Score it for your dog

Best-scoring dog foods

Best-scoring dog foods for a small puppy, calm, holding weight

For a small puppy, calm and holding weight, the best-scoring food among the 265 dog foods BowlWise scores, all sold in Canada, is Acana Puppy Small Breed Recipe, a kibble, at 97 out of 100. The best-scoring of each kind: kibble, Acana Puppy Small Breed Recipe at 97; gently cooked, Open Farm Gently Cooked Chicken & Brown Rice at 84; air-dried, Smack Chunky Chicken at 81; freeze-dried, Primal Freeze-Dried Raw Scoopable Pronto Puppy at 80.5. 164 of the 265 foods fit this dog. The scores are BowlWise’s own, worked out from each food’s label on October 12, 2026.

Acana Puppy Small Breed Recipe: On March 3, 2026 Pet Valu listed the 5.99 kg bag at $58.99 in Canadian dollars.

Open the form with this dog filled in

Kibble

102 kibble foods fit this dog.

  1. 97 of 100
    • Balanced protein (33.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (20.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (33.0%) for this dog
  2. 96.5 of 100
    • Balanced protein (34.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (17.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (34.0%) for this dog

    0.5 points under Acana Puppy Small Breed Recipe:

    • Price value, 3.5 against 4. Price per kilogram is above the middle of kibble foods. Full points are given for the cheapest quarter.
  3. 95 of 100
    • Balanced protein (35.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (17.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (35.0%) for this dog

    1.5 points under Open Farm Small Breed Grain-Free:

    • Format suitability, 6 against 10. Regular kibble — compatible with this dog's size. This is regular kibble. For a small dog, full points are given for small kibble.
  4. 94.5 of 100
    • Balanced protein (27.5%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (16.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • High protein content (27.5%) for this dog

    0.5 points under Acana Highest Protein Pacifica Recipe:

    • Nutritional quality, 21 against 25. High protein content (27.5%) for this dog. Excellent Omega-3 (1.2%) for this dog's joints and coat. Optimal caloric density for this dog. Balanced fat content (16.0%) for this dog. Protein is 30.6% of dry matter. Full points for protein start at 33.3%. DHA is 0.15% as fed. Full points for DHA start at 0.3%.
    • Price value, 3.5 against 4. Price per kilogram is above the middle of kibble foods. Full points are given for the cheapest quarter.

  5. 5th of 102, level with six others

    Acana Highest Protein Wild Prairie Recipe

    94 of 100
    • Balanced protein (35.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (17.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (35.0%) for this dog

    0.5 points under Open Farm Small Breed Ancient Grains:

    • Format suitability, 6 against 10. Regular kibble — compatible with this dog's size. This is regular kibble. For a small dog, full points are given for small kibble.

  6. 5th of 102, level with six others

    Acana Healthy Grains Puppy Recipe

    94 of 100
    • Balanced protein (31.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (20.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (31.0%) for this dog

  7. 5th of 102, level with six others

    Acana Healthy Grains Sea to Farm Puppy Recipe

    94 of 100
    • Balanced protein (31.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (20.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (31.0%) for this dog

  8. 5th of 102, level with six others

    Acana Puppy Recipe

    94 of 100
    • Balanced protein (33.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (20.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (33.0%) for this dog

And 3 more at the same score.

Gently cooked

4 gently cooked foods fit this dog.

  1. 84 of 100
    • Balanced protein (9.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (4.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (9.0%) for this dog
  2. 77 of 100
    • Balanced protein (9.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (5.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (9.0%) for this dog

    7 points under Open Farm Gently Cooked Chicken & Brown Rice:

    • Nutritional quality, 13 against 20. Premium protein content (9.0%) for this dog. The label gives no omega-3 figure, so those points could not be given. The label gives no DHA figure, so those points could not be given. Calories are 6,455 kcal per kg of dry matter. For gently cooked food, full points are given between 4,500 and 5,800. Fat is 22.7% of dry matter. Full points for fat are given between 13.3% and 22.5%.
  3. 66 of 100
    • Balanced protein (10.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Premium protein content (10.0%) for this dog
    • Optimal caloric density for this dog

    11 points under Open Farm Gently Cooked Beef & Brown Rice:

    • Activity and goal, 17.5 against 35. Balanced protein (10.0%) for this dog's lower activity level. Fat is 35.4% of dry matter. For this dog, a calm dog holding weight, full points are given between 10% and 30%.

