Hill's Science Plan

Hill's Science Plan Light Small & Mini Mature Adult Dog Food with Chicken review

Name: Hill's Science Plan Light Small & Mini Mature Adult Dog Food with Chicken
Brand: Hill's Science Plan

39.2/100Average

DryAdultSenior

One kibble asked to do two jobs: keep the weight off an older small dog and look after joints that have covered a lot of ground. It sits in our Average band, driven by how far down the list the meat sits. For a settled older dog whose calories need holding down, it is still a workable everyday bag.

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Our view

Likely to suit

Older small dogs carrying extra weight, at 308 kcal per 100 grams against 357 typical
Ageing joints, with chondroitin and glucosamine sources on the list
Small dogs who need to feel full. Fibre gives bulk without much energy
A gut-friendly touch from the ActivBiome+ blend at 0.6%

Worth watching

Wheat and maize ahead of the meat
Protein at 17.7%, modest for an older dog holding on to muscle
Pork and crustacean beside the poultry

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

How this scores

How we score

39.2/100Average

Protein and processingAverage

Nutritional balancePoor

TransparencyGood

ValueAverage

The details

Dog fit

Listed for small adults and seniors. The label asks 180 grams a day for a 10kg dog and 105 for a 5kg one; a protein-rich topper is an easy way to lift the rest.

Food type

Dry

Life stage

Adult, Senior

Breed size

Small

Main protein

Chicken

The score, in context

Hill's Science Plan Light Small & Mini Mature Adult Dog Food with Chicken 39.2

All one Average. Typical dry food: Good.

Ingredient order tells most of the story, and part of the gap is a light diet doing its job on purpose.

What's in it

WheatThe cereal most often behind intolerance in dogs.
Maize
Chicken and turkey meal15% poultry, 9% chickenDried, so the figures survive cooking, but a modest animal share.
Pea bran meal, celluloseWhere the light promise is kept: bulk with almost no energy.
Barley, oats
Digest, animal fatNeither names its animal.
FlaxseedA little plant omega 3 for an older coat.
Dried beet pulp, vegetable oil, minerals
Oat bran, fructo-oligosaccharides (ActivBiome+)0.6%Feeds the gut's own bacteria.
Pork cartilage, crustacean shell hydrolysateChondroitin and glucosamine, no dose in print.

Trace minerals dosed per kilo, zinc at 132 mg and iron at 75.5 mg among them.

Wheat leads the list. If your dog has itched on cereal foods before, give this a second thought.

Named ingredients

Wheat, maize, chicken and turkey meal (chicken 9%; total poultry 15%), pea bran meal, cellulose, barley, oats, digest, animal fat, flaxseed, dried beet pulp, vegetable oil, minerals, oat bran, fructo-oligosaccharides, pork cartilage (source of chondroitin sulphate), crustacean shell hydrolysate (source of glucosamine). ActivBiome+ Multi Benefit prebiotic blend (0.6%): Oat bran, fructo-oligosaccharides.

Against the range

Wheat and maize come ahead of the chicken and turkey meal, declared as 9% chicken within 15% total poultry. Pea bran meal and cellulose carry crude fibre to 12.9%, and the joint sources are named without a dose.

Nutritional analysis

Declared analysis

Energy

308.1 kcal/100g

Protein

17.7%

Fat

10%

Fibre

12.9%

Ash

5.3%

Moisture

Dry weight

Protein

19.2%

Fat

10.9%

Fibre

14%

Ash

5.8%

Carbs

50.1%

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

17.2%

Carbs

78.2%

Oils

0.7%

Other

3.8%

Pricing & size