Lakes Collection Lakes Pioneer Sensitive Light: Fish with Rice review

An Average reading is where our scoring puts this one, a band below the bulk of the adult dry food shelf. Two things hold it there: meat comes second on the ingredients list rather than first, and the starch side does more than half the work once the water is taken out. Set against that, the joint entries carry genuine figures and the fat and energy declarations do exactly what a lighter food should do. Transparency reads Outstanding while protein and processing and nutritional balance each read Poor. For a dog whose main job at the moment is to shed a little, that is a perfectly sensible place to be feeding from.

Ingredients, as declared: Brown Rice (22%), Dried Fish (20%), Barley, Oats, White Rice (10%), Chicken Fat, Beet Pulp (4%), Pea Fibre, Brewer's Yeast, Minerals, Yucca Schidigera Extract (190 mg/kg), Glucosamine (180 mg/kg), Methylsulfonylmethane (180 mg/kg), Chondroitin Sulphate (125 mg/kg). Yucca Extract from natural sources, this plant extract is thought to help reduce stool odour. No Added Artificial Colours & Preservatives Naturally preserved using rosemary extract. Formulated without wheat gluten.

Brown rice at 22% takes the top of the list with dried fish at 20% behind it, which tells you the plan straight away. This is a rice based recipe with a solid dried fish share rather than a meat first one. Dried is the operative word on the fish. With the water already gone, a fifth of the bag as dried fish delivers considerably more protein than the same figure would as fresh. The finished kibble converts to 22.8% protein on a dry matter basis.

White rice at 10% joins the brown, and barley and oats sit behind them. Oats bring fibre along with manganese, magnesium and the B vitamin thiamine, and barley cooks down into something most dogs handle without fuss. A gluten free bowl rules barley out, though the label does say this recipe was formulated without wheat gluten.

Beet pulp at 4% and pea fibre are the bulk that makes a lighter portion still feel like a meal. They are why a reduced fat recipe does not have to mean a smaller scoop.

The joint set is the most substantial thing in the small print. Glucosamine and methylsulfonylmethane are printed at 180 mg/kg apiece, with chondroitin sulphate at 125 mg/kg. That is a proper set of figures on a food bought by owners whose dogs are already asking a lot of their joints.

The added fat here is chicken fat, the one place where the fish story stops being the whole story. It is a good, widely used fat with no downside for most dogs, but it does mean the recipe cannot serve as a strict poultry free trial. Rosemary extract does the preserving, and the label rules out added artificial colours and preservatives.

Sold in 1.5kg and 12kg bags.

For a sense of the daily rate, a 15kg adult dog in moderate condition would eat about 246 grams a day, assuming around 840 kcal a day (110 × bodyweight^0.75, the standard maintenance estimate). The label's own table asks 135 to 225 grams for dogs between 10kg and 20kg, and on a food chosen for weight control the lower end of any guide is the sensible place to start.