Nutradog 360

The protein base is Arctic LT71, a whole fish meal made from wild caught fish in cold deep Arctic water. Never farmed. Up to seven species go into a batch depending on the catch. Whole fish means the whole fish: protein and minerals included, not the trimmings and offcuts left behind after human food processing.

It is dried at low temperature, which is what the LT stands for. High heat damages protein and the oils that come with it. Low temperature drying is slower and it costs more, and it is why the fish protein is over 94% digestible. Almost none of it goes to waste.

Across the finished food that works out at 78% fresh fish equivalent.

The fats
Omega 3 sits at 3.6% and omega 6 at 2.0%, a ratio of 1.8 to 1 in favour of omega 3. That is the opposite of what you usually see in dry food built on poultry fat, where omega 6 arrives free with the fat and omega 3 has to be put in on purpose. Ours comes from the oily fish itself plus 8% salmon oil.

The two pull in different directions. Omega 6 drives the inflammatory response, omega 3 moderates it, so the balance matters as much as the individual numbers. Fish oil also delivers omega 3 as EPA and DHA, the forms a dog can use directly, and it is associated with skin and coat condition and joint comfort in older dogs.

Both figures are printed on the bag, which is not standard practice.

The carbohydrates
Sorghum, an ancient grain, leads the carbohydrates. It is naturally free of gluten, releases its energy slowly rather than in a spike, and brings minerals and natural antioxidants with it. It is also rarely implicated in dietary sensitivities, in part because it is rarely used.


The functional extras
Milk thistle and oregano go in as extracts rather than dried herbs, because the extract carries the active compounds at a far higher concentration. Psyllium husk is a soluble fibre that supports digestion and stool consistency. White poppy is there for digestive comfort, which is particularly useful when a dog is changing foods. Tocopherol rich extracts are natural vitamin E from plants, and they double as the preservative that protects the oils in the food.

What is not in it
No peas or lentils. Peas do two jobs in a lot of foods: they bulk out the carbohydrate cheaply, and pea protein lifts the protein figure on the label without contributing much a dog can use. We left them out on both counts.

No artificial preservatives, at any point, including in the fishmeal before it reaches the plant. No fillers. Nothing added to pad the bag out.

Where it is made
Formulated and produced in Germany. Our team makes food for several other brands, to their spec and their budget. We believed we could do better at a fairer price, so we made our own, where our focus and the science go first. That food is Nutramare.

Dehydrated Whole Arctic LT71 fish (33% of the dry formula, equivalent to 78% whole fresh fish before moisture removal), sorghum seeds, sorghum meal, salmon oil (8%), buckwheat (6.5%), sunflower seeds, flaxseeds (1.5%), minerals, carrots, psyllium husks, milk thistle extract, white poppy, oregano extract.

Crude protein: 28.5%
Crude fat: 13.9%
Crude fiber: 1.89%
Ash: 7.43%
Omega 3 fatty acids 3.6%
Omega 6 fattya cids 2.0%
Calcium: 1.53%
Phosphorus: 1.16%
Sodium: 0.34%
Moisture 6-7%

Vitamin A (as retinyl acetate) 15,000 IU
Vitamin D₃ (as cholecalciferol) 2,000 IU
Vitamin E (as all-rac-α-tocopheryl acetate) 160 mg
Zinc (as zinc oxide and zinc amino acid chelate, hydrate) 120 mg
Iron (as iron(II) sulfate, monohydrate) 100 mg
Manganese (as manganese(II) oxide and manganese amino acid chelate, hydrate) 15 mg
Copper (as copper(II) sulfate, pentahydrate and copper amino acid chelate, hydrate) 15 mg
Iodine (as calcium iodate, anhydrous) 2.0 mg
Selenium (as sodium selenite) 0.30 mg

5,000 mg bentonite-montmorillonite (1g557)
1,000 mg tocopherol-rich extracts (1b306i)