Nature's Variety No Grain Puppy Medium / Maxi: Norwegian Salmon review

This grain free growth recipe settles in our Good band, level with where the puppy kibble field sits in the middle. Its strongest pillar is transparency at Outstanding, with nutritional balance Excellent and both protein and processing and value reading Good. Two named fish open the list, and an estimated carbohydrate share of 33.6% of dry matter against the field's 39.0% does most of the work. Potato protein and pea protein further down are what stop it climbing, and the analysis prints neither moisture nor calcium.

Ingredients, as declared: Deboned Norwegian salmon* (20%), dried tuna protein (18%), dried peas* (15%), dried potato* (8%), potato protein, poultry fat* (7%), sweet potato* (4%), hydrolysed animal proteins (poultry, pork, fish) (4%), pea starch*, beet pulp*, minerals, pea protein*, dried carrot* (0.5% equivalent to 4% of fresh carrot), dried apple* (0.3% equivalent to 2% fresh apple), dried seaweed (kelp)* (0.01%), dried rosemary* (0.01%). *Natural ingredients

The fish are named, and that is the first thing worth noticing. Deboned Norwegian salmon at 20% is a fresh ingredient, and the oven will take most of its water. Dried tuna protein at 18% was dried before weighing, so it carries a larger share of the kibble's protein than its lower position implies.

Dried peas at 15%, dried potato at 8% and sweet potato at 4% build the cereal free base, with pea starch behind them. That is a proper plant base, not a token one. The arithmetic still lands well, since carbohydrate converts to an estimated 33.6% of dry matter, comfortably under the 39.0% a typical puppy kibble carries.

Potato protein and pea protein both appear in the second half of the list. Plant proteins are less complete and less digestible than the ones a dog gets from meat. They lift the declared 32.0% protein figure, or 34.8% of dry matter, without contributing quite what an equivalent share of fish would.

Poultry fat at 7% points to a family of birds and not to one bird. The hydrolysed animal proteins, at 4%, cover poultry, pork and fish together. The great majority of puppies will be fine on that combination. An owner planning an exclusion trial is exactly who needs to spot it early.

Beet pulp brings a steady fibre that most growing digestions take in their stride. The trimmings at the end are small and quantified: dried carrot at 0.5% standing for 4% fresh, dried apple at 0.3% for 2% fresh, and kelp with rosemary at 0.01% each. The rosemary is in there to stop the fats turning rancid.

The declared analysis gives protein 32.0%, fat 19.0%, fibre 3.0% and ash 7.0%. No moisture figure joins them, so the dry matter numbers here rest on the standard 8% kibble assumption. Calcium is not printed. The maker sets this bag out for pups of medium, large and giant breed, and that growth is precisely when an owner should have the calcium figure in hand. Ask for it before a big pup goes on the food. Energy at 382 kcal per 100g is our estimate.

£6.48 a kilo, sold in 3kg, 10kg and 12kg bags.

No puppy eats the same amount two months running. Anchor yourself to the bag's chart for age and expected adult weight, then let your dog's shape guide the fine tuning.