Natural Balance Zen Life Dry Dog Food
The first five ingredients are Turkey, Brown Rice, Pearled Barley, Cassava Flour, Turkey Meal. 2 of them are a named animal protein. We put the starch at 54.4%, 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 15.9 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.
Turkey, Brown Rice, Pearled Barley, Cassava Flour, Turkey Meal, Grain Sorghum, Oats, Chicken Fat (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Dried Plain Beet Pulp, Natural Flavor, Fish Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Marine Microalgae, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid (source of Vitamin C), Niacin, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement), L-Tryptophan, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate), Dried Chamomile, Green Tea Extract, Citric Acid (Preservative), Mixed Tocopherols (Preservative), Rosemary Extract
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.
Turkey
The clean flesh of the turkey, with or without skin, used fresh.
Brown Rice
Rice with only the inedible outer hull removed, so the bran and germ stay on the grain.
Pearled Barley
Barley polished to remove the hull and most of the bran layer, leaving a pale, quick-cooking grain.
Cassava Flour
Flour milled from the dried cassava root, used as a grain-free carbohydrate and binder.
Turkey Meal
Turkey that has been cooked, dried and ground into a concentrated meal with most of the water removed.
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 Natural Balance and the archive average.
| Metric | This recipe | Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient… | Archive average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Score | 43 | 59 | -- |
| Protein, water out | 21.1% | 26.7% | -- |
| Starch, water out | 54.4% | 48.3% | 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.
We have not matched any FDA recall to Natural Balance. We check the feed daily and this page updates when that changes.
Other flavors
More from Natural Balance, scored the same way.