Orijen Small Breed Puppy review

Our Excellent band is where this one settles, one step above the Good band that holds the middle of the puppy dry field. The reason is written into the top half of the ingredients list, which is animal from first entry to thirteenth, and into a carbohydrate estimate of 19.4% of dry matter set against a typical 39.0%. Nutritional balance and transparency both read Outstanding, with protein and processing and value both Excellent, a strong set of readings all the way across.

Ingredients, as declared: Fresh chicken (18%), raw salmon (12%), raw turkey (10%), raw whole hake (4%), raw whole herring (4%), raw turkey liver (4%), fresh chicken giblets (liver, heart) (4%), fresh eggs (4%), dehydrated turkey (4%), dehydrated chicken (4%), dehydrated herring (4%), dehydrated chicken liver (4%), dehydrated egg (4%), whole red lentils, whole pinto beans, chicken fat (3%), whole green lentils, whole navy beans, whole chickpeas, whole peas, pollock oil (2%), lentil fibre, raw New Zealand green mussels, dried kelp, fresh whole butternut squash, fresh whole pumpkin, salt, dried chicory root, fresh whole apples, fresh whole carrots, fresh whole pears, fresh whole zucchini, fresh beet greens, fresh kale, fresh spinach, fresh turnip greens, whole cranberries, whole blueberries, whole saskatoon berries, turmeric, milk thistle, burdock root, lavender, marshmallow root, rosehips.

Fresh chicken at 18% and raw salmon at 12% lead, and the pattern behind them is unusual. Rather than one or two large meats, this label uses a dozen animal entries at roughly 4% each. Raw hake, herring, turkey liver, chicken giblets and eggs sit alongside dehydrated turkey, chicken, herring, chicken liver and egg, and the dried ones count for most because their water has already gone.

Raw salmon at 12% is the largest fish inclusion in the range and a generous one for a small pup's skin and coat. Pollock oil at 2% and raw New Zealand green mussels sit behind it. Green mussel is an unusual thing to meet in a kibble and a natural source of the sort of compounds joint supplements are built around.

Calcium is printed at 1.48% of dry matter, with ash at 10.2% showing the generous mineral load behind it. Small breed pups do most of their growing early. Having that figure printed, and not left to assumption, is worth a great deal when you are deciding how long to keep them on a growth food.

Whole red lentils, pinto beans, green lentils, navy beans, chickpeas and peas carry the starch with lentil fibre alongside, and no grain appears at any point. Pulses carry fibre and B vitamins alongside their carbohydrate, with iron and zinc too. The estimate lands at 19.4% of dry matter, which is light for a kibble.

Salt is named on the list, the one entry here that is purely about flavour. Most recipes get all the sodium they need from their raw ingredients, so it is fair to notice. Its position well down the list means the quantity is small.

The vitamin panel is the most generous of the three Orijen puppy recipes. Vitamin B1 comes in at 120mg, niacin at 200mg, calcium-D-pantothenate at 60mg, vitamin B6 at 35mg, vitamin B2 at 20mg, folic acid at 7mg and vitamin B12 at 0.2mg per kilo. Vitamin E is at 500 IU, zinc at 120mg and copper at 11mg. A live Enterococcus faecium culture handles the gut side, and tocopherol extract at 121mg with rosemary extract at 80mg keeps the fats fresh.

The closing run of butternut squash, pumpkin, apples, carrots, pears, courgette, leafy greens, cranberries, blueberries and saskatoon berries, then a short herb list, is present only in small measures. It reads well and it does no harm, but the nutrition here was settled long before the label got that far down.

£12.44 a kilo, sold in 1.8kg and 4.5kg bags.

No daily amount stays fixed while a dog is growing, so start from the maker's chart and let your pup's shape correct it. Its grams-per-day rows run from 78g for a 5kg pup up to 94g for a 7kg one.