Grain-Free Food and French Bulldogs: What the FDA DCM Investigation Found

General nutrition information compiled from product labels and published sources, not veterinary advice. Your veterinarian is the right person to choose a diet for your dog, especially one with a health condition.

Many French Bulldog owners have heard that grain free dog food can hurt a dog's heart. Others have heard the opposite, that grains are the problem for a breed with itchy skin. Both claims travel faster than the facts.

This guide works as a how-to. It shows you how to read the FDA's findings, check your own dog's food label, and prepare a useful talk with your veterinarian. It does not tell you what to feed. That decision belongs to you and your vet.

What the FDA actually reported

The U.S. FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) has investigated a possible link between certain diets and canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), a disease of the heart muscle. Here is what its public pages say.

The FDA's DCM investigation page was last updated on December 23, 2022. The agency said it does not intend to release further public updates until there is meaningful new scientific information.
The FDA's linked Questions & Answers page (content current as of August 19, 2024) says 1,382 reports of DCM in dogs were submitted to the agency from January 1, 2014 to November 1, 2022.
The FDA states that adverse event report counts alone do not establish a causal relationship with the reported products.
The reports involve both grain-free and grain-containing diets. Most of the diets named list non-soy legumes or pulses, such as peas and lentils, high in the ingredient list.
The FDA says pulses have been used in dog food for years, with no evidence that they are inherently dangerous.
The FDA has not requested recalls. It says it has no definitive information that the diets are inherently unsafe.

So the honest summary is that the question is open. No causal link has been established. The FDA has not told owners to avoid grain-free foods as a category.

Is grain free bad for French Bulldogs?

The sources we reviewed do not answer that for the breed. The AKC breed page for the French Bulldog does not list DCM among the breed's health concerns. The French Bull Dog Club of America's health testing recommendations (hosted by the AKC) name hip dysplasia screening through OFA, OVC or PennHIP. We did not find a stated DCM predisposition for French Bulldogs in these sources.

One detail causes confusion. An FDA update from 2019 listed French Bulldogs among the "additional breeds with more than one report." That is a count of reports. It is not a finding that the breed is predisposed, and the FDA's own caution about report counts applies here too.

The reverse is also unproven. Nothing in these sources shows that grain-free food is harmful to French Bulldogs in particular. Nothing shows it is helpful either.

Materials you will need

Your dog's current food bag or can, with the full label visible.
A phone photo of the ingredient list, the guaranteed analysis and the AAFCO statement.
Your dog's recent weight and body condition notes, if you have them.
A list of everything else your dog eats: treats, chews, toppers, table scraps.
The FDA pages listed under Sources below.
A pen and paper, or a notes app, for your vet visit.

Step 1: Find out whether your dog's food is grain-free

"Grain-free" is a marketing term, not a guarantee of anything else. Read the ingredient list, not the front of the bag.

Look for wheat, rice, corn, barley, oats and their by-products. If none appear, the food is probably grain-free. Many grain-free foods replace grains with potatoes, peas, lentils or chickpeas.

For comparison, Royal Canin's Breed Health Nutrition French Bulldog Adult dry food lists brewers rice, wheat, chicken by-product meal, chicken fat and wheat gluten as its first five ingredients, according to Royal Canin's product page. That is a food with grains, and it is one example of what a grain-containing label looks like. It is not a recommendation.

Step 2: Check where legumes and pulses sit on the list

The FDA noted that most of the diets in the reports list non-soy legumes or pulses high in the ingredient list. Ingredients are listed by weight before cooking, so the first several entries make up most of the recipe.

Note whether peas, lentils, chickpeas or similar ingredients appear in the first five or so. Write down what you see. This is not a verdict. It is information your vet can use.

Be careful with a common label trick. A food can split one ingredient into several forms, such as "peas," "pea protein" and "pea fiber," so each lands lower on the list. Add them up in your head.

Step 3: Confirm the AAFCO statement

Find the sentence that says the food is complete and balanced, and for which life stage. For example, Royal Canin's French Bulldog Adult dry food states it is formulated to meet the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for maintenance.

Check that the stage matches your dog. A puppy needs a growth or all life stages statement. Royal Canin feeds its French Bulldog puppy formula from 8 weeks to 12 months and its adult formula from 12 months, according to the manufacturer. That is brand guidance, not a universal rule.

