Sensitive Skin & Stomach Catfish Meal with Ancient Grains Recipe All Life Stages Dry Dog Food, 24-lb bag
Graded by The Sniff System
Blackwood Sensitive Skin & Stomach Catfish Meal with Ancient Grains Recipe is a dry food for all life stages, featuring catfish meal as its main protein.
This recipe includes quality carbohydrate sources like barley, oat, millet, and sorghum, which also provide fermentable fiber. It also uses premium micronutrient forms, like chelated minerals, and includes whitefish meal for more diverse protein.
The main protein source, catfish meal, is noted for its limited bioavailable amino acids, which means it's not the highest quality protein. Nothing else concerning in the deck.
Good fit for dogs of all life stages, particularly those with sensitive skin or stomachs. Less ideal if you prioritize higher quality protein sources.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Frenchies have notoriously sensitive GI tracts plus a tendency toward obesity given their low activity needs. Limited-ingredient formulas with moderate calorie density tend to fit them well. Strong fit for adult French Bulldogs navigating a sensitive stomach. Catfish meal leads at position 1, with beet pulp (prebiotic fiber) at position 8 on the deck.
Looking at this for adult French Bulldogs or French Bulldogs with a sensitive stomach ? 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 3 cited studies relevant to its profile. Each link opens the original source.
- NRC, 2006digestibility · fiber· cited in 2 claims
- AAFCO, 2024zinc
- Swanson et al., 2002prebiotics
Every claim on Sniff traces to a source. If you find a citation that's wrong, outdated, or misapplied, tell us.
At 60/100, this formula lands in solid B territory. The lift comes from carbohydrate quality, worth 16 points to the final number: Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber. Where it lost ground: protein quality, costing 17.5 points. Low protein quality. catfish meal delivers limited bioavailable amino acids.
Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.
Premium micronutrient forms such as chelated minerals or natural vitamin E.
Low protein quality. catfish meal delivers limited bioavailable amino acids.
- Lowest protein quality in Blackwood's lineup (7.5/27)
- Top quartile for carb quality in dry kibbles (16/16)
- Lowest fat quality in Blackwood's lineup (6/16)
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.
Natural Balance Specialized Nutrition Sensitive Skin & Stomach Adult Salmon & Oatmeal Formula Dry Dog Food, 22-lb bag
Scores 17 points higher with a similar formulation profile.
Black Gold Explorer Sensitive Skin & Coat Ocean Fish Meal & Oat Recipe Dry Dog Food, 40-lb bag
$1.27/lb vs your seed's $2.62/lb (51% 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.
- 1catfish meal
Position 1: primary protein source. After cooking removes water, this may drop in proportional weight, but it anchors the recipe.
- 2grainbarley
Whole grain with a low glycemic profile and some soluble fiber. Easy on blood sugar.
Position 2: major carbohydrate source.
- 3oat
- 4grainmillet
Gluten-free whole grain. Fine for most dogs, often used as an alternative to rice.
Position 4: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 5grainsorghum
Whole grain with a low glycemic index. Gluten-free, well-tolerated, decent fiber content.
Position 5: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 6fatcanola oil
Plant oil. Some omega-3 from the parent plant, though dogs absorb it less efficiently than fish-derived omega-3. Fine in moderation.
Position 6: secondary fat. Often where marine oils sit when present alongside a primary land-animal fat.
- 7protein animalwhitefish meal
Whitefish cooked into a dry concentrate. Strong protein source, common in premium formulas.
Position 7: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 8fiberbeet pulp
Soluble fiber from sugar-beet processing. Sometimes treated as a filler, but it's actually one of the better fiber sources in kibble. See why →
Position 8: functional fiber for digestion or satiety.
- 9othernatural flavor
Legal term for animal-derived flavoring, usually hydrolyzed liver or broth. Adds taste, says nothing about quality.
- 10mineraldicalcium phosphate
Calcium and phosphorus combined. Required source of both minerals, especially in formulas without much bone content.
- 11fatflaxseed
Plant source of omega-3. Helpful for skin and coat, though dogs absorb omega-3 from fish more efficiently.
Position 11: trace fat. Below the level that materially shifts the fat profile.
- 12mineralsalt
Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.
- 13mineralpotassium chloride
Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.
- 14fiberinulin
Prebiotic fiber that feeds beneficial gut bacteria. Same compound found in chicory root.
Position 14: trace fiber inclusion.
- 15l-threonine
Essential amino acid. Sometimes added when plant proteins dominate, since threonine is naturally lower in plants than meat.
- 16fruitcranberries
Often added with a urinary-tract-support marketing angle. Real cranberry compounds help in concentrate form, but kibble doses are small.
- 17fruitblueberries
Antioxidants, real. But the amount in any kibble is too small to do much. Mostly marketing.
- 18supplementl-lysine
Essential amino acid. Plant-protein-heavy formulas sometimes add it to round out the amino acid profile.
- 19supplementdl-methionine
Essential amino acid. Often added when plant proteins dominate, since methionine is naturally lower in pulses than meat.
- 20preservative naturalmixed tocopherols
Natural vitamin E used to keep fats from going rancid. The good kind of preservative. See why →
- 21supplementyucca schidigera extract
Plant extract added to reduce stool odor. Functional, not nutritional. Fine in trace amounts.
- 22mineralcalcium carbonate
Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.
- 23vitaminvitamin e supplement
Required nutrient and a natural antioxidant. Often pulls double duty as a preservative.
- 24mineralzinc amino acid complex
Zinc bound to amino acids for better absorption. Same idea as zinc proteinate, the premium form of the mineral.
- 25mineraliron amino acid complex
Iron bound to amino acids for better absorption. Premium form versus inorganic iron sulfate.
Showing first 25 of 45. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.
23 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.
Nutritionally Complete & Balanced: Blackwood Catfish Meal with Ancient Grains Recipe dog food is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO dog food nutrient profiles for all life stages including growth of large size dogs (70 lb. or more as an adult).