Questions about the iPhone app. For the website, see About.
Where do I get it?
On the App Store: Can My Pet Eat: Food Safety. It is free, it needs iOS 17 or later, and there is nothing to sign up for.
Does it work without internet?
Yes — that is the main reason it exists.
504 answers are built into the app itself: 84 foods across all six pets. They are read straight from your phone with no network request, so they appear instantly and work in Airplane Mode, in a basement, or in the car on the way to the vet.
Only a food that is not in that built-in table needs a connection. When one is fetched, it is saved to your phone too, so it keeps working offline afterwards.
Is it free?
Yes. No purchase, no subscription, no ads, nothing locked behind a paywall.
Which pets does it cover?
Dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, hamsters and fish.
Every food is answered separately for each of them, because the answer genuinely differs. Onion is dangerous to a cat in a way it is not to a rabbit. Carrots are a fine dog treat and a sugary occasional one for a rabbit.
Is this a substitute for a vet?
No. It is a reference tool, and it can be wrong.
It cannot examine your animal. It does not know their age, weight, breed, medications, or what else they ate today — all of which change the answer.
If your pet has eaten something you are worried about, call a veterinarian now rather than reading. Acting early matters more than knowing exactly what happened.
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center — (888) 426-4435
- Pet Poison Helpline — (855) 764-7661
What happens if a food isn’t in the app?
The app asks our server, which writes the answer down so the next person gets it instantly, and saves a copy to your phone.
Answers produced this way have not been read by a person yet, and the app says so with an “unverified” banner. Treat those with more caution, not less. Answers that were in the app when you installed it were all reviewed by a person first.
There is a daily limit on new lookups, so the service cannot be run up as a bill by automated abuse. If you hit it, or the server is unreachable, the app tells you plainly — and every built-in answer still works.
What does a “caution” verdict mean?
That the food is not poisonous, but it is not simply fine either. Usually one of three things:
- Only part of it is safe. Cherry flesh is harmless; the pit is not.
- The amount matters. A little is fine, a lot is not.
- It is safe for some individuals and not others.
Caution answers tell you how much, and which part is the problem.
Do I need an account?
No. There is no sign-up and no login. We do not know who you are, and nothing you search is tied to you.
Does it track me or show ads?
No. There is no advertising, no analytics SDK, no crash reporter, and no third-party framework of any kind in the app.
Your recent searches stay on your phone. The app stores one anonymous random id so our server can apply a daily limit on new lookups; it is not linked to you, and deleting the app discards it. Full detail is in the app privacy policy.
How do I delete what the app has stored?
Open About — the ⓘ button at the top right — and tap Clear recent searches and saved answers. Deleting the app removes everything as well.
Which iPhones does it run on?
Any iPhone running iOS 17 or later. It is an iPhone app in portrait; there is no iPad version.
Is there an Android version?
Not yet. Android is planned, but there is no date. In the meantime the web checker works in any mobile browser.
Where do the answers come from?
The same research behind the guides on this site, informed by sources including the ASPCA, the AVMA, the Merck Veterinary Manual and university veterinary extension programmes. Every answer built into the app was read by a person before it shipped.
I found something that looks wrong
Please tell us — canmypeteat@gmail.com. A wrong verdict is worth fixing quickly, and corrections go into the next release for everyone.