Nutro Dog Food

Nutro is an all-natural brand of dog food company that has a wide range of products available that suit just about any dog. The brand has an honest approach to its recipes and strives to use only high-quality animal protein-rich foods. Every ingredient serves a purpose, and some pet parents swear by this brand.

But is Nutro dog food everything it claims to be? It costs a little bit more than the typical dog foods you’d find in the grocery store, but is it worth paying more for? What makes this dog food better than other brands? Before you decide if Nutro is the right food brand for your dog and you find it on Chewy com, let’s take a look at its vast product line in our Nutro products dog food reviews.

Nutro Products and Brand History and Philosophy

The Nutro company believes in pet-first philosophy and developed its products using cutting edge research from experts in the industry. The brand started in 1926 and ran as a family business for decades, selling locally in California until it expanded in the 1970s. In 1985, the company expanded with its MAX product line, and in 1985, it was acquired by Mars, Inc.

Nutro holds itself to a higher standard and believes that natural foods are not only healthier, but they taste better, too. It uses premium natural ingredients, like whole grains and real animal protein. Nutro’s foods contain no by-product meals, wheat, soy, corn, or artificial additives, and each Nutro recipe is carefully put together to provide balanced nutrition.

Nutro products follows a Feed Clean philosophy for all of its products, using only carefully sourced non-GMO ingredients to produce nutrient-rich food. High-quality protein is the foundation of each formula, and every ingredient serves a specific purpose. Nutro gets all of its ingredients from trusted farmers and suppliers, preparing recipes in trusted facilities and testing regularly for safety and quality.

Nutro has a wide range of products, including wet dog food, dry dog food, and treats. Let’s take a closer look at its product line to see what makes this brand so special.

Nutro Dry Dog Food Reviews

Nutro’s dry dog foods are divided into three product lines: Nutro Ultra, Wholesome Essentials, and limited ingredients. Let’s take a look at our Nutro dog food review to learn more.

Nutro Ultra Dry Dog Food

What sticks out about the Nutro Ultra line is that every recipe is packed with a blend of 15 superfoods. Each recipe is known as The Superfood Trio Plate with a Trio of Proteins from Lamb, Chicken, and Salmon, but there are recipes tailored to various life stages, like Nutro Ultra Large Breed adult, and dietary needs. Each dry food contains between 23 and 28 percent crude protein, along with omega 3 fatty acids from sources like chicken fat and all the necessary vitamins and minerals. Ingredients include whole grain oatmeal and dried kale, pumpkin, spinach, apples, carrots, and blueberries.

These Nutro Ultra dog food options include:

Nutro Wholesome Essentials

Nutro Whole Essentials is the most popular dry food of the Nutro dog food product lines. Each recipe uses real meat as the first ingredient, and there are many options available. Nutro Wholesome Essentials follow the same Feed Clean philosophy as the other products in the brand, meaning you get clean, well-balanced nutrition from trusted sources in each recipe. This Nutro line gives your dog glucosamine and chondroitin to support joint health and omega 3 fatty acid and omega 6 fatty acids from natural sources like chicken fat for healthy skin and a shiny coat.

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There are a range of Nutro Wholesome Essentials dry food recipes under this label, including:

