Exe Valley

Exe Valley Essential Range Adult: Large Breed Chicken review

Name: Exe Valley Essential Range Adult: Large Breed Chicken
Brand: Exe Valley

62.8/100Good

DryAdult

Flavour

Exe Valley's plainer line, built on dried meat meal and cereals, with all four recipes in our Good band. The lamb, salmon and turkey share one rice, barley and oats base. The large breed chicken carries more meat and pulls ahead.

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Our view

Likely to suit

A large dog that gets through a lot of bag
Dogs that digest cooked cereals happily, each grain named
Label readers who like a meat meal at the top
Plant omega 3, from linseed at 2% or 3%
One named animal on the list, in the lamb, salmon and turkey

Worth watching

Poultry fat with no bird named in the large breed chicken
Cereal based throughout, so not for grain-free homes
Older inorganic mineral forms, which the gut takes up a little less readily

Written by our editorial team. Independent guidance, not veterinary advice.

How this scores

How we score

62.8/100Good

Protein and processingGood

Nutritional balanceGood

TransparencyOutstanding

ValueGood

The details

Dog fit

Listed for adult dogs, with the chicken written for large breeds. The energy figures are our estimates, so weigh the first fortnight's portions.

Food type

Dry

Life stage

Adult

Breed size

Large

Main protein

Chicken

The score, in context

Large Breed Chicken 62.8
Salmon 57.4
Turkey 57.0
Lamb 55.5

All four Good. Typical dry food: Good.

The large breed chicken leads on the strength of its extra meal, and the other three sit a little behind on a heavier cereal base.

What's in it

Chicken meal35%The biggest meat share in the range.
MaizeSecond here, where the others put rice.
Barley, rice, oatsRice 14%
Poultry fatPoultry covers chicken, turkey, duck and goose, worth knowing on a bag that says chicken.
Chicken gravy
Linseed2%
Beet pulp, seaweedSeaweed 0.2%
Glucosamine, chondroitin0.1%, 0.05%Joint support, the large breed thinking made visible.
Chicory0.01%

The same dosed panel as the rest of the range.

Calcium works out at 2.72% of dry matter, the highest here, one to know if you count minerals.

Named ingredients

Chicken Meal (35%), Maize, Barley, Rice (14%), Oats, Poultry Fat, Chicken Gravy, Linseed (2%), Beet Pulp, Seaweed (0.2%), Glucosamine (0.1%), Chondroitin (0.05%), Chicory (0.01%).

Against the range

Meat: 35% chicken meal; 26% meal on the others
Protein, dry matter: 32.6%; 21.7% to 25.0%
Carbohydrate, dry matter: 40.8%; 49.5% to 52.2%
Added fat: Poultry fat; Rapeseed oil

The strongest recipe here, with more animal in it and support for big joints.

Every recipe opens on a dried meat meal, so the declared share holds through cooking, though meal tells you the species and little else. Lamb, salmon and turkey sit at 26% meal over rice at 26% with barley and oats, rapeseed oil for fat and linseed for plant omega 3.

The large breed chicken is a different build: 35% chicken meal, maize second, rice at 14%, poultry fat and a joint pair. The vitamin and mineral panel is identical on every bag, with metals as sulphates and selenium as sodium selenite. No moisture is printed, so dry matter figures assume 8%.

Nutritional analysis

Declared analysis

Energy

346.8 kcal/100g

Estimated using Modified Atwater factors*

Protein

30%

Fat

13%

Fibre

3.5%

Ash

Dry weight

Protein

32.6%

Fat

14.1%

Fibre

3.8%

Ash

8.7%

Carbs

40.8%

As-fed composition

Estimated breakdown of the finished product by ingredient category, from the declared ingredient list and ingoing weights. These are estimates, not measurements.

Meat

38.5%

Carbs

56.5%

Veg

0.2%

Oils

2.7%

Other

2.1%

Pricing & size