Nature's Way

Nature's Way Puppy & Small Dog review

Name: Nature's Way Puppy & Small Dog
Brand: Nature's Way

70.3/100Excellent

DryPuppy

A chicken-led growth kibble that shows its workings, and it sits in our Excellent band. The label declares 59% chicken, then gives fresh meat, dried meat, fat and liver a percentage each. The tail is busier than most puppy foods manage, with a joint trio, both major prebiotics and a pinch of herbs.

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Our view

Likely to suit

Small-breed puppies above all; the recipe and its calcium are pitched at their growth
Owners who want each part of the meat on its own line
Pups that settle on familiar grains, with brown rice at 21% and oats and barley behind it
Gut and joint support started early: prebiotic MOS and FOS plus glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM

Worth watching

Calcium at 2.17% of dry matter is fine for small breeds and too much for large-breed growth
Salmon oil puts fish in the bowl, though chicken is the only meat

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

How this scores

How we score

70.3/100Excellent

Protein and processingGood

Nutritional balanceExcellent

TransparencyOutstanding

ValueExcellent

The details

Dog fit

Written for small-breed puppies. Pups move through their feeding bands fast, so portion to the label's bodyweight guide and let condition steer you.

Food type

Dry

Life stage

Puppy

Breed size

Small

Main protein

Chicken

The score, in context

Nature's Way Puppy & Small Dog 70.3

All one Excellent. Typical dry food: Good.

It does well exactly where a growth label should: a high declared meat share with every part itemised.

What's in it

Dried chicken32%Leads the meat. With no water left, it gives far more protein per gram than fresh.
Chicken21%
Chicken fat, chicken liver3%, 2.5%Completing the 59%.
Brown rice21%Leads the starch.
Potato protein, harvest oats, barleyPotato protein tops up the protein total.
Beet pulpGentle fibre for firm stools.
Linseed, salmon oil, sunflower oilThe fats a young coat and brain need, and the only fish on the label.
Minerals, vitamins, yucca schidigera extract
Glucosamine, MSM, chondroitin, prebiotic MOS and FOSA joint trio and both major prebiotics, unusual on a puppy label.
Mixed herbs: thyme, marjoram, sage, basil, parsley, oreganoSeasoning, and the recipe knows it.

Copper, iron, zinc, manganese and iodine as sulphates and iodate, with vitamins A, D3 and E, all dosed in print.

Calcium converts to 2.17% of dry matter, more than large-breed growth should see. A big-breed pup needs a different recipe.

Named ingredients

59% Chicken consisting: Chicken (21%), Dried Chicken (32%), Chicken Fat (3%), Chicken Liver (2.5%), Brown Rice (21%), Potato Protein, Harvest Oats, Barley, Beet Pulp, Linseed, Minerals, Vitamins, Salmon Oil, Sunflower Oil, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Glucosamine (.015%), MSM (.015%), Chlondroitin (.01%), Prebiotic MOS, Prebiotic FOS, Mixed Herbs consisting: Thyme, Majoram, Sage, Basil, Parsley, Oregano

Against the range

Nutritional analysis

Declared analysis

Energy

357 kcal/100g

Estimated using Modified Atwater factors*

Protein

34%

Fat

14%

Fibre

Ash

Moisture

Dry weight

Protein

37%

Fat

15.2%

Fibre

3.3%

Ash

7.6%

Carbs

36.9%

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

79.6%

Carbs

17.9%

Oils

2.6%

Pricing & size