How HypeCheck Works

Research in dogs only

We search for studies in dogs: the exact product first, then its ingredients for the condition it claims to help. Human evidence ratings, safety conclusions and doses are never reused for dogs or cats.

For each study we record the species, condition and population, formulation, amount studied, duration, outcomes, limitations, and funding or conflicts when available. Missing information stays marked as missing. A trial of the exact product is kept separate from a study of one ingredient or a different formula; a matching ingredient and amount do not show the product works. Study amounts describe the research and are not dosing instructions for your dog.

Each common ingredient is researched once per condition (joints, and skin and coat) into an ingredient record: its dog studies, a grade on the same scale, and the daily amount studies used. Every dog review reuses those records, so an ingredient is graded the same way in every product that contains it. Records are checked the same way as reviews and are versioned; when one changes, the reviews that rely on it are rerun.

Same grades and verdicts

Dog claims use the five grades above. "No evidence found" means our search turned up no applicable dog research; it does not mean the claim is false. "Unsupported" means the studies we found point against the claim. "Too early to call" is the verdict when most claims have no applicable evidence, or when half do and none of the others overstate theirs.

Marketing statements such as "#1 vet recommended" or quality promises are listed as signals, not graded as health claims. Dog reviews do not show a price or dose-value score, because those checks are built on human dosing research.

Dose vs studies

We read the per-chew amounts and the dosing table by weight from the label, work out the daily amount per kg of body weight at each weight band, and compare it with the amount dog studies used. For fish oil we also compare with the safe upper limit the COAST guidelines state for EPA and DHA. Amounts are compared only when the label states the same thing the studies measured; "fish oil 1,000 mg" is not the same as 1,000 mg of EPA and DHA.

This compares the label with research. It is not a dosing recommendation for your dog.

How dog reviews are checked

One AI model drafts the findings from the retrieved research. A separate model checks them against the source text for product identity, species, claim support, formulation, quotations and scope, and our code checks that every citation and quote traces to a real source. A report publishes only when those checks pass; otherwise it stays pending. A weak or negative finding still publishes when it is described accurately.

These checks reduce errors; they do not replace a veterinarian. A report is only labeled editorially or veterinary reviewed when a named person reviewed that version, and citing a veterinarian's work does not mean they reviewed our report. We review labels and published research. We do not buy, give, or lab-test products.

Independence

Companies cannot pay to change a conclusion or buy coverage. Dog reviews carry no paid placements or affiliate links. Manufacturer claims and industry-funded studies stay labeled: funding does not cancel a study, but readers should see it.

For quality, we record whether the maker holds the NASC Quality Seal on the date we checked the public member list. The seal is a company-level audit by an industry trade association, not a test of the specific product, and we say so wherever we use it.

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