The Comparison
Four Foods, One Method
The same five measures, applied to each food from its own figures.
Open Your Saved Comparison- 01 Castor & Pollux Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato Swap Remove
- 02 Organix Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal Swap Remove
- 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Swap Remove
- 04 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Swap Remove
| 01 Castor & Pollux Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato Swap Remove | 02 Organix Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal Swap Remove | 03 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Swap Remove | 04 Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Swap Remove | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Protein, Dry Matter Higher Is Better 26-32% dm reads typical mainstream. | 01 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 36.0% Best in this row | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal 29.2% | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 21.1% | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites 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 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 35% 31.5% as fed Best in this row | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal 43% 38.5% as fed | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 57% 51.0% as fed | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites 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 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 3 of 5 | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal 2 of 5 | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 1 of 5 | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 1 of 5 |
| 04 Flagged Additives Level Lower Is Better Matched against the flag list. | 01 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato None | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal None | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice None | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice None |
| 05 Brand Recall History Level Lower Is Better Manufacturer, not recipe. | 01 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato None | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal None | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice None | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites 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 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 31.5% | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal 38.5% | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 51.0% | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 49.0% |
| Kcal / Cup | 01 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato 393 | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal 383 | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice 363 | 04 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 370 |
| First Five Ingredients | 01 Pristine Grain-Free Grass-Fed Beef & Sweet Potato Beef, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Organic Sweet Potatoes, Organic Potatoes | 02 Castor & Pollux Organic Chicken & Oatmeal Organic Chicken, Organic Chicken Meal, Organic Oatmeal, Organic Barley, Organic Brown Rice | 03 Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Small & Mini Chicken & Rice Chicken, Brewers Rice, Yellow Peas, Cracked Pearled Barley, Whole Grain Oats | 04 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 |
Swap A Food
Replacing column 04.
- Castor & Pollux Pristine Wild-Caught Salmon & Oatmeal 31.5% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Senior Vitality Chicken & Rice 21.1% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Small Bites Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 7+ Chicken Meal, Barley & Rice 17.2% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Chicken Meal & Rice 22.2% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult 1-6 Lamb Meal & Brown Rice 21.7% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 22.3% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Paws Light with Chicken Meal & Barley 22.3% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Large Breed Chicken & Barley 22.2% protein Swap In
- Science Diet Hill’s Science Diet Adult Perfect Weight Large Breed Chicken 26.7% protein Swap In
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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