Reviewed & Fact-Checked By
Dr. Paola Cuevas
Veterinarian, MVZ
Reviewed & Fact-Checked By
Dr. Paola Cuevas
Veterinarian, MVZ
The information is current and up-to-date in accordance with the latest veterinarian research.
If you have a new puppy, you likely have lots of questions and a desire to provide your pet with the highest quality food so it can grow into a healthy animal. However, with so many different brands claiming to be the best, it can be challenging to sort through them all. So we’ve chosen several different brands of puppy food to review for you so you can see the difference between them. We’ll give you the pros and cons of each one and tell you how our dogs liked it. We’ve even included a short buyer’s guide to help you know what to look for if you continue to shop. Keep reading while we discuss ingredients, protein, preservatives, and more to help you make an informed purchase.
A Quick Glance at Our Favorites in 2023
Image Product Details
Best Overall
Nulo Freestyle Limited+ Puppy Grain-Free Salmon Recipe Dry Dog Food
Omega fats
High in protein
No corn or soy ingredients
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Best Value
Purina Pro Plan Focus Puppy Food
Omega fats
23 essential vitamins and minerals
No artificial colors or preservatives
Check Price
Hill’s Science Diet Canned Puppy Food
Balanced nutrition
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
Check Price
Blue Buffalo Life Protection Puppy Formula
Real fruits and vegetables
Omega fatty acids
Antioxidants
Check Price
Wellness Small Breed Complete Health Puppy
Formulated for puppies
Contains Omega fats
Real fruits and vegetables
Check Price
The 8 Best Puppy Foods at PetSmart
- Nulo Freestyle Limited+ Puppy Grain-Free Salmon Recipe Dry Dog Food– Best Overall
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Package size: 24 pounds
First Ingredient: Deboned Salmon
Nulo Freestyle Limited+ Puppy Grain-Free Salmon Recipe Dry Dog Food is our pick as the best overall puppy food at PetSmart. This product features deboned salmon as its first ingredient, which provides your pet with plenty of omega fats and protein. In fact, it provides your pet with 30% protein per serving which is more than many other brands on here and will help your pet develop strong muscles. High protein diets also help your pets stay full longer, so it’s not looking for food before its time. Nulo Freestyle is a grain-free brand that contains no corn or soy ingredients which are heavily genetically modified and can lead to weight gain.
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Package size: 24 pounds
First Ingredient: Deboned Salmon
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The downside to Nulo Freestyle is that the cable may be too large for some smaller puppies, and the salmon causes it to have a bad odor.
Pros
Omega fats
High in protein
No corn or soy ingredients
Cons
Bad odor
Large kibble
- Purina Pro Plan Focus Puppy Food – Best Value
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Package size: 12 13-ounce cans
First Ingredient: Chicken
Purina Pro Plan Focus Puppy Food is our pick is the best puppy food at PetSmart for the money. It’s a wet food formulated for puppies under one year that lists chicken as its first ingredient. It contains 23 central vitamins and minerals that will help your puppy grow quickly. The omega fats will help the skin feel soft help with many other biological processes, including brain and eye development. There are no artificial colors or preservatives added, so it’s less likely that your pet will suffer an allergic reaction.
Omega fats
High in protein
No corn or soy ingredients
- Omega fats
- High in protein
- No corn or soy ingredients
Bad odor
Large kibble
- Bad odor
- Large kibble
Package size: 12 13-ounce cans
First Ingredient: Chicken
Purina Pro Plan Focus is a great choice for budget-minded puppy owners, and the only problem we experienced was that the cans are quite large and provide too much food for a puppy to eat at one sitting, so we needed to store it in the fridge between meals.
Pros
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
23 essential vitamins and minerals
No artificial colors or preservatives
Cons
Large cans
- Hill’s Science Diet Puppy Chicken & Barley Entree Canned Dog Food
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Package size: 12 13-ounce cans
First Ingredient: Chicken
Hill’s Science Diet Puppy Chicken & Barley Entree Canned Dog Food is our premium choice puppy food at PetSmart. It’s a wet food that features chicken as its first ingredient and provides your puppy with balanced nutrition formulated for dogs under one year old. It contains plenty of antioxidants that will help boost your pet’s immune system and omega fats that help with brain and eye development, as well as a soft and shiny coat.
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
23 essential vitamins and minerals
No artificial colors or preservatives
- Formulated for puppies under one year
- Omega fats
- 23 essential vitamins and minerals
- No artificial colors or preservatives
Large cans
- Large cans
The downside to Hill’s Science Diet is that it can be quite expensive if you can’t find it on sale, and the cans are quite large, so you will need to store it in your fridge between meals.
