Ask the store how long they'v e had the food. The company that makes this food, Innova and EVo etc does not use alot of preservatives and if it sits too long in distribution it can go bad and the mycotoxins in the food can make your dog sick and even kill him/her. My recomnendation would be to try BG Before Grain by Merrick. I've been feeding kibble and raw for about 25 years using many different high end kibbles and I've found this food to be more highly digestible and biovailable than any others including EVO. My opinion is anecdotal based on the physical conditioning and musculature of my dogs and observing the size and color of the scats. Yes the scats (turds) are small and dark. It doesn't look like it just changed shape and moisture content when it comes out which is the case with most kibbles even when mixed with raw meat. good luck