The Comparison
Three Foods, One Method
The same five measures, applied to each food from its own figures.
Open Your Saved Comparison- 01 Merrick Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites Swap Remove
- 02 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Swap Remove
- 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Swap Remove
| 01 Merrick Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites Swap Remove | 02 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Swap Remove | 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Swap Remove | + Add A Food | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream. | 01 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 38.2% Best in this row | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 21.1% | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 21.1% | |
| 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 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 32% 28.5% as fed Best in this row | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 57% 51.0% as fed | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 57% 51.0% 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 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 3 of 5 | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 1 of 5 | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 1 of 5 | |
| 04 Flagged Additives Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list. | 01 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 1 Menadione | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice None Best in this row | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice None Best in this row | |
| 05 Brand Recall History Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe. | 01 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 1 None in the last 3 years | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice None Best in this row | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice None Best in this row | |
| 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 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 28.5% | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 51.0% | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 51.0% | |
| Kcal / Cup | 01 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites 398 | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 363 | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 363 | |
| First Five Ingredients | 01 Lil’ Plates Grain-Free Real Chicken + Sweet Potato with Raw Bites Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Sweet Potatoes, Potatoes | 02 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice Chicken, Brewers Rice, Yellow Peas, Cracked Pearled Barley, Whole Grain Oats | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Chicken, Brewers Rice, Yellow Peas, Cracked Pearled Barley, Whole Grain Oats |
Add A Food
- Castor & Pollux Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 36.0% protein Add
- Castor & Pollux Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 31.5% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Chicken Meal, Barley & Rice 17.2% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Chicken Meal & Rice 22.2% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 22.3% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 22.3% protein Add
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Add
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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