Pros
Balanced nutrition
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
Plenty of antioxidants
Cons
Large cans
- Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Puppy Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food
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Package size: 30 pounds
First Ingredient: Deboned Chicken
Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Puppy Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food it’s a large package of dry dog food that’s easy to find in many stores besides PetSmart, so it’s easier to replace if you run out. It contains chicken as its first ingredient and provides your pet with other protein sources as well, including fish and peas. The fish house so provides omega fats, and there are other real fruits and vegetables besides peas that help provide important vitamins and minerals. In addition, a special ingredient called LifeSource Bits provides your pet with healthy antioxidants that can help boost the immune system.
Balanced nutrition
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
Plenty of antioxidants
- Balanced nutrition
- Formulated for puppies under one year
- Omega fats
- Plenty of antioxidants
We like the ingredients list on Blue Buffalo food, and the only problem we had was that some puppies don’t like it, and it can be challenging to get them to eat some, which can cause many owners to seek out a different brand.
Pros
Real fruits and vegetables
Omega fatty acids
Antioxidants
Cons
Some puppies don’t like it
- Wellness Small Breed Complete Health Puppy Turkey, Oatmeal & Salmon Meal Recipe Dry Dog Food
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Package size: 4 pounds
First Ingredient: Deboned Turkey
Wellness Small Breed Complete Health Puppy Turkey, Oatmeal & Salmon Meal Recipe Dry Dog Food uses Turkey as its first ingredient to provide your plant with plenty of high-quality protein. The protein will help your pet develop strong muscle and provide plenty of energy. Spring contains real fruits and vegetables like blueberries, spinach, and carrots that provide your pet with several important vitamins and nutrients, while salmon meal and flaxseed provide the essential omega fats.
Real fruits and vegetables
Omega fatty acids
Antioxidants
- Real fruits and vegetables
- Omega fatty acids
- Antioxidants
Some puppies don’t like it
- Some puppies don’t like it
Package size: 4 pounds
First Ingredient: Deboned Turkey
The downside to Wellness Small Breed Complete is that you only get a small four-pound package, and like many other foods that contain high-quality ingredients, some dogs won’t like it.
Pros
Real fruits and vegetables
Smaller kibble size
Omega fats
Cons
Small bag
Some dogs don’t like it
- Purina Pro Plan Probiotic Puppy Food
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Package size: 34 pounds
First Ingredient: Chicken
Purina Pro Plan Probiotic Puppy Food has plenty of vitamins and minerals that can help your small pet grow into a healthy dog. This drive food is formulated for puppies and contains omega fats that help produce a soft and shiny coat and antioxidants that boost the immune system. It also features chicken as its first ingredient, so your pet will receive plenty of high-quality protein.
Real fruits and vegetables
Smaller kibble size
Omega fats
- Real fruits and vegetables
- Smaller kibble size
- Omega fats
Small bag
Some dogs don’t like it
- Small bag
- Some dogs don’t like it
Package size: 34 pounds
First Ingredient: Chicken
We enjoyed reviewing this food, and it’s easy to find in many places besides PetSmart. The only downside to Purina Pro Plan Probiotic is that it gave some of our puppies gas.
Pros
Plenty of vitamins and minerals
Formulated for puppies
Contains Omega fats
Contains antioxidants
Cons
Can you give some puppies gas
- Royal Canin Medium Puppy Dry Dog Food
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Package size: 17 pounds
First Ingredient: Chicken by-product
Royal Canin Medium Puppy Dry Dog Food is a high-protein food formulated to be highly digestible so your pet can quickly receive the energy and nutrients it needs. Prebiotic ingredients for help feed your puppies natural probiotics which will help balance the digestive system and reduce the frequency of Constipation and diarrhea. Antioxidant fortification will help boost your pet’s immune system.
Plenty of vitamins and minerals
Formulated for puppies
Contains Omega fats
Contains antioxidants
- Plenty of vitamins and minerals
- Formulated for puppies
- Contains Omega fats
- Contains antioxidants
Can you give some puppies gas
- Can you give some puppies gas
Package size: 17 pounds
First Ingredient: Chicken by-product
The downside to Royal Canin is that it’s quite expensive, especially if you have more than one puppy. It contains chicken by-product as its first ingredient, which is lower quality meat that we usually try to avoid, especially when feeding puppies.
