Pro Plan Veterinary Diets DM Diabetes Management Dry review

Ingredients, as declared: Dried poultry protein, Barley*, Corn*, Soya meal*, Pea hulls*, Corn protein meal*, Pea protein, Pork fat, Digest, Dried beet pulp*, Cellulose, Fish oil, Minerals, White bean extract (0.1%, source of amylase inhibitor), *Carbohydrate sources

Dried poultry protein takes the top slot. Behind it come the entries the label itself marks out as its carbohydrate sources: barley, corn, soya meal, pea hulls and corn protein meal, each carrying an asterisk that the footnote explains. Flagging them that openly makes the panel straightforward to work through when starch is the thing you have been asked to watch.

Fibre is built up from more than one direction, with pea hulls and dried beet pulp joined by cellulose lower down, and crude fibre declared at 7% as fed. The label prints white bean extract at 0.1% and calls it a source of amylase inhibitor. That makes it the one addition here chosen for a purpose beyond nutrition, and not a standard store-cupboard ingredient.

On the animal side, the poultry protein leads without naming a bird, pork fat supplies part of the fat and fish oil the rest, while soya meal and pea protein layer plant protein on top. If your dog has known intolerances, the poultry entry is the one that leaves the most unsaid, and it is worth raising at the practice before you settle on this bag.

Protein is declared at 37% and converts to 40.2% of dry matter, while fat is held to 12% as fed, or 13.0% dry. The carbohydrate estimate comes out at 31.6% of dry matter, with crude fibre at 7.6%, ash at 7.6% and energy at 342 kcal per 100g. Plenty of protein, restrained fat, a heavy fibre load and fewer calories in every mouthful is the pattern a diet of this type is deliberately drawn to. Take the figures as the brief being met, and leave the fit for your dog to your vet.

Taurine is added at 1000 mg per kilogram. The rest of the panel is printed in full as well, with iron at 120 mg per kilogram, zinc at 110, manganese at 47, copper at 13, iodine at 1.9 and selenium at 0.13. Vitamin E is dosed at 560 IU per kilogram and vitamin C at 140 mg. The label's own guide puts a 15kg dog at 250 grams a day and a 70kg dog at 700 grams. The amount that ends up in the bowl is normally the one the practice writes down.

It is packed in 3kg and 12kg bags, working out at £5.69 a kilo. Taking an energy-based estimate of about 246 grams a day for a 15kg dog, that comes to roughly £1.40.