N&D Ancestral Grain Lamb & Blueberry Recipe Puppy Mini Dry Dog Food, 5.5-lb bag
Graded by The Sniff System
Farmina N&D Ancestral Grain Lamb & Blueberry Recipe Puppy Mini Dry Dog Food is a dry food for puppies, featuring lamb as its primary protein.
This food has a strong protein profile, with lamb as the main ingredient, which means high biological value for your dog. It also uses quality carbohydrate sources that provide fermentable fiber, and its fat sources are good, including named fats and marine oil for EPA and DHA.
Nothing concerning in the deck.
Good fit for puppies of any size. Nothing serious working against it.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Goldens appeared disproportionately in the FDA's DCM reports. Pulse-heavy grain-free formulas warrant extra caution; named animal protein with organ meat or marine sources is the safer fit. Strong fit for puppy Golden Retrievers and similar active sporting breeds navigating diet-associated DCM concerns. Lamb anchors position 1, with zero pulses in the top 15, plus herring at position 6.
Looking at this for puppy Golden Retrievers or Golden Retrievers with diet-associated DCM concerns ? 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.
- FDA, 2022epidemiology · breed predisposition· cited in 4 claims
- FDA, 2019diet composition· cited in 2 claims
Every claim on Sniff traces to a source. If you find a citation that's wrong, outdated, or misapplied, tell us.
At 81/100, this formula sits near the top of our catalog. The lift comes from protein quality, worth 21.5 points to the final number: Strong protein profile with lamb as the primary ingredient, delivering high biological value. Secondary contribution comes from carbohydrate quality (+16 points). Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Strong protein profile with lamb as the primary ingredient, delivering high biological value.
Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Quality fat sources: named fat with marine oil (EPA and DHA source).
No negative drivers crossed our reporting threshold.
- Top 2% for overall Sniff Score in Farmina's lineup (81/100)
- Bottom 1% for crude fiber in grain-inclusive dry kibbles (2.7% DMB)
- Top 10% for protein quality in Farmina's lineup (21.6/27)
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.
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 animallamb
Real meat. Often used for dogs with chicken or beef sensitivities. Slightly higher fat content than chicken.
Position 1: primary protein source. After cooking removes water, this may drop in proportional weight, but it anchors the recipe.
- 2dehydrated lamb
Real meat. Often used for dogs with chicken or beef sensitivities. Slightly higher fat content than chicken.
Position 2: co-primary protein. Two named animal proteins in the top 2 is a strong protein build.
- 3spelt
Position 3: major carbohydrate source.
- 4grainoats
Whole grain. Steady energy, soluble fiber, and well-tolerated by most dogs.
Position 4: supporting grain. Smaller contribution to the carb deck.
- 5fatchicken fat
Despite the name, a high-quality energy source. Concentrated calories plus essential fatty acids like linoleic acid. See why →
Position 5: secondary fat. Often where marine oils sit when present alongside a primary land-animal fat.
- 6herring
Whole fish, naturally high in omega-3s and very digestible protein. Common in premium formulas.
Position 6: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 7dehydrated herring
Whole fish, naturally high in omega-3s and very digestible protein. Common in premium formulas.
Position 7: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 8dried whole eggs
Position 8: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 9dehydrated chicken
Real meat. Primary protein source, with the amino acid profile dogs actually evolved to eat.
Position 9: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 10pork fat
Real animal fat from a named species. Clean energy source.
Position 10: supporting protein. Modest contribution to total protein weight.
- 11dehydrated pork
Real meat. Dense protein and fat, though less common in dog food than chicken or beef.
Position 11: trace protein. Likely there for amino-acid diversity or label appeal more than nutritional weight.
- 12hydrolyzed fish
- 13grainrice
Generic rice. Could be white or brown, the label doesn't say. Brown rice would be specified if it were.
Position 13: minor grain inclusion.
- 14fiberdried beet 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 14: trace fiber inclusion.
- 15othernatural flavors
Same as natural flavor. Usually hydrolyzed liver or broth, adds palatability.
- 16herring oil
Concentrated omega-3 from herring. Same role as salmon oil, skin and coat support.
- 17dried carrot
Real vegetable. Fiber, beta-carotene, antioxidants. Same as carrots, sometimes singular on labels.
- 18suncured alfalfa meal
Sun-dried alfalfa, preserving more of the natural vitamins than heat-dried versions.
- 19fiberpea fiber
Insoluble fiber from peas. Doesn't carry the protein-inflation concern of pea protein. Mostly there for stool quality.
- 20mineralpotassium chloride
Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.
- 21mineralcalcium carbonate
Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.
- 22fiberpowdered cellulose
Plant fiber, often from wood pulp. Cheap bulk filler. Not harmful, but a tell that the recipe is reaching for inexpensive bulk.
- 23fiberinulin
Prebiotic fiber that feeds beneficial gut bacteria. Same compound found in chicory root.
- 24fructooligosaccharide
Prebiotic fiber, often abbreviated FOS. Feeds beneficial gut bacteria.
- 25dried blueberry
Showing first 25 of 59. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.
21 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.