Royal Canin

Royal Canin X-Small light weight care review

Name: Royal Canin X-Small light weight care
Brand: Royal Canin

32.3/100Average

DryAdultSenior

A weight-control kibble for very small dogs, and it does that job on purpose. Fat is cut to 12.0%, crude fibre raised to 6.2% and protein kept at 26.0%, so the weight that comes off should be fat. It sits in our Average band, mostly because maize leads the list and no animal is named.

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Our view

Likely to suit

Small adults carrying more than their frame should
Careful calorie counting, at 341 kcal per 100g
The dog that begs between meals. The fibre makes a small portion look like a meal
Lean muscle kept while the weight comes off
Older small dogs with stiff joints, as glucosamine and chondroitin are both named

Worth watching

Maize first, with maize flour, maize gluten, barley and wheat behind it
Glucosamine from hydrolysed crustaceans, for a house avoiding shellfish
Fish oil and unnamed animal proteins, so no use for a single-protein trial

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

How this scores

How we score

32.3/100Average

Protein and processingPoor

Nutritional balanceGood

TransparencyPoor

ValueAverage

The details

Dog fit

Listed for small adults and seniors. Weigh the bowl against the label's guide, which asks 22 grams a day at 1kg and 62 grams at 4kg.

Food type

Dry

Life stage

Adult, Senior

Breed size

Small

Main protein

Poultry

The score, in context

Royal Canin X-Small light weight care 32.3

All one Average. Typical dry food: Good.

General scoring marks down the very things that make a light diet work, and the maize-first list with no named animal pulls it down further.

What's in it

MaizeFirst on the list, and much of the reason the energy comes down.
Dehydrated poultry proteinPoultry, not a named bird.
Maize flour, vegetable protein isolate
Hydrolysed animal proteinsNo species given.
Barley, maize gluten, wheat
Animal fats, soya oil, fish oil, borage oilFat held to 12.0% overall. The fish oil rules out a fish-free diet.
Chicory pulp, vegetable fibres, psyllium husks and seedsThe useful fibres, which bulk the meal and feed gut bacteria.
Cellulose powderIndigestible filler fibre. It fills the stomach and supplies nothing, which is why light foods use it.
Minerals, yeasts, fatty acid salt, FOS
Hydrolysed crustaceans, marigold extract, hydrolysed cartilageSources of glucosamine, lutein and chondroitin, no dose printed.

Vitamins A and D3 with iron, iodine, copper, manganese, zinc and selenium, plus L-carnitine at 200 mg per kilo to help the body burn fat.

Contains crustacean, as the glucosamine source.

Named ingredients

Maize, dehydrated poultry protein, maize flour, vegetable protein isolate*, hydrolysed animal proteins, barley, maize gluten, animal fats, wheat, chicory pulp, vegetable fibres, cellulose powder, minerals, psyllium husks and seeds, soya oil, fish oil, yeasts and parts thereof, fatty acid salt, fructo-oligo-saccharides, borage oil, hydrolysed crustaceans (source of glucosamine), marigold extract (source of lutein), hydrolysed cartilage (source of chondroitin).

Against the range

One reduced-fat kibble for very small dogs: maize first, fat held down, fibre pushed up and L-carnitine dosed in print.

Nutritional analysis

Declared analysis

Energy

341.4 kcal/100g

Estimated using Modified Atwater factors*

Protein

26%

Fat

12%

Fibre

6.2%

Ash

5.4%

Dry weight

Protein

28.3%

Fat

13%

Fibre

6.7%

Ash

5.9%

Carbs

46.1%

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

30.7%

Carbs

61%

Veg

6.9%

Oils

Other

0.4%

Pricing & size