Four Foods, One Method

• 01 Merrick Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed Swap Remove
• 02 Merrick Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck Swap Remove
• 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Swap Remove
• 04 Castor & Pollux Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal Swap Remove

Four Foods, One Method. Each row is one measure; the best figure in a row is marked.

	01 Merrick Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed Swap Remove	02 Merrick Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck Swap Remove	03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Swap Remove	04 Castor & Pollux Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal Swap Remove
01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream.	01 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed 38.2% Best in this row	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 38.2% Best in this row	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 21.1%	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 31.5%
02 Carbohydrate Load, Dry Matter Lower Is Better Estimated, 6% ash assumed. iEstimated, 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 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed 32% 28.5% as fed Best in this row	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 32% 28.5% as fed Best in this row	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 57% 51.0% as fed	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 41% 36.5% as fed
03 Named Proteins In The First Five Count of named animal proteins. iThe 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 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed 3 of 5	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 3 of 5	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 1 of 5	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 3 of 5
04 Flagged Additives Level Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list.	01 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed None	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck None	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice None	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal None
05 Brand Recall History Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe.	01 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed 1 None in the last 3 years	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 1 None in the last 3 years	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice None Best in this row	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal None Best in this row
Starch, As Fed iEstimated, 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 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed 28.5%	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 28.5%	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 51.0%	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 36.5%
Kcal / Cup	01 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed --	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck 389	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 363	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 376
First Five Ingredients	01 Full Source with Healthy Grains Raw-Coated Kibble Large Breed Deboned Beef, Chicken Meal, Brown Rice, Whitefish Meal, Oatmeal	02 Full Source Grain-Free Raw-Coated Kibble with Chicken & Duck Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Sweet Potatoes, Potatoes	03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Chicken, Brewers Rice, Yellow Peas, Cracked Pearled Barley, Whole Grain Oats	04 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal Salmon, Whitefish Meal, Organic Oatmeal, Organic Barley, Lamb Meal

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.