Blue Life Protection Formula Adult Lamb and Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food
The first five ingredients are Deboned Lamb, Menhaden Fish Meal (source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids), Brown Rice, Oatmeal, Barley. 2 of them are a named animal protein. We put the starch at 47.8%, above the 38.51% average across the foods we hold.
Protein runs low or starch runs high for this type of food. That does not make it unsafe, it just measures lower.
How we got to 43
Five things, one hundred points, and the reason for every one. We would rather show our working than ask you to trust a number.
26-32% dm reads typical mainstream.
Estimated, 6% ash assumed.
Count of named animal proteins.
Matched against the flag list.
Manufacturer, not recipe.
The numbers, without the water
Percentages on a bag include the water in the food, so a wet food always looks lower than a dry one. Taking the water out puts any two foods on the same footing. This one is 90% dry matter.
That is 9.3 points above average, so proportionally more of the bag is starch.
Everything on the label
Printed exactly as the manufacturer lists it, heaviest ingredient first. A dog food needs very little salt, so the 46 ingredients listed after salt are present in even smaller amounts. That is the salt divider, and it is why we only weigh the top of the list.
Deboned Lamb, Menhaden Fish Meal (source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids), Brown Rice, Oatmeal, Barley, Pea Starch, Peas, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Natural Flavor, Flaxseed (source of Omega 6 Fatty Acids), Dried Tomato Pomace, Lamb Meal, Pea Protein, Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Potatoes, Dried Chicory Root, Pea Fiber, Alfalfa Nutrient Concentrate, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, Salt*The Salt Divider. Ingredients are listed heaviest first, and a dog food needs very little salt, so everything after this point is present in an even smaller amount., DL-Methionine, preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, Garlic, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Sulfate, Vegetable Juice for color, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Ferrous Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Blueberries, Cranberries, Barley Grass, Parsley, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Turmeric, L-Carnitine, Niacin (Vitamin B3), Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B5), L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), L-Lysine, Copper Sulfate, Biotin (Vitamin B7), Vitamin A Supplement, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Sulfate, Taurine, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Calcium Iodate, Dried Yeast, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Dried Aspergillus niger fermentation extract, Dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, Dried Bacillus subtilis fermentation extract, Folic Acid (Vitamin B9), Sodium Selenite, Oil of Rosemary
What those first ingredients actually are
The top of the list is most of the food by weight, so it is worth knowing what each one is. Green marks a named animal protein.
Lamb
The clean flesh of sheep, used fresh.
Brown Rice
Rice with only the inedible outer hull removed, so the bran and germ stay on the grain.
Oatmeal
Oats that have been rolled or ground, used as a whole grain carbohydrate.
Barley
The grain of the barley plant, one of the older cultivated cereals.
How much of this to feed
A starting point, worked out from the resting energy formula vets use and this food's own calorie density. Every dog is different, so watch their weight and adjust. Your vet's advice beats a calculator.
How it compares
Same figures, same method, put next to another recipe from Blue and the archive average.
| Metric | This recipe | Blue Natural Veterinary Diet W+U… | Archive average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Score | 43 | 66 | -- |
| Protein, water out | 24.4% | 33.3% | -- |
| Starch, water out | 47.8% | 30.0% | 38.51% |
| Named in first five | 2 of 5 | 2 of 5 | -- |
Recall history
Recalls are matched to the manufacturer, not this exact recipe. A recall on a different product still tells you something about the plant it came from.
4 in the last three years, which costs this food points. Worth reading before you buy. See the recall log
Other flavors
More from Blue, scored the same way.