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The Comparison

Two Foods, One Method

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

Two Foods, One Method. Each row is one measure; the best figure in a row is marked.
01 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Swap Remove 02 Blue Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato Swap Remove + Add A Food + Add A Food
01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream. 01 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 22.2% Best in this row
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 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 54% 49.0% as fed 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 49% 44.0% as fed Best in this row
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 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 1 of 5 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 2 of 5
04 Flagged Additives Level Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list. 01 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice None 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato None
05 Brand Recall History Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe. 01 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice None Best in this row 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 5 4 in the last 3 years
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 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 49.0% 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 44.0%
Kcal / Cup 01 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 370 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato 356
First Five Ingredients 01 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Brewers Rice, Whole Grain Sorghum, Whole Grain Wheat 02 Basics Limited Ingredient Diet Adult Grain-Free Lamb and Potato Deboned Lamb, Potatoes, Pea Starch, Peas, Lamb Meal (source of Glucosamine)

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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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