The scores
Wellness Complete Health Puppy: B (78/100) — Deboned chicken, chicken meal, peas, sorghum, chicken fat. Salmon meal for DHA at position nine, salmon oil at 11. Supplemental taurine, three-strain probiotic blend, seven-botanical antioxidant stack.
Wellness Complete Health Adult: B (82/100) — Deboned chicken, chicken meal, oatmeal, ground barley, chicken fat. Tighter protein-to-grain ratio at the top of the ingredient deck with peas appearing further down.
How the ingredients compare
Puppy top 5: Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Peas, Sorghum, Chicken Fat
Adult top 5: Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Oatmeal, Ground Barley, Chicken Fat
Both lead with deboned chicken + chicken meal — identical protein anchor. The divergence starts at position three. Adult uses oatmeal and ground barley as the primary grain base, with peas appearing later in the ingredient deck. Puppy brings peas up to position three and uses sorghum (a gluten-free whole grain) as the primary grain. Both approaches avoid corn, wheat, and soy, but Adult's grain-forward structure is rubric-positive while Puppy's pea-forward structure keeps legume protein density higher.
Where the Puppy formula pulls ahead
Salmon meal + salmon oil combination: Puppy delivers DHA from both salmon meal (position nine, concentrated marine protein) and salmon oil (position 11, omega-3 oil). This dual marine inclusion is exceptional for developmental DHA support — most premium puppy formulas use one or the other, not both. Adult Complete Health uses salmon oil but skips the salmon meal.
Supplemental taurine: Puppy lists supplemental taurine as a belt-and-suspenders move given pea's position-three placement. Grain-inclusive-but-pea-forward formulas still carry some of the FDA DCM investigation's concern mechanism, and taurine supplementation mitigates it directly.
Growth-phase calcium and caloric density: Puppy is AAFCO-tuned for growth, with calcium, phosphorus, and caloric profile aligned to the 0-12 month developmental window. Feeding Adult to a growing puppy risks inadequate calcium and phosphorus for bone development.
Sorghum grain base: Sorghum is a lower-glycemic-index whole grain than oatmeal or barley — useful for puppies who may develop GI sensitivities to traditional grain choices. The sorghum inclusion is a meaningful formulation choice for a sensitive-digestion puppy profile. Shop on Amazon →
Where the Adult formula holds its own
Oatmeal and barley at the top of the grain base: Adult's position-three and -four placements of oatmeal and ground barley tighten the protein-to-grain ratio at the top of the ingredient deck. Peas appear later in Adult, which is rubric-positive — protein anchors followed by whole grains, then legumes as secondary carb contribution. Puppy's peas-at-three placement is the main reason it scores four points below Adult.
Maintenance-tuned caloric density: Adult Complete Health is formulated for adult dogs 12+ months whose metabolic demand is lower than a rapidly growing puppy's. Feeding a puppy formula to an adult dog risks overconditioning and joint stress.
Broader whole-food vegetable inclusion: Both formulas include the seven-botanical vegetable antioxidant blend (spinach, broccoli, carrots, parsley, apples, blueberries, kale), but Adult's placement gives the vegetable contribution slightly more prominence relative to the grain base. For owners valuing the holistic whole-food positioning, Adult's profile is the more fully-realized expression. Shop on Amazon →
The bottom line
For puppies 0-12 months, Wellness Complete Health Puppy is the right choice — salmon meal + salmon oil DHA, supplemental taurine, sorghum grain base, and AAFCO-tuned growth profile are developmentally tuned. For dogs 12+ months, Wellness Complete Health Adult delivers a tighter chicken + oatmeal + barley stack at an adult-appropriate caloric density — the four-point score gap is real but reflects ingredient density differences, not brand quality. Giant-breed puppies should use Wellness Large Breed Complete Health Puppy (deboned chicken + brown rice + salmon meal) rather than this all-breed formulation. Toy-breed puppies may prefer Wellness Small Breed Complete Health Puppy for kibble-size reasons. All variants uphold Wellness's holistic premium positioning with no corn, wheat, soy, or by-products.