Adult Lamb and Rice. Deboned lamb is the first ingredient, and there are plenty of whole grains, including whole brown rice, brewers rice, and sorghum. Chicken and lamb meal also add more protein.
Large Breed Adult Lamb and Rice. This large breed recipe is similar to the adult recipe. Deboned lamb is still the number one ingredient, but it contains 21 percent crude protein instead of 22.
Adult Small Bites Lamb and Rice. Whether your dog needs smaller kibble or just prefers it, this recipe has the same delicious ingredients as the adult formula, like brewers rice and real lamb, with smaller kibble that’s easier to chew.
Senior Lamb and Rice. The senior version of this recipe contains antioxidants and other essentials to support your dog’s mental health, immune system, and it promotes healthy skin and a soft, shiny coat.
Large Breed Puppy Lamb and Rice. In addition to DHA for eye and brain development and glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to support joint health, this Nutro Wholesome Essentials recipe also contains 26 percent crude protein to support safe growth.
Adult Healthy Weight Lamb and Rice. This is a great choice for weight management as lamb is naturally nutritionally complete and low calorie. It contains 23 percent crude protein and 11 to 12 percent fat to help your dog trim down.
Adult Farm-Raise Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato . Chicken and chicken meal are the top two ingredients in this sweet potato recipe. It also includes other wholesome additions, like barley, sweet potato, and whole grain rice.
Large Breed Adult Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. This large breed adult recipe is similar to the regular adult formula, but offers a 21 percent protein instead of 22. The first ingredient is real chicken, followed by chicken meal as an excellent source of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to help large breeds maintain joint health.
Small Breed Adult Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. The small breed version of this recipe provides 24 percent crude protein to keep up with your little dog’s big energy.
Adult Small Bites Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. If your dog prefers smaller kibble or if it’s easier for them to chew, this small bites formula delivers the same nutritious recipe with a smaller kibble size.
Senior Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. This recipe is tailored to seniors, with a 23 percent crude protein, a little more than the regular adult version. It has natural fiber to support your dog’s GI health and essential antioxidants that promote a healthy immune system.
Small Breed Small Bites Senior Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. Small breeds live a long time, some close to 20 years. They need a special recipe to maintain lifelong health. This small breed Nutro senior recipe contains antioxidants for long term immune health and 25 percent crude protein to support the increased energy needs of little dogs.
Adult Healthy Weight Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. With 24 percent protein and 7 percent fat, this healthy weight recipe is designed to support weight loss and maintenance.
Large Breed Senior Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato . The large breed adult Nutro senior recipe is formulated to support your aging dog’s joint health as well as providing the antioxidants it needs for a healthy immune system.
Puppy Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. The puppy variety of this Nutro recipe contains DHA to support healthy eye and brain development as well as calcium to help your puppy grow strong bones and joints. With 29 percent crude protein, it’s formulated to help puppies grow big and strong.
Large Breed Puppy Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Sweet Potato. In addition to DHA and calcium to support healthy bones, this large breed puppy recipe has natural sources of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate for joint health. It contains 28 percent protein for controlled growth.
Adult Venison Meal, Brown Rice, and Oatmeal. Concentrated real venison meal is the first ingredient in this delicious recipe, followed by whole brown rice and whole grain oatmeal.
Adult Beef and Brown Rice with Ancient Grains. If you’re looking for a beef recipe, this one not only has beef as the number one ingredient, it also has pork and chicken proteins. Nutro also uses ancient grains, like whole grain sorghum and flax seed, to add balanced nutrients for well-rounded nutritional support.

Nutro Limited Ingredient/Grain Free Reviews

These Nutro recipes are ideal for dogs with food sensitivities or allergies. Each uses 10 key ingredients or less and avoids the food most likely to cause sensitivities in dogs, so they contain no chicken, beef, wheat, soy, corn, or dairy. If you’re looking for dry food, there are are a lot of great options here.

Nutro limited ingredient dry dog food recipes include:

Adult Lamb and Sweet Potato. This recipe uses high-quality Australian and New Zealand lamb and sweet potato along with other delicious and healthy ingredients, including chickpeas, lentils, and dried sweet potatoes.
Large Breed Adult Lamb and Sweet Potato. The large breed adult formula from Nutro is similar to the adult version, but with more calories per cup and a little less fat.
Small Bites Adult Lamb and Sweet Potato. If your dog prefers small kibble or if it’s easier for them to eat, this small bites recipe is the same as the regular adult version, only the kibble is not as large and it’s easier to chew.
Adult Duck and Lentils. Prepared using high quality duck and lentils, this Nutro recipe also includes lentils, chickpeas, and dried potatoes for a taste your dog will love.
Adult Venison Meal and Sweet Potatoes. Made with high-quality venison meal and real sweet potatoes, this formula is a nutritionally balanced choice that your dog will find delicious.
Adult Salmon and Lentils. Salmon is an excellent source of omega fatty acids, and this limited ingredient recipe from Nutro uses salmon and salmon meal as the first two ingredients, respectively. With lentils and sunflower oil, it tastes great and delivers the balanced nutrition your dog needs to stay healthy.

Nutro Wet Dog Food Reviews

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Next in our Nutro dog food review is its line of wet foods. Nutro has two lines of wet foods, Ultra and Limited Ingredient.

