper.  For example, Beef (conventionally raised) = 9.8  mg/100g, whereas Grass Fed Beef = 2.8.  Kangaroo = 0.53 mg/100g, Veal = 11.9, Turkey = 0..863 and Venison =12 mg/100g
2. Medicinal mushrooms: while mushrooms can contain copper, and have many benefits, certain mushrooms also contain Ergothianeine which to several veterinarians is thought to remove copper. I learned this while watching Dr. Recker and Dr. Becker discuss Copper in a 1.5 hour webinar.
3. Dark leafy greens like Kale

Spirulina, a supplement, contains copper.

1 person I follow for people health advice claims we are not deplete of copper, we likely have too much copper. There is “good” copper and bad copper like what is found in pesticides.

How to naturally reduce copper in dogs

I explain why copper is added to pet foods in my cat food blog.

To lower copper levels in your dog, after consulting your vet, you could explore some of these steps.

1. Purchase one of the above dog foods without copper added or have low copper levels.
2.  Check their dog treats to ensure they have no copper added. For example if you feed liver treat, those are a source of copper. On 2/23/25 Dr. Becker did a Copper webinar with Dr. Recker, she said her mom’s Becker bites are smaller & thinner therefore have much less copper than let’s say some Freeze dried liver chunks from the big box warehouse like C*stco.

Do you have an allergy-prone dogs? I got you covered, some of these same brands offer proteins options that are helpful to allergies. You  can read more in my  blog, The Best Dog Foods for Allergies.

I hope this helps you find better food for your dogs.

Please share or comment on which food you bought and if it has helped your dog.

Disclaimer: The information shared in my content is intended for general educational purposes only. The information contained herein does not constitute veterinary advice, diagnosis, or treatment of any kind. No veterinarian-client-patient relationship VCPR) is created or implied by reading, accessing, or using this guide. The author of this content s not a licensed veterinarian and is not acting in a veterinary capacity. Always consult your veterinarian before making any changes to your dog’s care, diet, or treatment plan.