Blue Buffalo Wilderness Chicken Recipe Grain-Free Dry Dog Food

The average dog food we reviewed has 39 total ingredients, with 1 controversial ingredient. This product does not have any controversial ingredients. That's great to see.

Top 5 Ingredients

Dog food ingredients are listed in descending order of weight. So when looking at dog food label, take a close look at the first 5 ingredients. They make up about 80% of the total weight.

• Deboned Chicken
  Chicken is generally a healthy dog food ingredient that provides nutrients like protein, fat and B vitamins. Raw meat contains about 75% water which is cooked off during the making of dog food. This leaves only a fraction of the protein content in the final product's weight. We recommend looking for dog foods that also include meat meals in the first five ingredients (pre-cooked meat powder that contains four times the amount of protein). De-boned simply means that the bones have been removed.

• Chicken Meal (Source Of Glucosamine)
  Meat meals are the result of cooking. Water is removed from meats to create a protein-rich meal powder. Meat meals contain about four times the protein meats do, so generally, they're a good source of nutrients. Chicken meal is generally a healthy dog food ingredient.
  
  

• Peas
  Peas are a good source of carbs, fiber and protein. Peas are starchy but high in vitamin A, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin K, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc. We consider this a healthy dog food ingredient. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned that there is a potential link between peas and canine heart disease. It is still too early to draw conclusions so we cannot yet say if peas are a generally high-quality dog food ingredient or should be avoided.
  
  
• Pea Protein
  Pea protein is an extract of the pea plant. Peas are a good source of carbs, fiber and protein. Peas are starchy but high in vitamin A, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin K, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc. We consider this a healthy dog food ingredient. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned that there is a potential link between peas and canine heart disease. It is still too early to draw conclusions so we cannot yet say if peas are a generally high-quality dog food ingredient or should be avoided.
• Tapioca Starch
  Tapioca is a gluten-free starch extracted from the root of the cassava plant. Because it mostly consists of carbohydrates and is low in fiber, Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, we do not consider this a high-quality dog food ingredient.

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‍Controversial Ingredients

No controversial ingredients.

‍Country of Origin

Blue Buffalo products are made in the United States.

Meat & Fat Quality

This product has four meats Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, and Menhaden Fish Meal which are all named sources. In addition, there is Dried Egg, another source of protein. This is a good thing because it tells us exactly which animal and which part of the animal the ingredient comes from. Much of the fat content is coming from those meat ingredients, but there is also Chicken Fat, and Chicken Broth. These are named sources for additional fat. Seeing only named meat and fat sources on the label is a good sign of quality food.  

Artificial Preservatives

This product does not have any controversial preservatives. It’s good to know that ‍not all artificial preservatives are bad. That’s because they serve an important purpose, which is to prevent food from spoiling. However, we consider 11 artificial preservatives controversial because of their potential link to cancer and other serious health conditions.

Artificial Colors

No artificial colors are used in this product.

Artificial Flavors

No artificial flavors are used in this product either. Not using artificial preservatives, color or flavors is a great sign of quality from Blue Buffalo.