Frozen Raw Patties Grain-Free Duck Entree Dog Food, 9.4-lb bundle
Graded by The Sniff System
Vital Essentials Frozen Raw Patties Grain-Free Duck Entree Dog Food is a wet, frozen raw food featuring duck and duck liver.
This formula offers good protein quality, with duck providing solid amino acid coverage. It also includes quality fat sources like herring oil, which is a good source of EPA and DHA. Organ meats like duck liver add diverse, high-bioavailability protein.
The main thing to note is the absence of an AAFCO statement, which means the nutritional completeness of this food is unverified. This lack of verification capped its overall score.
Good fit for dogs whose owners want a duck-based, frozen raw diet. Less ideal if AAFCO verification is a must-have for you.
Summary written by The Sniff System from the data above. Same rubric, same drivers, expressed in English.
Good fit for adult Golden Retrievers navigating diet-associated DCM concerns. Duck anchors position 1, with zero pulses in the top 15, plus duck gizzard at position 2 (a natural taurine precursor) and herring oil at position 4. In its 2022 update on diet-associated DCM, the FDA identified Golden Retrievers as the most reported breed, with 121 cases out of 1,382 total canine reports (8.8%) received between January 1, 2014, and November 1, 2022 (FDA, 2022) .
Looking at this for adult 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 3 cited studies relevant to its profile. Each link opens the original source.
- FDA, 2022cardiac · epidemiology · breed predisposition· cited in 5 claims
- FDA, 2019diet composition· cited in 2 claims
- NRC, 2006nutrient bioavailability
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 If you find a citation that's wrong, outdated, or misapplied, tell us.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 59/100, landing in C-tier (acceptable-with-notes). The biggest contributor was protein quality (+15.5 points): Reasonable protein quality. duck delivers solid amino acid coverage. A hard cap of 59 also applied because the AAFCO nutritional adequacy statement isn't disclosed on the retailer page (so our methodology can't verify the formula meets adult, growth, or all-life-stages standards). If the brand publishing the AAFCO statement were on the label, the cap would lift and this formula could clear the B-band threshold (60).
Reasonable protein quality. duck delivers solid amino acid coverage.
Quality fat sources: named fat with marine oil (EPA and DHA source).
Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.
No AAFCO statement. Nutritional completeness unverified.
- Top 4% for DMB fat in wet foods (37.0%)
- Bottom 10% for crude fiber in grain-free wet foods (3.7% DMB)
- Top quartile for DMB protein in grain-free wet foods (48.1%)
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.
Freshpet Vital Beef & Lamb Grain-Free Fresh Dog Food, 5.5-lb bag
Scores 5 points higher with a similar formulation profile.
ACANA Premium Pate Duck in Bone Broth Grain-Free Wet Dog Food, 12.8-oz, case of 12
$6.36/lb vs your seed's $12.06/lb (47% less) at a comparable score.
Stella & Chewy's Duck Duck Goose Patties Frozen Raw Dog Food, 12-lb bag
Turkey instead of duck, 3 points higher, different brand.
Surfaced from a vector similarity search across 3,491 scored dog foods. How this works.
Wet and fresh foods contain more water than kibble (typically 65-78%). On a dry-matter basis, this food's protein content is roughly 48%, comparable to premium kibble (typically 30-45% DMB protein).
Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.
- 1protein animalduck
Real meat. Often used as a novel protein for dogs with sensitivities to chicken or beef.
Position 1: primary protein source. After cooking removes water, this may drop in proportional weight, but it anchors the recipe.
- 2duck gizzard
Position 2: co-primary protein. Two named animal proteins in the top 2 is a strong protein build.
- 3protein animalduck liver
Position 3. Named organ meat this high is a strong build choice. Concentrated source of taurine, glutamine, and B-vitamins.
- 4herring oil
Concentrated omega-3 from herring. Same role as salmon oil, skin and coat support.
Position 4: significant protein contributor. Adds amino-acid diversity to the top of the deck.
- 5vitaminvitamin e supplement
Required nutrient and a natural antioxidant. Often pulls double duty as a preservative.
- 6mineralzinc amino acid complex
Zinc bound to amino acids for better absorption. Same idea as zinc proteinate, the premium form of the mineral.
- 7mineraliron amino acid complex
Iron bound to amino acids for better absorption. Premium form versus inorganic iron sulfate.
- 8mineralcopper amino acid complex
Copper bound to amino acids for better absorption. Premium form versus copper sulfate.
- 9mineralmanganese amino acid complex
Manganese bound to amino acids for better absorption. The chelated form most premium brands use.
7 of 9 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.