Barking Heads Fat Dog Slim review

Weight control recipes often give ground in scoring because less fat usually means more starch, yet this one holds its place in our Good band, level with the typical adult dry food. A half chicken declaration, dosed additives from top to bottom and honest percentages across the label do the lifting.

Ingredients, as declared: Chicken 50% (26% Freshly Prepared Free Run Chicken, 21% Dried Chicken, 3% Chicken Gravy), Rice (14%), Oats (12%), Peas (12%), Barley, Potato (7%), Lucerne, Salmon Oil (1%), Minerals, Yeast Products (1000mg/kg), Chicory Root Extract (FOS 1000mg/kg), Seaweed, Glucosamine (500mg/kg), Dried Carrot (500mg/kg), Mixed Herbs (Peppermint, Rosemary, Oregano & Thyme 500mg/kg), Beta Glucans, Chondroitin Sulphate (150mg/kg).

The chicken headline reads 50%, made of 26% freshly prepared chicken, 21% dried chicken and 3% chicken gravy. That split matters, because fresh chicken loses most of its bulk as water in cooking, and a dried share of this size keeps genuine chicken protein in the finished kibble. Protein converts to 26.1% of dry matter with fat held to 10.3%, which is precisely the shape a slimming recipe should take.

Rice at 14%, oats at 12% and peas at 12% do the filling, with barley and 7% potato behind them, and the food finishes at a restrained 343 kcal per 100g. The trade is that estimated carbohydrate reaches 50.6% of dry matter, above the 46.2% typical for adult dry food. In a recipe designed to keep a dieting dog satisfied on fewer calories, that is a deliberate choice.

The weight loss detail lives in the small print. L-Carnitine at 50mg helps the body put fat to work, and taurine arrives at a generous 1000mg. The joint pair of glucosamine at 500mg/kg and chondroitin sulphate at 150mg/kg recognises that spare kilos are hardest on the joints. The omega source is salmon oil at 1%, and it is the one thing keeping the recipe from being fish free.

Yeast products and chicory root extract, each at 1000mg/kg, give prebiotic support to digestion, while seaweed, 500mg/kg of dried carrot and a 500mg/kg pinch of mixed herbs close the list. Those are pleasant touches rather than the point; the half chicken declaration and the trimmed fat are what this food stands on.

£4.16 a kilo, in 2kg and 12kg bags.

As a guide, a 15kg adult dog in moderate condition would get through about 245 grams a day. That assumes around 840 kcal a day (110 × bodyweight^0.75, the standard maintenance estimate) and comes to roughly £1.02. A dog on this food is usually being fed for loss rather than maintenance, so expect to portion below that and follow the label's table. It asks 245 to 300 grams across the 15kg to 20kg bracket.