Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg vs Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg
Side-by-side comparison of scores, ingredients, prices and real customer feedback for Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg and Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg.
Last verified: 07 Apr 2026 · Based on 25 reviews
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg scores 81.0/100 vs Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg at 81.0/100. Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg wins on ingredient quality, nutritional value. Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg is stronger on value for money and transparency.
How Do the Scores Compare?
Lily's Kitchen Made with Na...
Lily's Kitchen
|
Pooch & Mutt - Health & Dig...
Pooch & Mu
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 81.0 | 81.0 |
| Ingredient Quality |
87.0/100
Best
|
84.0/100 |
| Nutritional Value |
80.0/100
Best
|
78.0/100 |
| Value for Money | 62.0/100 |
66.0/100
Best
|
| Transparency | 85.0/100 |
89.0/100
Best
|
| Palatability | 88.0/100 |
90.0/100
Best
|
| Best Price | £20.00 Amazon UK → |
£13.19
Amazon UK →
Cheapest
|
| Form | ||
| Dose | ||
| Third-Party Tested | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Reviews Analysed | 12 | 13 |
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural...
Pros
- ✓High fresh meat content — 31% chicken and 8% duck, both clearly named and freshly prepared
- ✓No meat by-products, meat meal, or vague 'animal derivatives' — full ingredient transparency
- ✓Small kibble size purpose-built for small breeds, reducing choking risk and improving chewing
- ✓Excellent palatability across reviews including fussy eaters and dogs with sensitive stomachs
Cons
- ✗Premium price point — significantly more expensive per kg than mainstream dry dog foods
- ✗Grain-free formulation: ongoing FDA/WSAVA debate around legume-heavy diets and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), though evidence is strongest in large breeds
- ✗Packaging confusion noted by reviewers — small breed and adult ranges look very similar
- ✗One reviewer's small dog did not accept it, confirming palatability is not universal
Best For
Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestio...
Pros
- ✓45% named salmon as single protein source — high digestibility, rich in omega-3s, ideal for elimination diets
- ✓Prebiotics included to actively support gut flora balance, not just passive fibre
- ✓Exceptionally high palatability — accepted by picky and fussy dogs across multiple breeds
- ✓Completely free from grains, gluten, by-products, meat meal, and artificial additives — strong ingredient transparency
Cons
- ✗Premium price point — above average cost per kg compared to mainstream grain-free options
- ✗Occasional reports of skin itching, consistent with individual salmon protein sensitivity
- ✗Grain-free formulas remain under ongoing veterinary and FDA scrutiny for potential links to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in some breeds
- ✗2kg pack size offers relatively poor value per kg for medium-to-large breeds with higher daily feeding volumes
Best For
What does the data say about Lily's Kitchen Made wi... vs Pooch & Mutt - Health ...?
Lily's Kitchen Small Breed Grain-Free Chicken & Duck is a premium dry kibble built around 39% named fresh meat (31% chicken, 8% duck), with no by-products or meat meals — a standout for ingredient transparency in the mass-market segment.
What are the key differences?
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg or Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg? ▼
Is Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg worth the price compared to Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg? ▼
Which has fewer side effects? ▼
Related Product Comparisons
Complete Natural Adult Dog Food Wet (10 x 150g Trays)
vs Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg
Complete Natural Adult Dog Food Wet (10 x 150g Trays)
vs Pooch & Mutt - Health & Digestion, Complete Dry Dog Food (Grain Free), Salmon and Sweet Potato, 2kg
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg
vs Lily's Kitchen Natural Adult Wet Dog Food Tray Cottage Pie Grain-Free Recipe 10 x 150g
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg
vs Lily's Kitchen Natural Adult Wet Dog Food Tins Classic Dinners Variety Pack 6 x 400g & Natural Adult Wet Dog Food Tins Grain-Free Recipe Variety Pack 6 x 400g
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg
vs Burns Pet Nutrition Sensitive Grain Free Duck and Potato Adult Dry Dog Food, 2 kg
Lily's Kitchen Made with Natural Ingredients Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food Chicken & Duck Grain-Free Recipe 2.5kg
vs Forthglade Dry Dog Food, Lightly Baked, (2kg), Hypoallergenic and Grain Free Dog Food, Adult 1 Year +, Lamb With Sweet Potato, Complete and Balanced Meal, 50% Single Source Protein
What the Data Says
Is grain-free dog food actually better? What the data shows.
Grain-free leads on every metric, but the gap is smaller than marketing suggests. We scored 27 grain-free and 73 standard dry dog foods across the same criteria.
The numbers: grain-free averages 75.1/100 overall versus 71.5 for standard — a 3.6-point lead. Break it down by category and the picture gets more interesting.
Ingredient quality is where grain-free pulls ahead most: 77.8 versus 71.2, a 6.6-point gap. Grain-free brands tend to use higher meat content and fewer cheap bulking agents. Transparency is the second-largest gap: 74.9 versus 69.8 (5.1 points) — grain-free brands are generally more upfront about sourcing and ingredient percentages.
But nutritional value tells a different story: 72.1 versus 70.0, just 2.1 points apart. That's the smallest gap of any metric. Removing grains doesn't automatically make a food more nutritious.
Bottom line: if your dog has a diagnosed grain intolerance, grain-free is the right call. If not, a high-scoring standard food delivers nearly identical nutrition at a lower price point.
Do grain-free dog foods hide carbohydrate fillers?
Grain-free scores better on transparency (74.9 vs 69.8), but grain-free does not mean low-carb. That 5.1-point transparency gap across 27 grain-free and 73 standard products means grain-free brands are more likely to disclose ingredient percentages and sourcing details.
The catch: most grain-free formulas replace rice, wheat, or corn with peas, lentils, chickpeas, or sweet potato. These are still carbohydrate sources. Some grain-free products list two or three legume variants in the first five ingredients, pushing total carbohydrate content to 40-50% of the formula.
Here's how to check: read the analytical constituents on the back of the bag. If protein is 25% and fat is 15%, the remaining 60% is mostly carbohydrates, moisture, and fibre. That's true whether the carbs come from brown rice or sweet potato.
The grain-free label tells you what's absent, not what replaced it. Higher transparency scores mean these brands make it easier for you to verify the substitution yourself — but you still need to look.
Disclaimer: AIScored provides data-driven comparisons based on publicly available reviews. This is not medical advice. Affiliate links may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.
Feedback & Suggestions
Spotted an issue? Wrong price, incorrect data, or something else off? Let us know and we'll fix it.
Missing a product you'd like us to review? Tell us the product name and we'll consider adding it.