Merrick Cat Food Reviews

Did Merrick hire a Wall Street bro to head up the company? Merrick just hosed their dedicated client base. Cat owner here with a picky dang'ed cat. Lil dude's been all about the Merrick beef for four years. This month the beef is now twice the price and in half the size cans. They fully phased out 5 oz cans for all their cat foods. They have downsized all their wet foods to only 3 oz cans. Merrick is bilking the customer and making more waste. How can anyone say it isn't with absolute and full intent. How very investment banker of you, Merrick.

What is happening here with MERRICK cat food! Discontinued LI and now perfect bistro chicken is making them very ill!! Wow this is bad!

Sadly, the new salmon sweet potato recipe and kibble size are not well-received by my adult cat. The ingredient quality also appears to be decreased. Add the now 4-lb bag compared to the 8-lb size at the same price. Disappointment. Now I have to find a new pet food.

They completely discontinued the Limited Ingredient Diet cat food. I'd always order it by the pallet -- 24 5-oz. cans -- and now it's ONLY the Purrfect Bistro, ONLY in 3-oz cans. I believe a pallet of 24 3-oz. cans is $36-something. They REFUSE to admit that they've discontinued the 5-oz. Limited Ingredient Diet in order to raise prices, but that's EXACTLY what they've done. Just do the math -- through Chewy, I've been paying just over $57 for the Limited Ingredient, 5-oz., pallet of 24. The last time I was on Chewy's site, a pallet of 24 3-oz. cans of the Purrfect Bistro was $36-something. So it'll be nearly twice that -- I'm figuring $65+ to get the same amount.

Received Amazon order of Merrick Duck cat food with outer box and inner plastic undamaged. Every can looked dented and numerous cans were open. Spoiled moldy cat food was all over everything. While Amazon initially said to discard it, the day after receipt I was told it was not returnable. Wish I still had that nasty, moldy mess to return to "Merrick Store" corporate office(r)s--I'd think the mailing expense was well worth it for them to have to go through discarding it themselves. Merrick used to be a good company but those days are clearly gone.

I have a cat that's allergic to fleas, and use to loose all his fur (the gray long haired). My cats and dog have not needed a flea medication since I started buying Merrick hard food. When I took one of my cats for her yearly check up, they swore she couldn't have been more than a year old, she was 4 years old. My fur babies have zero tartar on their teeth. Both my cats and dog have been nothing but healthy. All of this and they LOVE their food!

I've been feeding my cat, who has food allergies, Limited Ingredient Turkey Pate for about a year, alternating with a couple of foods from another brand. She's always gobbled the turkey pate like candy, until today. I autoship from Chewy, and opened the first can of a 24-pack this morning. It looked like a completely different cat food. It's usually a fine-textured little pate loaf that pulls away from the side of a can a little. This looked like a thick slurry with visible meat. It didn't smell bad, so I gave it a shot. She went without food all day rather than eat it, and refused both the rest of that can and a new can tonight. I was really excited at finding something she liked so well at a reasonable price, but I'm listening to my cat and tossing the rest of this. Has anyone else had this experience?

Merrick changed the recipe without notice to its consumers causing a lot of discomfort for our cats. After a little research it can be known that the company has a history of doing this every couple of years.

About 2 months ago, my female cat began to lose weight and refuse to eat. Her condition is now fragile. Since she is a very healthy cat, normally, this caused me great concern. After much evaluating, and monitoring, I could see that the problem was the Merrick Limited Ingredient Sensitive Stomach dry food, which all four of my cats have eaten for years. But no more, as the last bag I purchased will not be eaten by any of the four, and even the local ferals won't touch it.

My cats had been eating Merrick cat food for years. We’d give them a variety of the Purrfect Bistro chicken, turkey, duck, tuna, and salmon. Starting maybe end of 2019, early 2020 we noticed one of our cats being oddly picky about which kinds he was willing to eat - sometimes only tuna, sometimes only chicken. Our other cat would eat only small amounts and walk away, but ask for more frequently, and started hanging out constantly by her water dish. We thought it was just them being weird with us being home all the time, or maybe we got a few odd batches and the next would be acceptable.

