Nutritionist
Consulting
Manufacturer record
WellPet LLC
Parent: Clearlake Capital Group, L · 4 plants
Quality control
Documented
Publishes research
Unknown
Transparency
Answers-publicly
Owns its plants
Yes
Credibility score
15 / 20
Credibility scored on the 20-point WSAVA tier, High confidence. An unverified field scores at half credit, never zero. How this feeds the grade →
Brands they own
Wellness · Wellness Complete Health · Wellness CORE · Wellness Simple · Old Mother Hubbard · Eagle Pack · Holistic Select · Sojos · WHIMZEES
Recall history
| Date | Class | What | Brands named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-03-17 | II | Potential elevated levels of naturally occurring beef thyroid hormone | Wellness |
| 2017-02-10 | II | Foreign material | Wellness |
| 2012-05-04 | II | Potential Salmonella contamination originating at Diamond Pet Foods' Gaston, South Carolina facility | Wellness |
Recall events in the last 10 years weigh most; older events decay. Repeat events in the 10-year window: 2.
The detail
WellPet publishes a detailed 'Compliant with WSAVA Pet Food Recommendations' article that answers all eight WSAVA questions, so transparency = answers-publicly. On formulation it states it 'works very closely with a Ph.D. Animal Nutritionist who either formulates or reviews our diets' with 25+ years of experience, a 15+ year relationship with WellPet, and peer-reviewed publications (Journal of Nutrition, British Journal of Nutrition). The language describes a long-standing CONSULTING relationship rather than a full-time staff hire, and the individual is not named, so qualified_nutritionist = consultant (not 'staff'); who_formulates = credentialed. Substantiation = mix: the company states 'numerous Wellness dry dog and dry cat recipes have undertaken AAFCO Feeding Trials' plus additional digestibility / blood-glucose / weight-loss research, but does not claim feeding-trial substantiation for the full line (remaining recipes are formulation/family-based), so 'mix' is the honest call rather than 'feeding-trials'. QC = documented: the Mishawaka plant held a third-party-audited BRC Global Standard 'AA' grade (announced Nov 2021), and WellPet operates HACCP, cGMP, FDA-registered/audited and USDA-APHIS programs with daily monitoring records, corrective-action procedures, and stated per-lot Salmonella testing of finished product before shipment. CAVEAT: the Zeiger litigation alleged arsenic/lead/BPA presence in three fish-based recipes (see claims); that is an ingredient-sourcing / disclosure dispute, not an FDA-confirmed QC failure or recall, so it does not by itself downgrade the QC rating but is flagged. publishes_research = unknown: the consultant nutritionist publishes peer-reviewed work under his own name and WellPet claims to 'conduct research', but no WellPet-SPONSORED peer-reviewed nutrition publications were located, so this is left unknown rather than asserted 'yes'.
Sources
- https://clearlake.com/news/clearlake-to-acquire-wellpet-a-branded-leader-in-premium-natural-pet-food-and-treats/
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/clearlake-to-acquire-wellpet-a-branded-leader-in-premium-natural-pet-food-and-treats-301175660.html
- https://www.kirkland.com/news/press-release/2020/11/kirkland-counsels-clearlake-on-wellpet
- https://www.petfoodprocessing.net/articles/14281-wellpet-acquired-by-clearlake-capital-group
- https://www.petfoodprocessing.net/articles/15369-new-name-same-standards-for-wellpet-in-2022
- https://www.petfoodindustry.com/pet-food-market/news/15676918/united-petfood-enters-us-market-with-wellness-pet-facility-acquisition
- https://www.lincolninternational.com/transactions/wellness-pet-company-has-sold-a-production-facility-in-mishawaka-indiana-to-united-petfood/
- https://www.wellnesspet.com/locations/
- https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/safety/
- https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/blog/wellness-pet-food-is-compliant-with-wsava-pet-food-recommendations/
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wellpet-earns-aa-grade-accreditation-for-exceptional-food-safety-standards-at-its-indiana-based-manufacturing-facility-301413610.html
- https://www.petfoodprocessing.net/articles/15229-indiana-based-wellpet-facility-earns-high-food-safety-rating
- https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wellpet-voluntarily-recalls-limited-amount-one-recipe-canned-topper-dogs-due-potential-elevated
- https://www.petfoodindustry.com/news-newsletters/pet-food-news/article/15463550/pet-food-product-recalls-in-february-2017
- https://www.petfoodsafetynews.com/wellness-cat-food-recalled-metal-fragments-choking-hazard/
- http://wayback.archive-it.org/7993/20170112111746/http:/www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ArchiveRecalls/2012/ucm303039.htm
- https://www.pawdiet.com/pet-food-recall/wellness-recall-history/
- https://truthaboutpetfood.com/wellness-recall/
- https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/wellness-complete-health-dry/
- https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-n-d-cal/2113880.html
- https://www.leagle.com/decision/infdco20210302a25
- https://www.classaction.org/news/lawsuit-wellpets-wellness-dog-food-contaminated-with-arsenic-and-lead
- https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/6137471/zeiger-v-wellpet-llc/
- https://dockets.justia.com/docket/new-york/nysdce/7:2024cv08946/632232
- https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/consumer-products/pet/wellness-pet-food-falsely-advertised-as-natural-class-action-claims/
- https://injuryclaims.com/news/class-action-false-advertising/wellness-pet-food-lawsuit-synthetic-ingredients
AI-assisted research, pending human review · 2026-07-05