Chicken & Turkey Recipe Freeze-Dried Dog Food, 6-lb box
Graded by The Sniff System
Simple Food Project Chicken & Turkey Recipe Freeze-Dried Dog Food is a freeze-dried food for growth, featuring chicken and turkey as its main proteins.
This recipe offers good protein quality, with chicken providing solid amino acid coverage. It also includes quality carbohydrate sources that provide fermentable fiber. The formula benefits from diverse, highly bioavailable protein sources like organ meats and ground krill.
Nothing concerning in the deck.
Good fit for puppies and growing dogs. Nothing serious working against it.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Strong fit for puppy Golden Retrievers navigating diet-associated DCM concerns. Working in its favor: AAFCO growth profile (suitable for puppies). Chicken anchors position 1, with zero pulses in the top 15, plus chicken liver at position 6 (a natural taurine precursor). 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.
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 If you find a citation that's wrong, outdated, or misapplied, tell us.
Solid grade. 68/100 (B) reflects the structural fit of this formula against The Sniff System's eight scoring components. Protein quality did the heavy lifting (+19 points): Reasonable protein quality. chicken delivers solid amino acid coverage. The supporting beat: carbohydrate quality (+15 points). Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber. What's keeping it out of A-tier: fat-quality declaration (6 of 16 possible). Full fat-quality declaration requires a named-species animal fat (e.g., chicken fat, salmon oil) plus a marine oil with declared EPA/DHA milligram content.
Reasonable protein quality. chicken delivers solid amino acid coverage.
Quality carbohydrate sources with fermentable fiber.
Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.
No negative drivers crossed our reporting threshold.
- Top 10% for carb quality in grain-free freeze-dried foods (15/16)
- Bottom quartile for fat quality in grain-free freeze-dried foods (6/16)
- Top quartile for crude fiber in grain-free freeze-dried foods (6.5% DMB)
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.
Merrick Backcountry Raw Infused Grain-Free Puppy Recipe Freeze-Dried Dog Food, 20-lb bag
Scores 4 points higher with a similar formulation profile.
Nature's Diet Fresh Turkey Simply Raw Freeze-Dried Dog Food, 3-lb bag
$11.66/lb vs your seed's $18.75/lb (38% less) at a comparable score.
Smallbatch Pets Turkey Freeze-Dried Raw Sliders Grain-Free Dry Dog Food, 25-oz bag
Turkey instead of chicken, 13 points lower, different brand.
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
Real meat. Primary protein source, with the amino acid profile dogs actually evolved to eat.
Position 1: primary protein source. After cooking removes water, this may drop in proportional weight, but it anchors the recipe.
- 2protein animalturkey
Real meat. Lean protein, good amino acid profile, often well-tolerated by dogs sensitive to chicken.
Position 2: co-primary protein. Two named animal proteins in the top 2 is a strong protein build.
- 3chicken hearts
Position 3. Named organ meat this high is a strong build choice. Concentrated source of taurine, glutamine, and B-vitamins.
- 4fatflaxseed
Plant source of omega-3. Helpful for skin and coat, though dogs absorb omega-3 from fish more efficiently.
Position 4: secondary fat. Often where marine oils sit when present alongside a primary land-animal fat.
- 5vegetablesweet potato
Complex carb with fiber and beta-carotene. Gentle on the stomach.
Position 5: meaningful whole-food inclusion. Source of vitamins, antioxidants, or natural fiber.
- 6protein animalchicken liver
Organ meat. Dense in protein, iron, vitamin A, and the B vitamins. Among the most nutrient-rich ingredients a dog can eat.
Position 6. Functional organ inclusion. Adds amino acids and micronutrients even at smaller weight.
- 7vegetablecarrots
Real vegetable. Fiber, beta-carotene, and a small amount of antioxidant value.
Position 7: meaningful whole-food inclusion. Source of vitamins, antioxidants, or natural fiber.
- 8ground krill
- 9ground pumpkin seeds
- 10fruitblueberries
Antioxidants, real. But the amount in any kibble is too small to do much. Mostly marketing.
Position 10: garnish-level inclusion. Marketing-prominent but minimal nutritional impact at this position.
- 11vegetablespinach
Leafy green. Some iron, vitamin K, and fiber. The dose in kibble is small but it's real food.
Position 11: garnish-level inclusion. Marketing-prominent but minimal nutritional impact at this position.
- 12cinnamon
- 13mineralsea salt
Same as salt. Required at small doses for normal physiology.
- 14supplementdried kelp
Natural source of iodine and trace minerals. A common premium-brand inclusion.
- 15dried yeast
Natural source of B vitamins and trace minerals. Adds a savory flavor that dogs respond well to.
- 16preservative naturalmixed tocopherols
Natural vitamin E used to keep fats from going rancid. The good kind of preservative. See why →
12 of 16 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.
The Simple Food Project Chicken & Turkey Recipe is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for adult maintenance. To meet AAFCO's Growth & Reproduction requirements for a Complete & Balanced puppy diet, add the Simple Food Project's Puppy Balancer with a concentrated blend of vitamins & minerals from whole foods.