Pureluxe Grain Free Dog Food Review (Dry)
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Pureluxe Grain Free Dog Food receives the Advisor’s second-highest tier rating of 4 stars.
The Pureluxe product line includes the 6 dry dog foods listed below.
Each recipe includes its related AAFCO nutrient profile when available on the product’s official webpage: Growth, Maintenance, All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
- Pureluxe Small Breed [A]
- Pureluxe Healthy Weight [A]
- Pureluxe Healthy Activity [A]
- Pureluxe Adult with Turkey [A]
- Pureluxe Adult with Salmon and Split Peas [A]
- Pureluxe Adult with Lamb and Chickpeas [A]
Pureluxe Small Breed was selected to represent the other products in the line for this review.
Pureluxe Elite Nutrition Small Breed
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Protein
Fat
CarbsCarbohydrates
Deboned turkey, turkey meal, dried peas, dried lentils, dried chickpeas, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), flaxseed, natural flavor, salmon meal, tomato pomace, coconut oil, dried kelp, salt, dried chicory root, dicalcium phosphate, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, niacin supplement, D-calcium pantothenate, vitamin A acetate, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement, folic acid), dried apples, dried carrots, pumpkin seeds, Yucca schidigera extract, dried cranberry, choline chloride, potassium chloride, minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, calcium carbonate, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, iron amino acid chelate, manganese amino acid chelate, zinc amino acid chelate, copper amino acid chelate, sodium selenite, cobalt carbonate, ethylenediamine dihydriodide), mixed tocopherols, taurine, l-carnitine, turmeric, dried Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract, dried Trichoderma reesei fermentation extract, dried Aspergillus niger fermentation product, dried Candida rugosa fermentation extract, dried papaya, dried pineapple, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product and dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, rosemary extract
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 4%
Red denotes any controversial items
The first ingredient in this dog food is turkey. Although it is a quality item, raw turkey contains up to 73% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The second ingredient is turkey meal. Turkey meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh turkey.
It’s important to note that the next three ingredients included in this recipe are each a type of legume:
- Dried peas
- Dried lentils
- Dried chickpeas
Although they’re a mixture of quality plant ingredients, there’s an important issue to consider here. And that’s the recipe design practice known as ingredient splitting.
If we were to combine all these individual items together and report them as one, that newer combination would likely occupy a significantly higher position on the list.
In addition, dried legumes contain about 27% protein, a factor that must also be considered when judging the meat content of this dog food.
The sixth 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 seventh ingredient lists 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.
After the natural flavor, we find salmon meal, another protein-rich meat concentrate.
Fish meal is typically obtained from the “clean, dried, ground tissue of undecomposed whole fish and fish cuttings” of commercial fish operations.2
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 Pureluxe product.
With 5 notable exceptions…
First, we find tomato pomace. Tomato pomace is a controversial ingredient, a by-product remaining after processing tomatoes into juice, soup and ketchup.
Many praise tomato pomace for its high fiber and nutrient content, while others scorn it as an inexpensive pet food filler.
Just the same, there’s probably not enough tomato pomace here to make much of a difference.
Next, we note the use of coconut oil, a natural oil rich in medium-chain fatty acids.
Medium-chain triglycerides have been shown to improve cognitive function in older dogs.3
Because of its proven safety4 as well as its potential to help in the treatment of canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS) and chronic skin disorders, MCT can be considered a positive addition to this recipe.
In addition, chicory root is rich in inulin, a starch-like compound made up of repeating units of carbohydrates and found in certain roots and tubers.
Not only is inulin a natural source of soluble dietary fiber, it’s also a prebiotic used to promote the growth of healthy bacteria in a dog’s digestive tract.
Next, we find taurine, an important amino acid associated with the healthy function of heart muscle. Although taurine is not typically considered essential in canines, some dogs have been shown to be deficient in this critical nutrient.
Since taurine deficiency appears to be more common in pets consuming grain-free diets, we view its presence in this recipe as a positive addition.
And lastly, 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.
Pureluxe Grain Free Dog Food Review
Judging by its ingredients alone, Pureluxe Grain Free Dog Food looks like an above-average dry product.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 31%, a fat level of 20% and estimated carbohydrates of about 41%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 32% and a mean fat level of 17%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 43% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 52%.
Above-average protein. Near-average fat. And below-average carbs when compared to a typical dry dog food.
When you consider the protein-boosting effect of the multiple legumes and flaxseed, this looks like the profile of a dry dog food containing a moderate amount of meat.
Bottom line?
Pureluxe Grain Free is a dry dog food using a moderate amount of named meat meals as its main source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 4 stars.
Highly recommended.
However, it’s unfortunate the company chose to include so much plant-based protein in its recipe. Otherwise, we would have been compelled to award this product a higher rating.
Pureluxe Dog Food
Recall History
The following list (if present) includes all dog food recalls since 2009 directly related to Pureluxe. If there are no recalls listed in this section, we have not yet reported any events.
You can view a complete list of all dog food recalls sorted by date. Or view the same list sorted alphabetically by brand.
Notes and Updates
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