Merrick dog food
October 29, 2010
Filed under Dog Food Reviews, Merrick
Merrick Dog Food Review
Merrick dog food products are formulated based on the company’s mission statement “comfort for the soul”. The Merrick Pet Foods, Inc. is a family-owned business that started out as a manufacturer of natural dog treats. Merrick claims that all their products have undergone a very simple process to ensure that the nutrients are retained as much as possible without the addition of artificial colors, preservatives, or flavors.
It was only in 2003 that Merrick started a dry dog food line originally composed of six different formulas. They have added one dry dog food formula to the six original ones. Merrick’s existing dry dog food gourmets include Campfire Trout Feast, Cowboy Cookout, Grammy’s Pot Pie, Puppy Plate, Senior Medley, Turducken, and Wilderness Blend. All these formulas have been tailored to meet AAFCO nutrient profiles required for all life stages.
We recommend Merrick’s dog foods and believe that they produce some of the highest quality formulas available. While it is an expensive option, we believe that that quality warrants the higher price.
The main ingredients of Merrick dog food products contain a major protein source that combines fresh or raw meat with a specific meat concentrate. A Merrick dog food formula may contain one or two of the following meat sources—buffalo, chicken, trout, beef, salmon meal, lamb meal, turkey meal, chicken meal, and pork meal.
In formulating their rations, they paired up a raw meat source with a specific meat concentrate to maintain the protein levels of the dog food. Fresh meat sources such as buffalo, chicken, beef, or trout contain high levels (approximately 80%) of water which evaporates upon processing leaving only a fraction of the original raw ingredient. Meat meals are considered meat concentrates that contain almost 300% protein than raw meat sources. It is good to note that the meat meals used Merrick dog food products are specified and not like some dog food products that use generic meat meals. Sources of ingredients are very important in order to determine the quality of the dog food.
The fish meals are said to be ethoxyquin-free. Ethoxyquin is considered a dangerous food additive. Trout and fish meals contain high levels of omega-3 fatty acids which are essential in many physiological processes of the body and to maintain healthy hair coats.
The carbohydrate component of Merrick’s dog food formulas is comprised of pearled barley, oat meal, and ground rice. These are whole grains which are also excellent sources of fiber and B-vitamins. Oatmeal is made from coarsely ground oats and is mostly gluten-free. Gluten-rich ingredients in dog food have been linked to allergies in dogs.
Probiotics have been added to infuse beneficial microorganisms into the dog food. Chelated minerals are also present for easy absorption and utilization of essential amino acids.
Customer Reviews
Many dog owners like the fact that Merrick dog food products do not contain common food allergens such as corn, wheat or soy. There are many dog owners who shifted their dogs’ diet to Merrick to alleviate and/or get rid of food-based allergies.
Most negative feedbacks are centered on digestive disturbances that a dog may have when switching dog food brands. Some owners reported their dogs having loose stools and emitting foul-smelling gas. This is especially true for dogs with sensitive digestive systems.
We strongly support Merrick dog food and believe that this is one of the better dog food brands for your dog. Their updated formulas are a welcomed improvement and the company continues on a great path.
Merrick Dog Food Reviews
Merrick dog food formulas:
- Merrick Grammys Pot Pie dog food – Updated Formula and Review (10/29/10)
- Merrick Wilderness dog food – Updated Formula and Review (10/29/10)
- Merrick Puppy Plate dog food – Updated Formula and Review (10/29/10)
- Merrick Senior Medley dog food – Updated Formula and Review (10/29/10)
- Merrick Turduken dog food
- Merrick Campfire trout dog food
- Merrick Cowboy Cook Out dog food
Merrick Dog Food Consumer Rating
| Title | Votes | Rating | Review |
| Merrick Grammys Pot Pie dog food | 66 | 6.3 | -1.0 |
| Merrick Puppy Plate dog food | 78 | 6.9 | -1.0 |
| Merrick Senior Medley dog food | 29 | 6.0 | -1.0 |
| Merrick Turduken dog food | 41 | 7.4 | -1.0 |
| Merrick Wilderness Blend Dog Food | 37 | 6.9 | -1.0 |
| Merrick dog food | 3 | 7.7 | -1.0 |
Great job on rating the foods out there we carry some of the foods you recommend. But I would have to slightly disagree with this food ranking high in the quality.
Some Reasons:
1. A meat in meal form is the 4th ingredient and with Buffalo as a whole meat ingredient (not meal) it would fall below the grains after it is cooked and water evaporates, making Oatmeal and Barley the major ingredients in this food. I’m not 100% sure but Chicken for example is about 80% water in it’s whole form and ingredients are listed as weight prior to being cooked.
2. Oatmeal contains gluten so dogs allergic to gluten would have an issue with this food.
Good job though and please correct me if I am wrong.
Dave
Thanks for your comments David. Correct me if I am wrong but any meat that IS in a Meal form has most of the water “cooked” out. Meat that is not in meal form is %80 water. With that being said the first ingredients is Buffalo and has a water content of about 80% as you stated.
