Merrick canned food warning

squirtle

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If I am not mistaken, blueberries are on their ingredients list.... I don't have time to double check right now but I think they are. Along with Golden Delicious Apples
 

momof3rugratz

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Originally Posted by squirtle

If I am not mistaken, blueberries are on their ingredients list.... I don't have time to double check right now but I think they are. Along with Golden Delicious Apples
O I am sure apples are never saw the blueberries lol.
 
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ktlynn

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Originally Posted by Liberty's Buddy

However, it does not bother me. I have found bones in just about every brand of soft food I have ever used. I always check before I feed it. Merrick's is literally the only brand of soft food Liberty will eat. That says a lot. I have not found bones yet but I did find a blueberry
. -kd
I, too, have found bones (and other things) in some canned food brands, but they've been tiny fragments. Believe me, if you'd seen the bone that was in my cat's food, it would have disturbed you.

I'm glad that you carefully check Liberty's food.
 

momof3rugratz

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Originally Posted by KTLynn

I, too, have found bones (and other things) in some canned food brands, but they've been tiny fragments. Believe me, if you'd seen the bone that was in my cat's food, it would have disturbed you.

I'm glad that you carefully check Liberty's food.
Now that you say that I will be searching all my food. No matter wet/dry.
 

yosemite

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I found a short plastic string-type thing in the Merricks last night. I'm so disappointed in this food now.
 

sharky

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I havent had merrick in the house for a while the girls prefer other stuff and merrick around here is very$$ .... My ??? is has anyone emailed or called the company to ask about a possible manufactureing and production change???
 
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ktlynn

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Sharky, I called and e-mailed Merrick about the bone I found. The rep I spoke with neither expressed surprise nor offered an apology much less gave me an explanation as to how to account for that bone being in the food.

Today, just a few days after I posted this thread, another TCS member, Yosemite, has found some type of plastic string in the Merrick.

Perhaps if more people, not just the ones who are finding foreign objects in the food, contacted Merrick about their concerns, it might make an impression. The company needs to pay attention *now* to their processing and quality control, before someone's cat gets hurt, or worse.
 

russian blue

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

I found a short plastic string-type thing in the Merricks last night. I'm so disappointed in this food now.
Last month I noticed a piece of plastic in the Turducken flavour. Since that time I noticed a difference in the texture as well. I wonder if it's just a glitch in a change in manufacturing since I've been happy with the brand for the last year. If so, the quality control right now is very poor for such a facility.
 

scamperfarms

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wow...sounds bad


Almost like the guy at petsmart one day who brought in two huge peices of rubber from his bag of nutro.
 

russian blue

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Originally Posted by sharky

I havent had merrick in the house for a while the girls prefer other stuff and merrick around here is very$$ .... My ??? is has anyone emailed or called the company to ask about a possible manufactureing and production change???
Originally Posted by KTLynn

The company needs to pay attention *now* to their processing and quality control, before someone's cat gets hurt, or worse.
Just an update. I received an email from Merrick. After stating my concerns regarding quality control and if there was a change in manufacturing process they stated the following:

We keep a record of every complaint and our foreign object complaints are very low. If many people are experiencing this issue, they have not contacted us to report it and I would like to thank you for letting us know as this is how we resolve the issues.

We also have not changed any ingredients, formulations, meat source or anything about this product and do not outsource our manufacturing line.
 

semiferal

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Originally Posted by vanillasugar

wow, thanks for the warning!

Wingaling and Smothered Comfort dog formulas of Merrick both have bone purposefully. The bones are cooked to a point that they are soft and spongy, basically harmless. Most dogs I've met LOVE these types! Ordinarily, I'd be cautious of feeding ANY cooked bone, as I feel cooking makes it dangerous, but Merrick uses a special process and like I mentioned, these bones aren't hard and brittle, they're very soft.
I've fed my cats Wingaling on a couple of occasions and they absolutely loved it!
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by semiferal

I've fed my cats Wingaling on a couple of occasions and they absolutely loved it!
Our cats love Merricks too, but I don't like sharp bones and plastic in their food.
 
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ktlynn

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Originally Posted by Yosemite

Our cats love Merricks too, but I don't like sharp bones and plastic in their food.
Exactly.

How much the cats enjoy the food is beside the point.

Russian Blue, thanks for posting the e-mail message from Merrick. I wouldn't expect them to admit to lots of complaints; I'm surprised they admitted to any at all. Keep in mind that not all cat guardians are as conscientious as those here on TCS - many people "dump" the food in a dish without going through it, and some just can't be bothered to complain to the company even when they do find something that shouldn't be there. And as far as not changing anything in the manufacturing process, I disagree - I'm not the only member who has noticed a change in the consistency of the Turducken flavor, which now contains large, hard lumps. Something *is* different.

The fact that several TCS members have also found foreign objects in different flavors of Merrick is quite troubling because it's only a relatively small sample of people when you consider the thousands (who aren't TCS members) who purchase this food in the US and Canada. How many more have had this problem?

At least you got a response - I didn't get that courtesy.
 

squirtle

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I contacted them several months ago about the consistency of their food when I first noticed the change... They did admit that there were fluctuations and said a shipment of Cowboy Cookout, which was my complaint at the time, went out less moist than normal. They assured me they weren't changing their foods. This was about the same time they changed their cans (the tops were different). I have continued to notice fluctuations.

I am debating changing Dori's food. The problem is that she is so picky and won't eat much else. Back when I made the change to Merrick, I tried everything. I can get her to eat Friskies but that's about it... I won't switch to that. Until I decide what to do I am checking her food each morning carefully with a spoon.
 
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ktlynn

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[I am debating changing Dori's food. The problem is that she is so picky and won't eat much else. Back when I made the change to Merrick, I tried everything. I can get her to eat Friskies but that's about it... I won't switch to that. Until I decide what to do I am checking her food each morning carefully with a spoon.[/quote]



I can sympathize - Merrick is the only food my semi-feral boy will eat and I can see it's going to be a challenge to get him to switch. I'm starting with pea-sized amounts of a different food mixed into the Merrick; any more than that and he won't eat the Merrick either. Still, I'm determined, so I'll just have to be patient and very gradually wean him off Merrick.

You're sort of in a "lesser of two evils" situation - it's understandable that you don't want to give Dori Friskies. You might try some bribe foods to help switch - I gave Scout some Liv-A-Littles salmon treats today and he loved them. I'll see if sprinkling some of those crumbled treats on the new food will help.
 
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