Ci Foods Ci Mighty Meaty: Fish Medley review

The strongest-scoring corner of the Ci range: Fish Medley takes our Outstanding band, with Farmland Feast and Original Poultry & Fish a step below in Excellent. All three sit well clear of the Good band that holds the typical adult dry food. High printed meat percentages, restrained carbohydrate and dosed extras drive the result, with transparency reading Outstanding right across the three.

Ingredients, as declared: Salmon 67% (including Freshly Prepared Salmon 48%, Dried Salmon 13% & Freshly Prepared Scottish Salmon 6%), Sweet Potato, Freshly Prepared Trout (6%), Beet Pulp, Freshly Prepared Haddock (4%), Lentils, Dried Herring (2%),Tapioca, Chickpeas, Minerals, Vitamins, Salmon Stock (1%), Dried Egg, Olive Oil, Vegetable Stock, MOS (530 mg/kg), (FOS 530 mg/kg), linseed, Dried Pumpkin, Dried Apple, Dried Carrot, Dried Seaweed, Dried Spinach, Dried Cranberry, Glucosamine (180 mg/kg), Methysulfonylmethane (180 mg/kg), Chondroitin (125 mg/kg), Camomile, Burdock Root, Aniseed & Fenugreek, Peppermint, Marigold, Grapeseed Extract, Green Tea Extract, Dried Dandelion, Dried Bilberry, Ginseng, Thyme, Majoram, Oregano, Parsley, Sage, Yucca Schidigera Extract.

Farmland Feast opens its label with a figure rarely seen at this end of the market. Animal content is declared at 80% across duck, pork, turkey and beef, led by freshly prepared duck at 36% and dried pork at 23%. Fish Medley answers with salmon at 67% plus trout, haddock and herring. The Original stacks freshly prepared chicken at 37% and dried chicken at 21% with turkey at 11%.

With no grain anywhere in the range, sweet potato, tapioca, lentils and chickpeas do the binding, and they are kept on a short leash. Estimated carbohydrate sits between 26.6% and 29.9% of dry matter across the three, versus the 46.2% typical for adult dry food. Protein correspondingly converts to between 38.0% and 41.3% of dry matter.

The extras are dosed rather than implied. Each label prints the joint pair of glucosamine and MSM with chondroitin dosed as well, and MOS and FOS prebiotics are there too. Part of the trace mineral panel comes in chelated forms, the type generally credited with better absorption. Farmland Feast and the Original also use selenised yeast, the organic selenium form.

A long tail of fruits, herbs and botanicals closes each list, from seaweed and cranberry to camomile and ginseng. Treat it as garnish: the case for these foods rests on the meat share and the analysis, which is exactly where you want it to rest.

The dual life-stage labelling is backed by the numbers, with calcium between 1.3% and 1.41% of dry matter, levels that suit growing dogs as well as adults. Just remember that puppies and adults portion very differently from the same bag.

The all-fish option, with salmon at 67% joined by trout at 6%, haddock at 4% and dried herring at 2%, plus a little dried egg. It is the richest of the three at 406 kcal/100g and 20% fat, and the obvious route for a dog steering clear of land meats.

Farmland Feast and Fish Medley are £5.15 a kilo with the Original at £4.85, each offered as a 1.5kg trial bag, bundles of four 1.5kg bags, and a 13kg sack.

Because these are dense recipes, portions stay small. A 15kg adult dog in moderate condition needs roughly 207 to 225 grams a day depending on variety, which spans £1.07 to £1.09 daily against the standard 840 kcal maintenance estimate (110 × bodyweight^0.75).