IF you do feed your dogs with grains. Rice, Barley and Oatmeal are prefered but like David David says if your dogs in allergic to Gluten then you would want to aviod this food. There are a lot of grain free foods out there to chose from.
hi………i just tried your product for my diabetic dog. i feel that the products are wonderful and after watching him devour it, it must taste pretty good. he is extremely finicy.
to your knowledge, is this product ok for diabetics”?
I have very picky shitzu, she doesn’t like to eat the same food. I even cooked for her bud after couple of meals no more. Then someone recomended Merrick dog food and I bought a can of Grammys pot pie to try. I mixed it up with some of her dry dog food and she absolutly loved it. Just a tablespoon of can food with dry. Now she loves to eat and I am happy to watch her enjoy it.
Since switching from other brands to Merrick, the reddish tear stains around the eyes of my 1 year old Shih-Tzu/Maltese mix are totally gone. I recommend it to anyone whose dog has a similar problem, usually caused by additives in the food. I use the dry mixed with a little bit of the canned and she loves it!
I was really looking forward to switching my dog to Merrick. Unfortunately she has not tolerated the Wilderness Blend dry food as I had hoped. It was not a case of not transitioning her properly… she just has not adjusted to the food and has had very loose stools w/ occasional diarrhea for the past 2 weeks and also seems somewhat lethargic. I am trying a grain-free product from another brand and hoping things go better. I was impressed by the ingredient list and with Merrick’s reputation for quality, but it just hasn’t worked for us.
I started feeding my 3 toy poodles Merrick wet and dry dog food a few months ago, and last week their groomer told me she noticed that their coats are softer and shinier, and much easier to detangle when shampooing them. She asked if I changed their diet and when I told her I switched to Merrick, she commented on what a great dog food it was and that she was sure that is what caused the improvement in my 3 dogs coats. They used to be finicky eaters, but now with Merrick they clean their bowls.
I rescued an emmaciated mutt from my local animal control and started him on merrick just like my other 2 dogs. He’s gained almost 6 pounds already and he loves the food. Their new line called Before Grain (B.G.) solved the problems with my other dog’s allergies. I work at a pet store that sells merrick and I recommend it almost everyday =].
I started my two dogs, one a chow-rottweiler mix (1 year old) and the other a chocolate lab (10 weeks old), on Merrick about 4 weeks ago and they love it. I’ve tried several other high quality brands and this is proving to be the best by far. My chow-rottie is a finicky eater, after a day two of a food she will refuse to eat, but with Merrick (I mix a couple tablespoons of the wet with the dry) and she licks her bowl clean. My lab eats everything with enthusiasm, but on Merrick I’ve noticed his stools are firm and compact and not runny like when I had him certain other foods. I use the puppy plate and wildness blend and they both are doing wonderfully on them. It’s a little pricey, but only a little more than what I was already paying for thier other food, so no biggy and well worth it.
Hi, I was wondering if anyone could comment on my concerns about Merrick having the best ingredients for a well balanced dog foog? I have served my Chi Grannys Pot Pie among other flavors of Merick since he was born. I recently discovered many companies, including those who say they are natural and organic, use dead cats and dogs mixed into their food. I was horrified to learn this and to know their ID tags, collars and the chemical used to kill the animal when putting it to sleep was part of the mix. How can we be sure Merrick is what it says? Is there any other dog food that is surely the best to avoid hurting my dog from horrible chemicals etc.
Our dog Sophia, a Cane Corso can’t get enough of your dog food. When she returned to Boston from Florida due to an illness in the family she was brought back to life with your wonderful dog food. Being reunited with her mistress and her master was wonderful of course but seeing her eat all her food without the usual “Oh my God, these people expect me to eat this junk”! was incredible. She will never again eat the usual junk. She’s so happy with the product and of course that makes us happy. Her master is ill with cancer. He had a can of your beef next to the can of beef stew he was about to prepar for a late lunch and he ate her food whilst she ate his. Neither knew the difference until later in the day. What better commentary is there? I might just buy a can of “Chunk of Beef” for myself one day and give it a try. What Sophie likes, we like. Thanks so much. Sincerely, Ursula from Boston
I was feeding this food to my Standard Poodle until they changed the formula. I guess they got too many complaints about the dehydrated fruits and veggies! At any rate the new formula made him flatulant and burpy. So I took him off from it and put him on another “quality” dog food. The old formula was great and he liked it. The new formula leaves a lot to be desired.
Will you be reviewing the Campfire Trout Feast? We have switched our Jack Russel to this food when we were having to supplement his other food with Omega Fatty Acids because he was shedding a lot and hit coat was dull. It seems to be working, his coat is thicker and shiny. The cost of supplements plus cheaper dog food is the same if not more than the Merrick brand. I am open to suggestions however. We had him on a lamb-based formula distributed by PetSmart called Authority.
what about beef n more, a merrick brand sold only at sams club
can you review that?
My Pembroke Welsh Corgi loved Merrick food until it changed and eliminated the dehydrated peas, carrots and other veggies. She now refuses to eat any Merrick product with the “elements” now in the food. I will not be buyiung anymore unless they decide to put the dehydrated veggies back in again.