If you see the phrase "including growth of large size dogs (70 lb. or more as an adult)," know what it means. Under the AAFCO model wording used in Kentucky's rule 12 KAR 3:039, foods with a growth or all life stages claim must carry either that phrase or "except for growth of large size dogs." French Bulldogs are listed by the AKC at under 28 pounds, so the phrase describes how the food was formulated. It is not a size recommendation for your dog.

Step 4: Weigh the diet-related issues the breed does have

The AKC says French Bulldogs are prone to obesity, so calorie intake and weight deserve attention. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine's Riney Canine Health Center lists maintaining a healthy weight among the conservative management steps for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS), which affects flat-faced breeds.

The AKC also mentions skin allergies and autoimmune skin disorders in the breed. The AKC page does not say these are food-related. Do not assume that changing grains fixes skin trouble. A veterinarian can sort out the cause.

For many owners, weight is the more practical concern. Compare calories per cup between foods. Royal Canin lists 331 kcal ME per cup for its adult dry formula, and Hill's lists 357 kcal per cup for its Science Diet Adult Small & Mini Chicken & Brown Rice recipe. Those figures differ, which is why a simple cup-for-cup swap can change the calories your dog gets.

Treat any feeding table as a starting point. Royal Canin's table shows 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 cups per day for an 18 lb dog, depending on activity. Your dog's actual needs can differ, and your vet can help you adjust.

Step 5: Prepare questions for your veterinarian

Bring your photos and notes. Useful questions include:

Is my dog's current food a good fit for their age, weight and body condition?
Given the FDA's open investigation, do you recommend any change for my dog?
Does my dog have any heart, skin or digestive history that affects food choice?
How many calories a day should my dog get, and how should I measure them?
If we switch foods, how slowly should I transition?

If a vet ever suggests a prescription diet, that is something only a veterinarian prescribes for an individual dog. Do not pick one up on your own.

Step 6: Decide, then monitor

After the visit, you may keep the current food, change it, or add a follow-up. Whatever you choose, write down the date and the reason. Keep watching your dog's weight, energy, stool and skin.

Report anything unusual to your vet. The FDA also accepts reports of suspected diet-related illness through its own channels, described on its investigation page.

Tips

Compare foods by label data: AAFCO statement, ingredients, guaranteed analysis and calories. That is how we compare foods on this site. We did not run feeding trials or taste tests.
Some brands, including Hill's, publish average dry-matter nutrient values rather than guaranteed minimums and maximums. Do not compare those numbers directly with an "as fed" guaranteed analysis. Wet and fresh foods contain more water.
Ask the brand directly if a label detail is unclear.
Switch foods gradually over several days unless your vet says otherwise.

Common mistakes to avoid

Switching in a panic. The FDA has not requested recalls and says it has no definitive information that these diets are inherently unsafe. A sudden change can upset a stomach.
Treating "grain-free" as a health claim. It describes what is left out, not what the food does.
Assuming grains are the culprit. The FDA reports involve both grain-free and grain-containing diets.
Ignoring calories. For a breed prone to obesity, portion size matters at least as much as the recipe.
Using a diet to treat a condition. No food on a store shelf is a treatment for DCM, allergies, hip dysplasia or airway disease. Your vet decides what an individual dog needs.
Adding supplements without advice. Ask your vet before giving any.

What to expect

Following these steps may leave you with a clearer picture of your dog's food and a better-informed conversation with your vet. It will not settle the science. The FDA itself says the investigation has not established a cause.

If you and your vet choose a change, many dogs adjust within a couple of weeks, though individual results vary. Weight and coat changes, if any, tend to show up over longer stretches. We cannot predict how your dog will respond.

Because the FDA's last public update on its investigation dates to December 2022, with the Q&A current as of August 2024, check its pages occasionally for anything new.

Bottom line

The FDA has reported on DCM in dogs without establishing that grain-free food causes it. The reports include grain-free and grain-containing diets, and no recalls have been requested. We found no stated DCM predisposition for French Bulldogs in the AKC or parent-club sources. If you are still wondering whether grain free is bad for your Frenchie, the best next step is to bring the label to your veterinarian.