Rating: 
Eukanuba Dry Dog Food earns the Advisor’s second-lowest rating of two stars.
Currently, the Eukanuba product line includes fourteen kibbles… each designed to match an animal’s physical size or life stage.
We found no AAFCO nutritional adequacy recommendations for these dog foods on the Eukanuba website.
- Eukanuba Puppy Growth
- Eukanuba Puppy Weaning
- Eukanuba Small Breed Puppy
- Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy
- Eukanuba Small Breed Adult
- Eukanuba Large Breed Adult
- Eukanuba Large Breed Senior
- Eukanuba Small Breed Senior
- Eukanuba Adult Maintenance
- Eukanuba Senior Maintenance
- Eukanuba Small Breed Weight Control
- Eukanuba Large Breed Weight Control
- Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Small Bite
- Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Weight Control
Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Dog Food was selected to represent the others in the line for this review.
Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Formula
Dry Dog Food
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Ingredients: chicken, chicken by-product meal, corn meal, ground whole grain sorghum, ground whole grain barley, brewers rice, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols, a source of vitamin E), chicken flavor, dried beet pulp, dried egg product, fish meal, potassium chloride, brewers dried yeast, salt, fish oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols, a source of vitamin E), flax meal, sodium hexametaphosphate, choline chloride, fructooligosaccharides, minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, manganese sulfate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, potassium iodide, cobalt carbonate), vitamins (ascorbic acid, vitamin a acetate, calcium pantothenate, biotin, thiamine mononitrate (source of vitamin B1), vitamin B12 supplement, niacin, riboflavin supplement (source of vitamin B2), inositol, pyridoxine hydrochloride (source of vitamin B6), vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid), calcium carbonate, dl-methionine, vitamin E supplement, beta-carotene, rosemary extract.
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 5.6%
Red items when present indicate controversial ingredients
The first ingredient in this dog food lists chicken. Although it is a quality item, raw chicken contains about 80% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost… reducing the meat content to just 20% of its original weight.
To reflect its lighter mass, this item should more accurately occupy a lower position on the list.
Which brings us to chicken by-product meal… the second and (more likely) the dominant meat ingredient in this dog food.
Chicken by-product meal is a dry rendered (dehydrated) product of slaughterhouse waste. It’s made from what’s left of a slaughtered chicken after all the prime cuts have been removed.
In a nutshell, chicken by-products are the unsavory and inedible leftovers deemed “unfit for human consumption”.
This stuff can contain almost anything… feet, beaks, undeveloped eggs… you name it.
On the brighter side, by-product meals are meat concentrates and contain nearly 300% more protein than fresh chicken.
The third ingredient is corn meal… a coarsely ground flour made from dried corn. Now, contrary to what you may have heard, corn isn’t necessarily a bad ingredient.
On the other hand, although there’s no way to know for sure here, the corn used in making many pet foods can be similar to the kind used to make feed for livestock.
And that can sometimes be problematic.
What’s more, corn is commonly linked to canine food allergies1.
For these reasons, we rarely consider corn a preferred component in any dog food.
The fourth ingredient lists sorghum. Sorghum is a starchy cereal grain with a nutrient profile similar to corn.
Since it is gluten-free and boasts a smoother blood sugar behavior than other grains, sorghum may be considered a decent non-meat ingredient.
The fifth ingredient lists barley. Barley is a starchy carbohydrate supplying fiber and other healthy nutrients. Unlike grains with a higher glycemic index (like rice), barley can help support stable blood sugar levels in dogs.
The sixth ingredient is brewers rice. Brewers rice represents the small grain fragments left over after milling whole rice.
This is a cheap cereal grain by-product and not a quality ingredient.
The seventh ingredient is chicken fat. Chicken fat is obtained from rendering chicken… a process similar to making soup in which the fat itself is skimmed from the surface of the liquid.
Chicken fat is high in linoleic acid… an omega-6 fatty acid essential for life. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, chicken fat is actually a quality ingredient.
After the chicken flavor, we find dried beet pulp. Beet pulp is a controversial ingredient… a high fiber by-product of sugar beet processing.
Some denounce beet pulp as an inexpensive filler while others cite its outstanding intestinal health and blood sugar benefits.
We only call your attention here to the controversy and believe the inclusion of beet pulp in reasonable amounts in most dog foods is entirely acceptable.
The tenth ingredient is dried egg product… a dehydrated form of shell-free eggs. Quality can vary greatly. Lower grade egg product can even come from commercial hatcheries… from eggs that have failed to hatch.
In any case, eggs are easy to digest and have an exceptionally high biological value.
Fish meal is another high protein meat concentrate.
Unfortunately, this particular item is anonymous. The term “fish” does little to properly describe this ingredient. What species? What parts?
Fish meal is commonly made from the by-products of commercial fish operations.
What’s more, the controversial chemical ethoxyquin is frequently used as a preservative in fish meals.
But because it’s usually added to the raw fish before processing, the chemical does not have to be reported to consumers.
We find no public assurances from the company this product is ethoxyquin-free.
Without knowing more, and based upon this fish meal’s location on the list of ingredients, we would expect to find at least a trace of ethoxyquin in this product.
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 have much of an effect on the overall quality of this product.
Also, the minerals listed here do not appear to be chelated. And that can make them more difficult to absorb. Non-chelated minerals are usually associated with lower quality dog foods.
We find no evidence of probiotics… friendly bacteria added back to the mix after processing.
Eukanuba Dry Dog Food… the Bottom Line
Judging by the quality of its ingredients alone, Eukanuba Dry Dog Food looks like a less-than-ideal kibble.
But ingredient quality alone does not tell the whole story. It’s still important to estimate the food’s meat content before determining a final rating.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 28%, a fat level of 18% and an estimated carbohydrate content of 46%.
Featuring a brand average of 29%, protein numbers range from a low of 21% for the Adult Maintenance Weight Control formula to a high of 36% for the Small Breed Puppy and Puppy Weaning recipes.
Fat averaged about 17% for the group. These figures suggest an overall carbohydrate content of 46% for the full product line.
Average protein. Average fat. And average carbohydrates… when compared to a typical dry dog food.
With no sign of any plant-based protein concentrates, this is the profile of a kibble containing a moderate amount of meat.
Although the amount of meat is respectable indeed (especially for the puppy recipes), we are disappointed with Eukanuba’s inclusion of both chicken and rice by-products in its recipes.
Bottom line?
Eukanuba Dry Dog Food is primarily a grain-based kibble using a respectable amount of chicken by-product meals as its main source of animal protein… thus earning the brand two stars.
Not recommended.
Those looking for a better kibble from the same company may want to check out our review of Eukanuba Natural Dog Food.
A Final Word
Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt consult a veterinarian for help.
Have an opinion about this dog food brand… or maybe the review itself? Please know… we welcome your comments.
- White, S., Update on food allergy in the dog and cat, World Small Animal Veterinary Association, Vancouver, 2001 ↩
