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Dog Food Insiders Rating
5 PAWS
You can find detailed information about Natura Pet, manufacturer of EVO dog food, in our main review of EVO Dog Food. There you will also find information about how the food is made, recalls, and their quality control procedures. Evo dog food is considered to be a “top tier” dog food with higher quality ingredients and has gained quite a bit of popularity among dog nutritionists.
Evo claims their dog food products more closely mimic an “ancient” or “natural” diet than most other dog food brands provide. That means their products are normally much higher in meat based proteins and lack most of the “filler ingredients” used by other dog food brands. Let’s take a closer look at this food by analyzing the specific ingredients used. In addition to looking at the top 5 ingredients, we will also look deeper into the ingredients list to see if there are any ingredients of concern. Finally, we will take a close look at the Guaranteed Analysis.
Ingredients in Evo Turkey & Chicken Formula Canned Dog Foodv
Turkey, Chicken, Turkey Broth, Chicken Broth, Chicken Meal, Herring, Carrots, Whole Egg, Salmon Meal, Natural Flavor, Carrageenan, Tomato Flakes, Cottage Cheese, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Apples, Guar Gum, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Niacin Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin), Minerals (Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Cobalt Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Selenium Yeast, Potassium Iodide), Inulin, Herring Oil, Choline Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Sunflower Oil, Taurine, Sodium Phosphate, Beta Carotene.
As a canned food it’s important to look at the dry matter basis percentages for the food, especially when comparing it to kibble. This food contains 78 percent moisture, which is the maximum percentage moisture content for canned foods (unless they are “in stew” or gravy products). You have to do a little math to remove the moisture and come up with the dry matter in the food. In this case if you removed the moisture from the food then about 54 percent of the food would be protein; 36 percent fat; and a mere 8 percent would be carbohydrates. These figures allow you to make comparisons to kibble. Kibble usually contains about 10 percent moisture so you can do the calculations to figure its dry matter basis, too. Most people accept the figures given on the label for kibble because the 10 percent moisture doesn’t make a lot of difference to the dry matter figures.
First 5 Ingredients Breakdown
In this food the first two ingredients are turkey andchicken which are both good sources of protein. Turkey is a good source of Riboflavin and Phosphorus, as well as Selenium. Chicken is a good source of Vitamin B6 and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Niacin and Selenium. It’s also a good source of omega-6 fatty acid.
The next two ingredients areturkey broth and chicken broth. These broths don’t provide a lot of nutrients but they are better than plain water added to the food and canned foods do require liquids. The fifth ingredient is chicken meal, another excellent source of poultry protein. Unlike the chicken that appears earlier, chicken meal has had most of the moisture removed so it’s concentrated and has several times as much protein as whole chicken.
The next ingredient is herring. Herring? Yes, herring. So, why is there fish in your dog’s turkey and chicken dog food? Well it’s a good source of Vitamin D and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Protein, Vitamin B12 and Selenium. It’s also an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acid. In a food that’s 54 percent protein, it could be added to increase the protein percentage. The same is true of the whole eggs and salmon meal in the food. Both of these ingredients are excellent sources of protein. Salmon meal is a concentrated form of protein so it has several times as much protein as whole salmon. Natura, the maker of EVO, says that they do not use ethoxyquin in any of their fish meals.
Additional Ingredients of Interest
The food also contains cottage cheese. While we think of cottage cheese as a dairy product it is also made up of about 73 percent protein so it can be added to foods to boost the protein percentage. The same is true of other dairy products like skim milks which are used by other dog food companies.
Down among the minerals you will see an ingredient calledSelenium yeast. Selenium-enriched yeast (Se-yeast) is a common form of Selenium used to supplement the dietary intake of this important trace mineral. However, its use in the European Union is currently being questioned because of concerns expressed by the European Community (EC) Scientific Committee on Food that Se-yeast supplements are poorly characterized and could potentially cause the build up of Selenium in tissues to toxic levels. Research suggests that Selenium yeast used by quality manufacturers should not pose any kind of risk (read more here).
The food also contains inulin, a prebiotic derived from chicory. It’s a soluble dietary fiber that acts as a prebiotic to make your dog’s gastrointestinal system a friendly place for good bacteria to grow and to aid digestion.
The food also contains herring oil and sunflower oil. These oils could have various purposes. For instance, herring oil is extremely high in beneficial omega-3 fatty acid; and sunflower oil is an excellent source of vitamin E and omega-6 fatty acid. But they may be added here, too, partly for their fat content.
Ingredients Of Concern
The food does have a couple of ingredients that raise concerns. “Natural flavor” can be something as basic as a meat or organ broth but it can also include flavor made from anything that the FDA considers “natural” – and that’s a lot of things that you and I probably wouldn’t think of as natural. The real problem here is that “natural flavor” is a vague term and it’s always best to know exactly what your dog is eating.
The food also contains carrageenan. Carrageenan is a seaweed extract that has been used to help foods gel or thicken for hundreds or thousands of years. It is particularly used in food processing in the meat and dairy industries. However, concerns have been raised about the use of carrageenan in recent years because of research that suggests it can cause gastrointestinal problems. The food also contains guar gum which is used for essentially the same purpose. Guar gum has eight times the water-thickening capacity as cornstarch.
Guaranteed Analysis
- Crude Protein (Min) 12.0%
- Crude Fat (Min) 8.0%
- Crude Fiber (Max) 0.5%
- Moisture (Max) 78.0%
- Ash (Max) 3.0%
- Vitamin E (Min) 100.0 IU/kg
From the Nutrient Analysis:
- Carbohydrates (NFE) 1.81%
- Calcium 0.53%
- Phosphorous 0.38%
- Dry matter = Calcium 2.4 : Phosphorous 1.7
Figuring dry matter basis, there is approximately 54.5 percent protein in this food – that’s a LOT! There is 36.5 percent fat – also a lot. The fiber content is 2.3 percent. And there is an estimated 8.2 percent carbohydrates – extremely low.
Calorie Content
1283.2 kcal/kg; 292 calories per 8 ounce cup
Nutritional Statement
EVO Turkey & Chicken Formula Canned Dog Food is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) dog food nutrient profiles for all life stages.
Despite this nutritional statement for all life stages, per information from the company, EVO adult formulas should not be fed to large breed puppies because they encourage rapid growth. Do NOT feed this food to large breed puppies.
Summary
Evo Turkey & Chicken Formula Canned Dog Food looks like a very good canned food if you are looking for a high protein, high fat, low carb food for your adult dog. Do NOT feed it to large breed puppies. Otherwise, it looks like dogs should do well eating this food.
Evo Turkey & Chicken Formula Canned Dog Food has received our 5 paw rating.
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