Nutro Ultra Wet Foods

Nutro Ultra Grain Free Filets use the same Feed Clean philosophy as Nutro’s other offerings. Each of these entrees features a delicious pairing of a high-quality protein and pieces of real vegetables like beet pulp that you can see. They taste great on their own or they can be used as a topper for any of Nutro’s dry foods.

There are a lot of Nutro grain free recipes to choose from, including:

Nutro Limited Ingredient Wet Food

Nutros limited ingredient wet foods are grain-free and made with natural ingredients and additional vitamins and minerals, and other nutrients. There are three recipes of Nutro limited ingredient wet dog food to choose from:

Adult Lamb and Potato. With lamb, whole potatoes, and lamb liver, this grain free Nutro recipe is a great option for dogs with food sensitivities.
Adult Turkey and Potato. Turkey, turkey liver, and whole potatoes make this a great choice if you’re looking for a delicious alternative to a chicken-based wet dog food.
Adult Fish and Potato. If your dog wants something different, consider this grain free wet food from Nutro that uses farm-raised fish as the number one ingredient.

Nutro Dog Treats

In addition to wet and dry dog food, Nutro also offers dog treats that live up to their Feed Clean philosophy. These are a great option for pet parents who want to reward their dogs with something that tastes great and won’t spoil their appetite.

Nutro Crunchy Treats

These Nutro dog treats are made using 100 percent natural ingredients, with no chicken by-product meal, corn, wheat, or soy as well as no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. They’re available in multiple flavors, including:

Nutro Mini Bites

Nutro Mini Bites use real high-quality chicken as the first ingredient. There’s no corn, soy, wheat or artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Plus, at only 3 calories a treat, you can reward your dog with this Nutro treat without worrying about going overboard.

There are a few flavors available, including:

Discontinued Nutro Product Lines

Although the Nutro dog food line is extensive, it used to have additional products that you might see recommended other places but that are no longer available or listed on the Nutro official website. These include Natural Choice dog food, Grain-Free dog food, High Endurance dog food, Rotations dog food, Farm’s Harvest dog food, Wild Frontier dog food, and Max dog food.

What Dogs Should Eat Nutro Dog Food?

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Nutro has such a vast range of dog food recipes that it’s suitable for just about any dog, including:

Life Stages

Nutro has a number of dry dog food options suitable for variable life stages.

There are two Nutro puppy food formulas in the Ultra line, regular puppy and puppy. In the Wholesome Essentials line, there are many puppy blends to choose from, including Large Breed Nutro Puppy Lamb and Rice, Large Breed Puppy Farm-Raised Chicken, Brown Rice, and Oatmeal.

Nutro also has some senior dog food, too, including an Nutro Ultra recipe for seniors and Nutro Wholesome Blends recipes like Senior Lamb and Rice and Senior Farm-Raised Chicken and Brown Rice. There are also Wholesome Blends recipes specifically for small and large breed adult dogs.

Allergies and Food Sensitivities

Nutro is a great food for dogs with food sensitivities. All of its dog food uses all-natural ingredients, and they have a lot of protein sources to choose from beyond chicken, including lamb, venison meal, beef, duck, salmon, turkey, and fish. That said, there are plenty of chicken options, too, including chicken lamb and salmon. There are also grain free options if you prefer.

Picky Eaters

Because there are so many dog food recipes to choose from that offer novel proteins, like venison meal, salmon, and duck, you’re likely to find something that your picky eater will like, including grain free recipes. Nutro has a lot of great wet foods available, too, which you can serve as a meal or use as a topper for dry foods.

Small Breeds

Nutro is a good dog food for small breeds. They have recipes for small breed adults and seniors as well as small breed weight management recipes. There are small bites options for some of the regular recipes, too, which may be suitable for some small to medium-sized breeds.

Large Breeds

There are dog food options available for large breeds across all life stages, from puppy food to seniors, including a limited ingredient option for adult dogs. They are specially formulated with the vitamins and minerals these dogs need to thrive.

Overweight Dogs

Nutro has four weight management dog food recipes available, including one especially for small breeds. Small breeds have a tendency to gain weight so it’s really nice that they have this option and shows what a good dog food this is.

What Dogs Should Not Eat Nutro Dog Food?

There is a Nutro dog food recipe for just about every dog, no matter their age, breed, or size. One of the only populations that isn’t clearly represented is pregnant and lactating dogs. These dogs need food that’s high in protein, ideally something with 30 percent crude protein which Nutro doesn’t offer. That said, some of the puppy formulas come close and can be used in this way.