We raised Archie on Purina Beyond Grain Free Whitefish dry cat food since 2014 and this is the only cat food he would eat until about a month ago when Purina did something to their formula. The smell is horrible and the texture looks like dog food and does not have the same look to it either. Archie will only eat dry cat food that is made with fish and we preordered $300.00 worth of food for him because he used to love it and now we are stuck with all this food he will not touch, so we decided to go with Merrick’s Salmon grain free dry food and we put it in his bowl and he got a whiff of that and ran for his life. Would not even go near the food.

One of my cats' favorite flavor is Merrick's Purrfect Bistro Thanksgiving Day Dinner. She's the picky one so we cater to her flavor preferences and my cats have been eating it for years (besides other flavors/brands). Recently (and by that I mean for the last two months) Chewy has been "out of stock". I called them, they had no information. I called Merrick and they said something about "supply chain issues". Hmm, okay. I ordered Chicken Casserole flavor instead. THEN MY BOY KITTY (Benjamin) STOPPED EATING, would dry heave and spit out bile. I freaked out, took him to a veterinary urgent care location (Bond Vet, they were fabulous). They did bloodwork, urinalysis, gave him fluids and ** (anti-nausea shot). $586.86 later, he went home. It took him several days to regain his normalness.

I have been feeding Merrick wet food, several flavors, for about six months, about 75%, remaining 25% is Wellness. They love it. Great, healthy ingredients. I am shocked reading all the negative reviews and really put some question marks behind them. Vomiting?? Never. Merrick got worse reviews here than Purina and Fancy Feast, both known for junk food. One caveat: Merrick is now owned by Purina, so it has to be followed closely, although they promised they would not lower the quality. At this point of time I can absolutely recommend, it is, without a doubt, by far the best cat food reviewed on this site.

We had been using Purrfect Bistro for our rescue cat, Luna, for over 4 years. Her favourites were Rabbit and Turkey. About 9 months ago, she started rejecting the Rabbit, which she used to eat in case loads, but would no longer touch upon smelling it. In late-December 2020, she started throwing up violently after a couple of times eating Turkey. We switched her to Purrfect Bistro Salmon, but she continued to vomit for 2 days after each feeding, ranging from a brown paste to blood-tinged bile. We rushed her to the Emergency Vet Hospital on December 24, where the vet diagnosed her as suffering from food poisoning, loss of weight, dehydration, lethargy, and disorientation. Because Luna occasionally goes out, we thought that she might have eaten something outside.

I've had the same experience I'm reading over and over here. Vomiting. Have used Merrick Limited Ingredient can cat food for years. Something has changed, looks different, smells different. All 3 of mine started vomiting. When it's one kitty vomiting I don't jump to conclusions but when all three get sick together right after I've noticed the food I'm feeding them looks and smells different... well. And vomiting the weird red-ish color of the food (turkey) for 12 hours: my sensitive girl was REALLY sick. I know I read the company was bought out a few years ago ("all about cats" website states: 2015, Nestlé Purina announced its buyout of Merrick Pet Care).

I have used Merrick cat food for years. I buy it from Pet Supplies Plus. About five days ago one of my cats threw up after eating some of the canned Merrick cat food and some of the dry Merrick cat food. He threw up and then was not interested in eating for a day. When he started eating again, he seemed reluctant and was very slow. He also was not interested in his food as much as he normally is. I was not sure what was wrong, but I noticed he had softened stools. Then my other cat started exhibiting the same symptoms. I have read some of the comments and I suspect there is a problem with the Merrick food. I am going to return all the Merrick food I bought. I just am not sure what food I can try now that Merrick has made changes to its cat food.

