Senior Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food, 26-lb bag
Graded by The Sniff System
AvoDerm Senior Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe is a dry dog food for senior dogs, with chicken meal as its primary protein.
Chicken meal provides good protein quality with solid amino acid coverage. The formula also uses quality carbohydrate sources that include declared fiber, and it includes ingredients for diverse, high-bioavailability protein.
Nothing concerning in the deck.
Good fit for senior dogs who need a solid, balanced dry food. Nothing serious working against it.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Good fit for active large sporting breeds, including the Labrador Retriever, navigating weight management. At 345 kcal/cup this formula runs on the moderate side, with crude fiber at 6% (above the catalog median, supports satiety). Labs are the canonical food-motivated breed. Weight management is the dominant practical concern, even more than breed-specific health risks. The 2014 AAHA Weight Management Guidelines define overweight as a Body Condition Score (BCS) of 6-7 on a 9-point scale. A score of 8 or 9 indicates obesity, representing 20-30% and >30% above ideal body weight, respectively (Brooks et al., 2014) .
Looking at this for senior Labrador Retrievers or Labrador Retrievers with weight management ? We are building dedicated pages for these combinations.
Auto-matched from this product's measurements (ingredients, life stage, calorie density) to a breed archetype. Not a substitute for vet input on your specific dog.
Research informing this analysis
MethodologyThe Sniff System grades this product against 2 cited studies relevant to its profile. Each link opens the original source.
- Brooks et al., 2014diagnostic · protocol · satiety· cited in 3 claims
- Raffan et al., 2016genetics
Every claim on Sniff traces to a source. If you find a citation that's wrong, outdated, or misapplied, tell us.
Sniff scored this formula 69/100, landing in B-tier territory. The biggest contributor was protein quality (+15.5 points): Reasonable protein quality. chicken meal delivers solid amino acid coverage. Also adding to the lift: carbohydrate quality (+13). Quality carbohydrate sources with declared fiber. The 6-point gap to A-tier sits mostly in protein quality (15.5 of 27 possible). Full protein quality requires named-species named-cut proteins in the top of the deck (e.g., "deboned chicken" rather than "chicken meal" or "poultry meal").
Reasonable protein quality. chicken meal delivers solid amino acid coverage.
Quality carbohydrate sources with declared fiber.
Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.
No negative drivers crossed our reporting threshold.
- Lowest DMB protein in AvoDerm's lineup (22.2%)
- Top quartile for overall Sniff Score in AvoDerm's lineup (69/100)
- Bottom 10% for caloric density in AvoDerm's lineup (345 kcal/cup)
Computed against the rest of our catalog. Percentiles refresh on each catalog update.
Similar dog foods worth considering
Three lenses on products with formulation profiles similar to this one.
AvoDerm Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe Large Breed Adult Dry Dog Food, 26-lb bag
Scores 6 points higher with a similar formulation profile.
American Journey Protein & Grains Senior Chicken, Brown Rice & Vegetables Recipe Dry Dog Food, 28-lb bag
$1.79/lb vs your seed's $2.77/lb (36% less) at a comparable score.
Surfaced from a vector similarity search across 3,491 scored dog foods. How this works.
Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.
- 1protein animalchicken meal
Chicken with the water cooked out. Per pound, packs more protein than fresh chicken. See why →
Position 1: primary protein source. After cooking removes water, this may drop in proportional weight, but it anchors the recipe.
- 2grainbrown rice
Whole grain that's easy to digest. Steady carb energy plus a little fiber.
Position 2: major carbohydrate source.
- 3grainwhite rice
Refined grain with the bran stripped off. Easy to digest, but not as nutrient-dense as brown rice.
Position 3: major carbohydrate source.
- 4grainoatmeal
Gentle on the stomach. Slow-release carbs and soluble fiber that supports stool quality.
Position 4: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 5grainrice
Generic rice. Could be white or brown, the label doesn't say. Brown rice would be specified if it were.
Position 5: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 6fatchicken fat
Despite the name, a high-quality energy source. Concentrated calories plus essential fatty acids like linoleic acid. See why →
Position 6: secondary fat. Often where marine oils sit when present alongside a primary land-animal fat.
- 7avocado
- 8dried tomato pomace
The fiber-rich byproduct of tomato processing. Sometimes flagged unfairly. It's a real fiber source, not a filler shortcut.
Position 8: functional fiber for digestion or satiety.
- 9flax seed
- 10chicken cartilage
Position 10: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 11supplementalfalfa meal
Dried alfalfa. Real fiber and trace minerals. Functional plant ingredient.
- 12othernatural flavor
Legal term for animal-derived flavoring, usually hydrolyzed liver or broth. Adds taste, says nothing about quality.
- 13oat bran
- 14vegetablecarrots
Real vegetable. Fiber, beta-carotene, and a small amount of antioxidant value.
Position 14: garnish-level inclusion. Marketing-prominent but minimal nutritional impact at this position.
- 15protein animalherring meal
Concentrated herring with the water removed. Carries protein and omega-3s in one ingredient.
Position 15: trace protein. Likely there for amino-acid diversity or label appeal more than nutritional weight.
- 16mineralpotassium chloride
Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.
- 17mineralsalt
Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.
- 18kelp meal
- 19avocado oil
- 20mineralzinc sulfate
Inorganic zinc. Effective at AAFCO doses but less well-absorbed than chelated forms like zinc proteinate.
- 21mineralferrous sulfate
Inorganic iron. Standard mineral source. Iron proteinate is the gentler, better-absorbed premium form.
- 22iron amino acid chelate
Iron bound to amino acids for better absorption. Premium form versus inorganic iron sulfate.
- 23zinc amino acid chelate
Zinc bound to amino acids for better absorption. Same idea as zinc proteinate, the premium form of the mineral.
- 24mineralselenium yeast
Organic selenium grown in yeast. The form premium brands use, gentler and more bioavailable than sodium selenite.
- 25copper amino acid chelate
Copper bound to amino acids for better absorption. Premium form versus copper sulfate.
Showing first 25 of 37. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.
19 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.