Rating: 
Evolve Dry Dog Food receives the Advisor’s second-highest rating of four stars.
Currently, the Evolve product line includes four kibbles… three designed to meet AAFCO nutrient profiles for adult maintenance and one for growth (Puppy Formula).
- Evolve Puppy Formula
- Evolve Senior Lite Formula (3 stars)
- Evolve Maintenance Formula with Lamb
- Evolve Maintenance Formula with Chicken
Evolve Maintenance Formula with Chicken Dog Food was selected to represent the others in the line for this review.
Evolve Maintance Formula with Chicken
Dry Dog Food
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Ingredients: Chicken, chicken meal, ground brown rice, rice flour, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), dried beet pulp, rice bran, oatmeal, natural flavors, flaxseed, dried egg product, fish meal, brewers dried yeast, salt, canola oil, potassium chloride, dried cheese product, dried skim milk, garlic powder, yucca schidigera, dried kelp, peas, carrots, celery, beets, parsley, lettuce, spinach, Lactobaccillus casei, Bifidobacterium thermophilum, Enterococcusfaecium, vitamins: choline chloride, vitamin E supplement, vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, niacin, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate (source of vitamin B1), pyridoxine hydrochloride (source of vitamin B6), riboflavin supplement, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement, minerals: zinc polysaccharide complex, iron polysaccharide complex, manganese polysaccharide complex, copper polysaccharide complex, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate, calcium iodate, cobalt carbonate, sodium selenite
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 4.5%
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 meal… the second and (more likely) the dominant meat ingredient in this dog food.
Chicken meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh chicken.
The third item is brown rice. Brown rice is a quality ingredient… a complex carbohydrate that (once cooked) is fairly easy to digest.
The fourth item is rice flour. Rice flour is made from milling broken rice kernels… a lower grade of rice more commonly known as brewers rice. Not a top quality grain.
The fifth 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.
The sixth item lists 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 seventh ingredient is rice bran… a by-product of rice milling. Though not as nutritionally complete as whole grain rice, brans are still unusually rich in fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals.
The eighth ingredient lists oatmeal… a whole-grain product made from coarsely ground oats. Oatmeal is rich in fiber, B-vitamins and is (unlike many other grains) mostly gluten-free.
After the natural flavor, we find flaxseed… one of the best plant sources of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Flax seeds are rich in soluble fiber.
However, we find it unusual to see flaxseed here in its whole seed form. Whole flax seeds are almost impossible to digest (at least for us humans) unless they are first ground to a usable powder before they are consumed.
The eleventh ingredient is dried egg product… a dehydrated form of shell-free eggs. Quality can vary significantly. 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 protein-rich 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 only 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.
Garlic is a controversial item. In rare cases, garlic has been linked to Heinz body anemia in dogs.1
Most of the professional literature we surveyed did not provide any conclusive warnings regarding the use of garlic… especially in small amounts (as it is here).
Although we see no reason to be overly concerned, we do feel it is a mistake to include such controversial ingredients in any dog food product.
The manufacturer appears to have added back some of the “good” bacteria lost during the cooking process. These special probiotics are used to enhance a dog’s digestive and immune functions.
This dog food also contains chelated minerals… minerals that have been chemically attached to amino acids (or as they are here, linked to carbohydrates). This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are generally found in better dog foods.
Evolve Dog Food… the Bottom Line
Based upon ingredient quality alone, Evolve Dog Food looks like a winning kibble.
But ingredient quality alone does not tell the whole story. We also prefer to estimate meat content before determining a final rating.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 28%, a fat level of 17% and an estimated carbohydrate content of 47%.
When you eliminate the lower-rated Senior Lite formula from the group, the Evolve product line presents an average protein content of 29%.
Fat averaged about 17%… which suggests an overall carbohydrate content of 46% for the full product line.
Average protein. Near average fat. And slightly below-average carbs 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.
What’s more, it’s also important to note the absence of any critical Red Flag items.
Bottom line?
Evolve Dog Food primarily a grain-based kibble using a moderate amount of chicken meal as its main source of animal protein… thus earning the brand four stars.
Highly recommended.
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.
- Yamato et al, Heinz Body hemolytic anemia with eccentrocytosis from ingestion of Chinese chive (Allium tuberosum) and garlic (Allium sativum) in a dog, Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association 41:68-73 (2005) ↩
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Why on earth would you give this food 4 stars when it’s grain splitting ( Brown rice, rice flour, rice bran ) and there is oatmeal to boot ?? Even according to your own article those four ingredients could far outweigh the amount of meat because we have no idea of the quantity of each ingredient. It has GMO canola oil and beets. Protein content is kinda low as well.
Hi Susan… Ingredient splitting as well as the 47% estimated carbohydrate content only confirm what we already know. This dog food is a grain-based kibble. Though not without its shortcomings, Evolve contains mostly average to above-average ingredients and a moderate amount of meat. But when you consider the inclusion of probiotics and chelated minerals, we still consider Evolve a 4-star dog food.