The wet food is literally one of the only foods my super picky Maine Coon will eat. And she never gets sick of it either, like she will with other foods. Great ingredients and family owned, We love them. ❤️

I feel very upset what happend with this food, esp been feeding this close to 2 years. Maybe I got a bad batch or got unlucky but I rather share my experience so more people are aware of it. So I bought new bag from Petco and started feeding after week, cat started vomiting, then this moved to intense diarrhea where it became pure liquid form. I ended up taking to vet twice coz I thought it was parasite issue. Feeding medicine helped but diarrhea continued. When vet asked me what I was feeding and suggested prescribed wet/dry food, that's when I realized maybe dry food was causing it. I immediately changed the dry food to different brand, I had no issues with poop/vomiting since then.

We have been feeding our cat Merrick, both the Cowboy Cookout and Beef Wellington, for about 18 months. The last case I got is not the same. The gravy has been replaced with a gelatinous goop coating the top! I put some in a bowl and set it on the floor. My cat just walked away. I threw that can up and opened another one. Same goop. Thought it was just a bad batch, possibly expired, but the date on the bottom said it was good until 2022. I have read other recent reviews elsewhere, to people saying it's a definite change for the worse. Our cat is picky. Merrick has always been his favorite, but we have had to change to another brand.

My vet recommended that we feed our cats some wet food along with the dry. We chose Purrfect Bistro pate and the cats ate it but within a week they became sick. They would throw up and then they developed crystals from this food causing them to keep trying to pee and peeing blood. One cat needed to be put down and the other cat is fighting with antibiotics, pain meds and not eating this food. Hopefully she will recover unlike our Stormcloud. I will never buy from this company again....ever. From all the reviews I would definitely not recommend this to anyone.

I'm so glad I discovered Merrick over 4 years ago. I started feeding it to my two cats when they were kittens; they will be 5 years old this May, and they are still fit, trim and full of energy! I give them a combination of both wet and dry food (each cat gets strictly 1/2 can of wet and 1/4 cup of dry per day). My one cat developed an illness when she was a kitten that lasted for months - I don't know what caused it, but she was lethargic all the time and had little appetite; the vet gave us a 'special formula' cat food to feed her, but the ingredients were awful - full of fillers and things cats should not be consuming! I was very aware of cat health already, so I tried a couple different healthy brands to see which one my currently picky cat would actually eat - and she would only eat Merrick.

My cat is finicky on new foods, and she tends to puke here and there, but not crazy. They were out of the normal food and suggested this Merrick food. Cat seemed to like it alright, cleaned her dish. We use an automatic feeder since we spend weekend at the grand kids. I had four meals a day with a double serving at 6pm set. This Merrick, I set 6 meals and two were doubles. Instead of 5 servings, she was up to 8 or more if she was really pushy. Huge poops. HUGE. And enough vomit to choke a horse. I just cleaned up a hallway wall to wall puddle that was insane. Tomorrow I will hit the pet store to see if the other stuff is back in stock.

I changed to Merrick adult cat food in attempts to give our Cali a better quality food but during the 4 or 5 days she was fed this brand she kept vomiting. Now occasionally she would vomit but this was consistently after each time she ate this particular brand. At first I thought it was because she was eating too much so I decreased the quantity, then thought she was eating too fast but she refused to eat it after the 4th or 5th day. I gave her real chicken for one day to be sure it wasn't upset stomach, parasites or something and she kept it down so figured I'd try another brand. She ate the new one, with no problems, hasn't vomited once so it had to be the Merrick brand, not sure what it is but hopefully they'll look into it.

I had a hard time for a few weeks to get the specialty flavors my finicky cat will eat and it was frustrating enough that I called the company. During the course of our conversation I found out one of those flavors was discontinued (to my dismay), and the other was out of stock. Then the customer service rep said that from time to time they like to change things up and also had updated some recipes to add more gravy. I questioned why they would do that. It seemed like they were adding gravy to the detriment of the actual meat because how would they fit it in the can otherwise. She assured me the other two flavors I was used to buying had not changed.

My first clue something might be up was when it took my local co-op 2 weeks to get my usual case of this cat food. I switch off every 2 days with another kind of cat food, so I bought 3 cans at Petco to tide them over. That's when I discovered it now comes in aluminum cans! The ingredient list is longer, but not a lot different from what I've been able to discern so far. My 3 rather finicky cats all still like it, so changing would be difficult, but I'm not happy about the aluminum cans.