Pros
High protein
Antioxidant fortification
Highly digestible proteins and prebiotics
Cons
Expensive
Chicken by-product first ingredient
- Puppy Chow Complete With Chicken & Rice Dry Dog Food
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Package size: 32 pounds
First Ingredient: Whole grain corn
Puppy Chow Complete with Chicken & Rice Dry Dog Food is the final puppy food at PetSmart on our list to review for you, but it still has plenty to offer. It uses a formula for dogs under one year old and delivers highly digestible proteins that will provide your pet with plenty of energy and the building blocks for strong muscle. It also contains helpful Omega fats, and it’s easy to find in most grocery stores besides PetSmart.
High protein
Antioxidant fortification
Highly digestible proteins and prebiotics
- High protein
- Antioxidant fortification
- Highly digestible proteins and prebiotics
Expensive
Chicken by-product first ingredient
- Expensive
- Chicken by-product first ingredient
Package size: 32 pounds
First Ingredient: Whole grain corn
The downside to Puppy Chow Complete is that it contains corn as its first ingredient, which is not an ideal nutrient for growing puppies. The corn can also cause your pet to have gas and could even lead to diarrhea. We also noticed that some dogs don’t like it even though they usually prefer foods that contain lots of corn.
Pros
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
Cons
Corn first ingredient
Can cause diarrhea
Some cats don’t like it
Formulated for puppies under one year
Omega fats
- Formulated for puppies under one year
- Omega fats
Corn first ingredient
Can cause diarrhea
Some cats don’t like it
- Corn first ingredient
- Can cause diarrhea
- Some cats don’t like it
Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose the Best Puppy Food at Petsmart
Protein
One of the most important nutrients your small puppy needs is protein. Protein provides your pet with energy and needs to run around and explore its environment, and it also provides the building blocks for strong muscle. You can make sure there’s plenty of high-quality protein in your pet’s diet by checking the list of ingredients and the food you serve. We recommend choosing a brand with real meat like chicken Turkey or beef listed as its first ingredient. Avoid brands that use a meat by-product or a meat meal, and we also recommend avoiding brands that have corn or soy listed first.
Real Fruits and Vegetables
Foods containing real fruits and vegetables like raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, kale, spinach, carrots, and pumpkin can help provide your puppy with the vitamins and minerals needed to stay healthy. Fruits and vegetables also provide the much-needed fiber that can keep your pet’s sensitive digestive system balanced, preventing constipation and diarrhea.
Omega Fatty Acids
Omega fatty acids are essential in a puppy’s diet. In particular, DHA plays a very important role in your puppy’s brain and immune system development. Omega fatty acids are crucial for healthy eye function in young, growing puppies and as a plus, they will help your puppy have a softer, shinier coat.
Dry versus Wet Food
Wet food as it is high in protein and very high in moisture adds in for a healthy hydration status, and in most cases, it consists of a more species-appropriate diet that resembles what dog ancestors evolved to eat. Most puppies prefer the flavor of wet food over dry food, so adding wet food to your young puppy’s diet is a great idea. Dry kibble can help keep your pet’s teeth clean as it crunches, and many dogs suffer from dental disease, with some experts suggesting more than 80% of dogs over three years old suffer from dental issues. Now that your puppy is young and will be teething take advantage of starting the puppy on teeth brushing routine; it will save you lots of headaches in the future. Getting your puppy used to eat a mix of wet and dry food has the advantage of combining the best of both presentations. However, if you can only feed dry kibble to your dog you should make sure you add some moisture to it.
Conclusion
When choosing your next puppy food at PetSmart, we highly recommend our pet for the best overall. Nulo Freestyle Limited+ Puppy Grain-Free Salmon Recipe has quality ingredients, plenty of vitamins and minerals, its high in protein, omega fats, and antioxidants which will all help your pets stay healthy. Another smart choice is our pick for the best value. Purina Pro Plan Focus Puppy Food provides your pet with the benefits of a wet food as our top choice at a lower cost.
We hope you have enjoyed reading over these reviews and found a few brands you would like to try out. If we helped keep your notepad healthy, please share our look into the best puppy foods at PetSmart on Facebook and Twitter.
See also:
- 11 Best Canned & Wet Puppy Foods – Reviews & Top Picks
- 10 Best Puppy Foods for Labs – Reviews & Top Picks
- 10 Best Puppy Food for Pit Bulls – Reviews & Top Picks
- 10 Best Grain-Free Puppy Foods – Reviews & Top Picks
Featured Image Credit: Switlana Sonyashna, Shutterstock
