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The Comparison

Four Foods, One Method

The same five measures, applied to each food from its own figures.

Four Foods, One Method. Each row is one measure; the best figure in a row is marked.
01 Canidae Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb Swap Remove 02 Canidae Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot Swap Remove 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley Swap Remove 04 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Swap Remove
01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb 27.8% Best in this row 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot 27.8% Best in this row 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 22.3% 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7%
02 Carbohydrate Load, Dry Matter Lower Is Better Estimated, 6% ash assumed. Estimated, not measured. It is what is left of the guaranteed analysis once protein, fat, fiber and moisture are taken out, with ash assumed at 6%. That leftover is mostly starch but also carries sugars and the fiber a crude-fiber test misses, so read it as a close estimate rather than an exact figure. Measured as fed, the same basis as the bag. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb 49% 44.0% as fed 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot 45% 40.5% as fed Best in this row 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 49% 44.0% as fed 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 54% 49.0% as fed
03 Named Proteins In The First Five Count of named animal proteins. The count matches any named animal word in the opening five ingredients, so it also counts animal fats and flavourings as proteins. It is shown because it is one of the five measured lines, but it is too rough to call a winner on. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb 1 of 5 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot 2 of 5 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 1 of 5 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 1 of 5
04 Flagged Additives Level Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb None 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot None 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley None 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice None
05 Brand Recall History Level Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb None 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot None 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley None 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice None
Starch, As Fed Estimated, not measured. It is what is left of the guaranteed analysis once protein, fat, fiber and moisture are taken out, with ash assumed at 6%. That leftover is mostly starch but also carries sugars and the fiber a crude-fiber test misses, so read it as a close estimate rather than an exact figure. Measured as fed, the same basis as the bag. 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb 44.0% 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot 40.5% 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 44.0% 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 49.0%
Kcal / Cup 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb 357 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot 462 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 271 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 370
First Five Ingredients 01 Under The Sun Grain-Free Lamb Lamb Meal, Green Peas, Garbanzo Beans, Yellow Peas, Canola Oil 02 Pure Grain-Free Real Bison, Lentil & Carrot Bison, Lamb Meal, Sweet Potatoes, Peas, Lentils 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley Chicken Meal, Cracked Pearled Barley, Pea Fiber, Whole Grain Wheat, Whole Grain Corn 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Brewers Rice, Whole Grain Sorghum, Whole Grain Wheat

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Every figure here is the food's own. Protein and carbohydrate are converted to dry matter so foods of different moisture can be set beside each other; starch is estimated from the guaranteed analysis with ash assumed at 6.0%, and the recall record belongs to the manufacturer rather than to the recipe. Two rows are printed but never marked: the named-protein count, because the detection behind it is too rough to call a winner on, and calories, because neither more nor fewer is better without knowing the dog.

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