Lotus Just Juicy Dog Food DOG FOOD Review

With a score of 6/10, Lotus Just Juicy is a moderate risk dog food. We base this on the criteria of dogfoodreviews.com. There are 2 recipes with 61% average protein. This is substantial for cooked dog food. There are 7% average carbohydrates as calculated. This is a good level that we expect to see in cooked dog food. 

These canned products are made in small batches. They don’t use processing aids like carrageenan, guar gum, or xanthan gum. Canned dog foods are highly processed. There are several stages of heating. This can cause a loss of nutrients, and require supplementation. 

This line has excessive added vitamins and minerals. Added nutrients usually reflect poor quality or overly processed ingredients. Ideally, these nutrients should come from whole food sources. Vitamin and mineral excesses, especially vitamin D and copper, can also result from vitamin premixes.  

It’s also worth noting that the line contains sodium selenite as a source of selenium. Dogs need selenium, and it’s usually added in very small amounts. However, some research suggests that sodium selenite may be associated with potential toxicity, so selenium yeast is the preferred form of this mineral. 

Both recipes have inflammatory seed oil. It’s rich in omega-6 fatty acids. This can cause  systemic and gut inflammation.

Lotus ingredients are GMO-free. That doesn’t mean they are pesticide-free. These recipes use ingredients known for high pesticide/herbicide residues in the top 5 ingredients. Pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers pose a significant health risk to plants, animals and soils. Foods with the largest reported amount of residue are penalized. These include crops that are known to be spray-dried with glyphosate. If they used organic produce it would avoid pesticide risk and GMOs.  

Most of the fish products used are wild-caught. This is preferable as wild fish is more nutritious. It also has a better fatty acid balance than farmed fish. Lotus doesn’t provide the omega-6:omega-3 ratio. This is true of most companies. It’s a concern because AAFCO allows a very inflammatory ratio of 30:1. Diets rich in omega-6 fats can cause chronic inflammation.