Found a Budget Dog Food That Scored 9 out of 10 on My PSS System – And It Costs Less Than 80¢ Per Pound
Yes, you read that right. Here’s the honest breakdown.
Hi everyone, Dr. Rea here – your friendly neighborhood general practitioner veterinarian who’s obsessed with helping you feed your pets the absolute best food possible… even when money is tight.
I get messages every single day asking for truly good, truly affordable dog food options. So I went hunting. And I found something that honestly shocked me.
Meet Nutrina Tru Adult Maintenance (2112 formula) – a food that just scored 9 out of 10 on my PSS (Pet Scoring System) scorecard… and a 50-lb bag costs only $37.99 on Chewy (or $24.69 on auto-ship). That’s 76¢ per pound. For a food this balanced, that’s almost unbelievable in 2025.
Let me walk you through exactly why I’m so impressed – and why this might be the budget hero thousands of you have been asking for.
First, a quick reminder: Why the PSS Scorecard matters
If you’re new here, the PSS scorecard is the free rubric I created (download it at animal.ray.com) that grades foods on the things that actually affect your dog’s health – not marketing hype.
We look at:
AAFCO feeding trials (extra credibility)
Correct life-stage formulation
Optimized protein, fat, fiber, calcium, and phosphorus on a dry-matter basis
Not grain-free (to reduce DCM risk)
Not raw (public health + safety)
Accurate feeding guide (to fight obesity)
Most “boutique” foods I test score 5–7 out of 10 and cost $4–$8+ per pound. Nutrina Tru Adult Maintenance? 9 out of 10 at 76¢ per pound.
The Numbers That Blew Me Away
Here’s the dry-matter breakdown I got straight from Nutrina (after I pestered them for exact typical values – not just the guaranteed minimums):
Protein: 23.3% → perfect
Fat: 13.3% → nicely moderate (great for pancreatitis-prone dogs)
Calcium: 0.78% → one of the lowest, safest levels I’ve ever seen in an adult food
Phosphorus: 0.7% → again, beautifully controlled
Not grain-free, not raw, correct adult life-stage labeling, realistic feeding guide
The only point it lost? No AAFCO feeding trials (they formulate to meet nutrient profiles instead – totally fine, just not the gold standard).
For comparison, many boutique brands I’ve tested have calcium pushing 1.8–2.2% and phosphorus way over 1.5% – levels that can stress kidneys long-term, especially in seniors. Nutrina nailed the minerals at a fraction of the price.
The rest of the Tru line – quick honest ranking
Tru Adult Maintenance 2112 → 9/10 – my top budget pick
Tru High Energy 2420 → 8/10 – great if your dog genuinely needs higher fat
Tru Active 2618 → 7/10 – decent, but minerals a little high
Tru Professional 3020 → 5/10 – skip it (all-life-stages = puppy-level nutrients)
Is it also good for seniors?
When I re-score the Adult Maintenance using senior optimal ranges → it still hits nearly every mark. Finding a true senior food that actually meets ideal numbers is almost impossible. This is as close as you’ll get without spending $150+ per bag.
Real cost-to-feed example
For a typical 20-lb adult dog eating ~2 cups per day: ≈ 17–18 cents per day with the Nutrina Tru Adult Maintenance. That’s less than a lot of people spend on treats.
“But Dr. Rae… what about the ingredients?!”
I hear this every single time.
Yes, the ingredient list isn’t going to win any Instagram beauty contests. It has corn, meat-and-bone meal, etc. But here’s the honest truth I tell every client:
Nutrients > ingredients.
You cannot feed a diet that is poorly balanced nutritionally and just hope pretty ingredients will save the day. That’s like eating cotton candy because it’s “natural cane sugar” and ignoring the fact you’re missing protein and vitamins.
Once a food is properly balanced (like this one is), then we can have the ingredient conversation. But we have to get the balance right first.
For the record, many foods with gorgeous ingredient lists score 5–6 on the PSS and cost 8–10× more. I’ll let you decide which actually loves your dog (and your wallet) more.
My final verdict
If you’ve been stressed about the price of “good” food lately – or you’ve been tempted by cheap grocery store brands that scare me as a veterinarian – Nutrena Tru Adult Maintenance deserves a serious look.
It’s not the flashiest bag on the shelf. But it is one of the best-balanced, safest, most affordable foods I have ever put through my system.
You can grab the full cheat sheet (with exact numbers, hyperlinks to the bags, and PSS scores) right now.
And if you try it, please come back and let me know how your dog does! I’m on a mission for the rest of 2025 to find more hidden-gem budget foods that don’t force you to sacrifice health.
You've got this – and your dog is lucky to have you looking out for them. ❤️
– Dr. Rea
P.S. If you loved this deep-dive, the written version with screenshots and the cheat sheet lives permanently on my blog. And yes – the workbooks that teach you how to do all of this yourself are still available if you want to become your own pet-food detective.
See you in the next one!
