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The Comparison

Three Foods, One Method

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

Hill’s Bioactive is missing protein, dry matter and carbohydrate load, so it is judged on fewer measures than the others here.

Hill’s Bioactive is missing protein, dry matter and carbohydrate load, so it is judged on fewer measures than the others here.

Three Foods, One Method. Each row is one measure; the best figure in a row is marked.
01 Hill's>Bioactive Recipe Hill’s Bioactive Swap Remove 02 Hill's>Bioactive Recipe Hill’s Bioactive Swap Remove 03 Castor & Pollux Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal Swap Remove + Add A Food
01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream. 01 Hill’s Bioactive -- Not enough data on file. 02 Hill’s Bioactive -- Not enough data on file. 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 31.5%
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 Bioactive -- Needs protein, fat, fiber and moisture. 02 Hill’s Bioactive -- Needs protein, fat, fiber and moisture. 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 41% 36.5% 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 Hill’s Bioactive 2 of 5 02 Hill’s Bioactive 2 of 5 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 3 of 5
04 Flagged Additives Level Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list. 01 Hill’s Bioactive None 02 Hill’s Bioactive None 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal None
05 Brand Recall History Level Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe. 01 Hill’s Bioactive None 02 Hill’s Bioactive None 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 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 Hill’s Bioactive -- 02 Hill’s Bioactive -- 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 36.5%
Kcal / Cup 01 Hill’s Bioactive 334 02 Hill’s Bioactive 374 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 376
Measures On File 01 Hill’s Bioactive 3 of 5 02 Hill’s Bioactive 3 of 5 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 5 of 5
First Five Ingredients 01 Hill’s Bioactive Chicken, Brown Rice, Whole Grain Oats, Brewers Rice, Chicken Fat 02 Hill’s Bioactive Chicken, Brown Rice, Whole Grain Oats, Brewers Rice, Chicken Fat 03 Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal Salmon, Whitefish Meal, Organic Oatmeal, Organic Barley, Lamb Meal

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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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