How Does Nutro Dog Food Measure Up?

Nutro is one of the better mass produced dog food brands out there. It’s been around since 1926 and has become a trusted dog food choice for many pet parents. We love that it uses premium natural ingredients, and you can trust that there are never any by-product meals or artificial additives. Every recipe is based on a real high-quality protein and carefully crafted to provide balanced nutrition.

One of the best things about this dog food brand is that it has such a wide range of products. While Nutro has trimmed its product line a bit, there are still so many options available that are suited for just about any breed at any life stage.

A lot of Nutro dog food recipes use chicken as the main protein or chicken meal as an added protein like in the chicken, lamb, and salmon recipes, but there are plenty of other options if you have a pet with an allergy or food sensitivity. A lot of people assume that these are caused by grains, but the truth is that dogs are more likely to develop a sensitivity or allergy to meat that they eat for long periods of time. This is precisely why changing to a food with a novel protein, that is, one that your dog has never had before, can prevent food allergies.

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Not all of these dog foods are grain-free, but those that do contain grains use high-quality whole grains like whole brown rice or oatmeal, or ancient grains like sorghum or flax seeds.

These dog foods are all formulated to support healthy skin and a shiny, soft coat, though they don’t contain as much omega 3 fatty acids and omega 6 fatty acids or chondroitin sulfate as some of their competitors.

Nutro Dog Food Reviews: Final Verdict

There are a lot of great things about Nutro dog food. We’re impressed with the variety and the fact that there’s a recipe for just about every dog, no matter their age, breed, or size. Animal protein is always the first ingredient, and most of Nutro’s recipes use protein meals in addition to this, like pork meal or venison meal.

There’s a lot of misunderstanding about protein meals in dog foods. Most people assume that all meals are bad but this isn’t true. Protein meals in dog foods are nothing more than concentrated protein. For example, chicken meal is chicken and lamb meal is lamb with all of the water removed that’s been ground up into protein-rich powder. It includes only clean flesh, skin, and bone. By-product meal contains every other part of the chicken. Chicken meal, lamb meal, and other protein meals in and of themselves deliver a concentrated punch of protein that’s a necessary part of a lot of these recipes. Nutro never uses any by-product meals, so you can trust that you’re getting high-quality protein in every recipe.

That said, if you’re looking for other options, like chicken lamb and salmon, the Nutro company has plenty of options of this non GMO ingredients adult dry dog food to choose from. It’s the natural choice for a quality dog food with no corn wheat soy or other things you wouldn’t want to feed your dog.

We also really like that Nutro sources all of its dog food ingredients from trusted farmers and suppliers. It uses wholesome, simple ingredients like beet pulp to deliver adult dogs and those of all ages with a healthy, well-rounded meal. They deliver the vitamins and minerals your dog needs to stay healthy.

As far as price, Nutro is not as expensive as high-end or specialty dog food brands, but it does cost a little bit more than the average dog foods you’ll find at the grocery store or on Chewy com. That said, most pet parents who feed their dogs Nutro agree that it’s worth paying a little more and we agree. The Nutro Company makes some of the best mass produced dog foods brands out there, and we recommend it wholeheartedly.

Mary Nielsen

I grew up in a household that was filled with animals. I believe that my fate as a dog-loving person was sealed in early childhood since my parents owned several dogs of varying sizes and breeds. There was no choice but to take care of and learn about dog habits and the best animal care practices — otherwise, I’d be clueless about how to go about the creatures I was surrounded by day and night.

As a life-long puppy lover, I know a thing or two about dogs and how to go about caring for them in the best way possible. Although I’m not a professionally trained dog behaviorist, trainer, or veterinarian, all of my knowledge and experience with canines comes from a place of love and a deep-rooted passion for dogs and animals in general.

Seeing as dogs kept me company throughout every stage of my life, I decided to follow a different path in my academic life and obtained a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Marketing Management and Digital Advertising, which ultimately allowed me to combine my professional training and personal experience by creating the ultimate dog lover’s resource website! Along with my husband, Dave, I run MySweetPuppy for like-minded dog lovers who want to have a single, clear, and reliable information source about anything and everything related to dogs and their well-being.

Nutro Dog Food Reviews

Nutro Products and Brand History and Philosophy