Stella & Chewy's Grain Free Raw Blend Baked Dry DOG FOOD Review

With a score of 5.1/10, these foods are considered moderate risk. There are 7 recipes that average 34% protein and 27% carbohydrate as calculated. 

This is a line of baked kibble that includes freeze-dried raw pieces but they aren’t a main constituent of the food.  In theory you’d expect this to boost the nutrients, but that will be reflected in the Guaranteed Analysis numbers, including the protein amount. 

This line loses ingredient quality points for its high carbohydrate content. This is a grain-free line yet it includes high starch ingredients like peas, chickpeas and lentils that boost the carb content. Dogs have no nutritional requirement for carbohydrate but starch is required for extrusion in dry foods like these. Excessive carbohydrates are an indicator of low quality foods as they keep costs down. Large amounts of starch can increase insulin levels, cause obesity and negatively impact gut balance.

Like all of Stella & Chewy’s lines, there are added vitamins, minerals and, in this line, added amino acids in some recipes. This often indicates a lower quality food that’s lacking naturally occurring nutrients from whole food sources. A few recipes also use sunflower oil, which is a highly processed and highly inflammatory oil. Seed oils are an inexpensive alternative to higher quality animal fats and oils. 

Plant proteins are also used as a less expensive substitute for quality animal protein. You want to see animal sources because they’re more digestible and contain a wider array of amino acids than plant based protein sources. 

The ingredient safety score is better than regular kibble because these foods are baked so there is less processing and fewer nutrients are lost. Rounding out the ingredient safety scores, these recipes lose points for high pesticide or herbicide foods in the top five ingredients. These recipes also include alfalfa (not organic) which is a known GMO crop. There are limited safety studies on genetically modified and Roundup Ready crops although they are lacking in nutrients compared to non-GMO foods. This line also loses points for added natural flavor. This ingredient is often animal digest or MSG, both low quality ingredients with limited safety studies.

It’s good to see that probiotics are included in these foods but the minimum CFU amount is only guaranteed in two recipes (Prairie and Red Meat).

It’s worth noting that these recipes contain 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. 

The label does not provide the omega-6:omega-3 ratio, which is a concern since AAFCO allows a very inflammatory ratio of 30:1.