Bounce and Bella Luxury Grain-Free Small Breed: Scottish Salmon review

Both flavours reach our Excellent band and finish level with each other, a step clear of the Good band where the typical adult dry food ends up. Choosing between them comes down to your dog's protein history rather than any gap in quality.

Ingredients, as declared: 65% Salmon (35% Freshly Prepared Scottish Salmon, 22% Dried Salmon, 5% Salmon Oil, 3% Salmon Gravy), Sweet Potato, Beans, Beet Pulp, Omega 3 Supplement, Dried Superfood Blend* (Including Dill, Spinach, Fennel, Asparagus, Tomato), Minerals, Fructooligosaccharides (FOS, 192 mg/kg), Glucosamine (170 mg/kg), Methylsulfonylmethane (170 mg/kg), Chondroitin Sulphate (125 mg/kg), Mannanoligosaccharides (MOS, 48 mg/kg), Nucleotides, Olive Extract (0.01%)

Both recipes declare their 65% animal share with the split in print. The turkey builds it from 35% freshly prepared turkey, 23% dried pork, 4.5% turkey fat and 2.5% gravy, while the salmon uses 35% fresh salmon, 22% dried salmon, 5% salmon oil and 3% gravy. Fresh meat shrinks a long way in cooking, so those dried shares are carrying much of the protein in the finished kibble. The analysis shows it, with protein converting to 40.2% of dry matter in the turkey and 35.9% in the salmon.

The turkey and pork pairing is easy to understand and nothing to worry about. Pork is still an uncommon protein in dog food, which can make it a pleasant novelty for many dogs, but the combination does mean this flavour cannot anchor a single-animal plan. The salmon, by contrast, keeps its entire animal share to fish.

The starch is sweet potato and beans, with beet pulp behind them, and no grain appears in either recipe. Estimated carbohydrate lands at 31.6% of dry matter for the turkey and 36.9% for the salmon, both usefully below the 46.2% typical of adult dry food.

Both labels dose their prebiotics in print, FOS at 192 mg/kg and MOS at 48 mg/kg. The salmon goes further with a joint trio of glucosamine and MSM at 170 mg/kg each and chondroitin sulphate at 125 mg/kg, plus added nucleotides. Those are extras more often seen on senior recipes than small breed ones.

Each flavour finishes with its own trace-level superfood blend and a whisper of olive extract at 0.01%. Pleasant to see, but the meat and fish are what this range stands on.

Scottish salmon from top to bottom, with the fresh fish, dried share, oil and gravy all from one species, which makes it the flavour to reach for if land meats are off the menu. It is also the one carrying the dosed joint supplements and nucleotides.

Both flavours are £9.00 a kilo, sold in 2kg and 6kg bags.

The turkey works out at £2.04 a day and the salmon at £1.99, taking the standard maintenance energy estimate for a 15kg adult dog as the comparison basis. A truly small dog will need a good deal less than that.