Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Dog Food Review (Wet)

Natural Balance Limited Ingredient canned dog food product range is made up of ten recipes with ratings varying from 2 to 3.5 stars. The average rating of the whole range is 3 stars.

The table below shows each recipe in this range including our rating and the AAFCO nutrient profile: Growth (puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.

Recipe and Label Analysis

Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Chicken and Sweet Potato Grain Free was selected to represent the other products in the line for detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.

Ingredients Analysis

The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”.¹

Chicken is naturally rich in the 10 essential amino acids required by a dog to sustain life.

The second ingredient is chicken broth. Broths are of only modest nutritional value. Yet because they add both flavor and moisture to a dog food, they are a common component in many canned products.

The third ingredient is potato. Potatoes can be considered a gluten-free source of digestible carbohydrates. Yet with the exception of perhaps their caloric content, potatoes are of only modest nutritional value to a dog.

The next ingredient includes sweet potato. Sweet potatoes are a gluten-free source of complex carbohydrates in dog food. They are naturally rich in dietary fiber and beta carotene.

The fifth ingredient is chicken liver. This is an organ meat sourced from a named animal and thus considered a beneficial component.

The sixth ingredient is chicken heart. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, heart tissue is pure muscle – all meat. It’s naturally rich in quality protein, minerals and complex B vitamins, too.

The seventh ingredient is potato protein, the dry residue remaining after removing the starchy part of a potato.

Even though it contains over 80% protein, this ingredient would be expected to have a lower biological value than meat.

And less costly plant-based products like this can notably boost the total protein reported on the label – a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.

The eighth ingredient is ground flaxseed, one of the best plant sources of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Provided they’ve first been ground into a meal, flax seeds are also rich in soluble fiber.

However, flaxseed contains about 19% protein, a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.

From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.

But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this Natural Balance product.

With four notable exceptions…

First, this food contains chelated minerals, minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.

Next, taurine an essential amino acid for dogs associated with the healthy function of heart muscle and eye sight, and is crucial for maintaining good health in dogs.

We view the presence of taurine in this recipe as a positive addition.

We also find in this recipe, canola oil. Unfortunately, canola can be a controversial item. That’s because it can sometimes (but not always) be derived from genetically modified rapeseed.

Yet others cite the fact that canola oil can be a significant source of omega-3 fatty acids.

In any case, plant-based oils like canola are less biologically available to a dog than fish oil as a source of quality omega-3 fats.

And lastly, this recipe contains sodium selenite, a controversial form of the mineral selenium. Sodium selenite appears to be nutritionally inferior to the more natural source of selenium found in selenium yeast.

Nutrient Analysis

Based on its ingredients alone, Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Chicken and Sweet Potato Grain Free canned dog food looks like an above-average wet product.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 25%, a fat level of 16% and estimated carbohydrates of about 51%.

As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 29% and a mean fat level of 22%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 42% for the overall product line.

And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 74%.

Which means this Natural Balance product line contains…

Below-average protein. Near-average fat. And above-average carbs when compared to a typical canned dog food.

Excluding the Vegetarian recipe, when you consider the protein-boosting effect of potato protein contained in some recipes, this looks like the profile of a wet product containing just a moderate amount of meat.

Natural Balance Dog Food Recall History

The following automated list (if present) includes all dog food recalls related to Natural Balance through December 2024.

You can view a complete list of all dog food recalls since 2009 here.

Our Rating of Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Dog Food

Natural Balance Limited Ingredient lists both grain-inclusive and grain-free wet dog foods using a moderate amount of named meats as its dominant source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 3.5 stars.

However, due to their higher fat-to-protein ratios, some recipes may not be suitable for every animal.

Recommended with Reservations

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