Air-dried

10 air-dried foods fit this dog.

  1. 81 of 100
    • Balanced protein (35.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (24.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (35.0%) for this dog
  2. 66.5 of 100
    • Moderate fat (22.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (48.0%) for this dog
    • Optimal caloric density for this dog

    14.5 points under Smack Chunky Chicken:

    • Activity and goal, 17.5 against 35. Moderate fat (22.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog. Protein is 51.1% of dry matter. For this dog, a calm dog holding weight, full points are given between 22% and 45%.

  3. 3rd of 10, level with two others

    Open Farm Harvest Chicken Air-Dried Recipe

    62.5 of 100
    • Balanced protein (32.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Premium protein content (32.0%) for this dog
    • Optimal caloric density for this dog

    4 points under Smack Prairie Harvest Pork:

    • Nutritional quality, 15 against 18. Premium protein content (32.0%) for this dog. Optimal caloric density for this dog. The label gives no omega-3 figure, so those points could not be given. The label gives no DHA figure, so those points could not be given. Fat is 34.1% of dry matter. Full points for fat are given between 13.3% and 22.5%.
    • Price value, 4 against 5. Good value for this dog. Price per kilogram is in the cheaper half of air-dried foods, above the cheapest quarter. Full points are given for the cheapest quarter.

  4. 3rd of 10, level with two others

    Open Farm Pollock & Lamb Air-Dried Recipe

    62.5 of 100
    • Moderate fat (15.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (40.0%) for this dog
    • Balanced fat content (15.0%) for this dog

  5. 3rd of 10, level with two others

    Smack Lip Smacking Lamb

    62.5 of 100
    • Balanced protein (40.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Premium protein content (40.0%) for this dog
    • Optimal caloric density for this dog

Freeze-dried

38 freeze-dried foods fit this dog.

  1. 80.5 of 100
    • Balanced protein (38.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (24.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (38.0%) for this dog
  2. 78 of 100
    • Balanced protein (39.0%) for this dog's lower activity level
    • Moderate fat (21.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (39.0%) for this dog

    2.5 points under Primal Freeze-Dried Raw Scoopable Pronto Puppy:

    • Nutritional quality, 13 against 16. Premium protein content (39.0%) for this dog. Omega-3 is 0.49% as fed. Full points for omega-3 start at 0.8%. The label gives no DHA figure, so those points could not be given. Calories are 4,453 kcal per kg of dry matter. For freeze-dried food, full points are given between 5,000 and 6,200. Fat is 22.8% of dry matter. Full points for fat are given between 13.3% and 22.5%.
  3. 69.5 of 100
    • Moderate fat (19.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog
    • Premium protein content (57.0%) for this dog
    • Excellent Omega-3 (1.13%) for this dog's joints and coat

    8.5 points under Primal Freeze-Dried Raw Scoopable Pronto Beef:

    • Activity and goal, 17.5 against 35. Moderate fat (19.0%) prevents weight gain for this dog. Protein is 62.0% of dry matter. For this dog, a calm dog holding weight, full points are given between 22% and 45%.
    • Price value, 3 against 4. Price per kilogram is in the most expensive quarter of freeze-dried foods. Full points are given for the cheapest quarter.

Toppers

A topper is added to a meal, not fed as one, and is scored on other parts than a meal. These are not ranked against the foods above. 10 toppers fit this dog; each number is a topper’s score out of 100:

What was left out, and why

164 of the 265 foods fit this dog. The others:

  • 77 foodsMade for the adult life stage, not puppy.
  • 11 foodsMade for the senior life stage, not puppy.
  • 7 foodsKibble too large for small breed.
  • 2 foodsNot a complete diet.
  • 4 foodsScored under 50, so it is not offered.

A dog a little different

How to read this

These scores are BowlWise’s own, worked out from each food’s label for one kind of dog at a time. They are not veterinary advice. How a score is worked out: How we score.

Worked out on October 12, 2026.

Is your dog a little different?

Open the form with these answers and change what differs.

Open the form

Free. No account required. Takes about 30 seconds.