Purchased at Petco because it was discontinued and price reduced. Thought I was getting a good deal on a quality cat food. I have 5 cats rescued from a colony from one abandoned pregnant cat. I have never cleaned up so much vomit! I blame the food.

We have been feeding our 2 cats Merrick their whole lives. Recently, within the last couple of weeks, my 8 year old has decided that he doesn't like their wet food, and he's not so keen on the dry food either. My 14 year old (who is very active) will still eat it but they are not as anxious about eating it as they had been. I know the formula changed. I can see it when I open the can. It doesn't look as natural and it is a different consistency than it used to be.

My 2 yr old cat has been eating Merrick Cat Food since I adopted him 2 yrs ago and eats 4 or 5 flavors of the grain free pâte. He always looks forward to his meals but these past 2 weeks he’s been turning his nose up!!! The last time a cat that I had did this, the food company had been taken over by another owner. And, obviously changed the formula. Something tells me Merrick has changed the ingredients or quality of the food too. Why would they be so foolish to do this? If it’s not broken, don't fix it!!

I've been purchasing this product since it replaced the previous 'New England Boil'. The quality has gone downhill since then. The batches are very hit or miss. Some batches are fine, others (most lately) are 2/3 water. They say that they want feedback, but nothing has changed in the past year. I'm trying to get my cat to eat something else, but he is, unfortunately, extremely finicky.

Pet store recommended Merrick about 6 months ago over another brand because he said they were a better company and made better food. I believe this WAS true since my dog and cat both started eating better after the switch. We buy food about every 2 months, so 2 months ago cat was still eating fine, but with this new batch, my cat is refusing to eat it. I tried switching to a different formula "minimal ingredient recipe" and still he won't touch it. Just found out the company sold out by reading these reviews. Obviously something has changed and not for the better. On with the search for a better product. Might have to start adding my animals to my grocery budget and just start feeding them from the kitchen if a company can't stay pure!

My cat has been raw-fed since he was a kitten (he is now 2 years), but when I am traveling I buy the best quality canned food I can find and transition him over in the week before I leave. I made a 2 week trip in August 2018 (my cat LOVES road trips), and I bought an entire flat of Purrfect Bistro Chicken Pate from my local pet store (he's a big cat - he eats 8-12 oz per day, depending on his activity). He was eating it for 2 weeks no problem. On the very last day, mid-morning, my cat became VIOLENTLY ill. Constant diarrhea and vomiting. It was eventually just clear fluids coming out both ends, very scary. He was lethargic and isolating himself hunched up in a corner. I took him to the emergency vet: he had a fever and was mildly dehydrated. We did a bunch of tests which came back fine, but they kept him for 3 nights on IV because he wouldn't eat anything.

This food is not good. I do not know what they are putting in it, but my cat has lost quite a bit of weight and is now very underweight. I also found from Amazon reviews that other people's cats have been losing weight on this food to the point of starvation, which I feel is also happening to my cat, and she eats constantly. I also purchase from Amazon and realized other people are having similar problems with weight loss. I couldn't figure out why she was losing weight. It is very crumbly and gives my cat bad breath, and gets all over her face and stays there. She was a very happy cat and now is very lethargic and tired. I am changing her food immediately, after realizing she has lost weight with this, even though she eats constantly. Bad food. I don't know what Purina is pulling, but it is not good.

The last couple of bags of Purrfect Bistro chow I have used is filled with crumbled chow dust. The cats stopped eating it because of all the crumbs that sit on the top. I have to keep shaking their bowl to make it settle. I used to buy Merrick because they had their own processing plant so their food didn't get mixed with everybody else's. With all the crumbled kibble dust I can't buy this anymore. It's a waste of money. Things have sure changed at Merrick since they sold out or supposedly did. What a shame... Happens every time when Big Corporations take over. They ruin everything! No more...

I went to feed my cat today and opened a can of the Merrick grain free chicken pate. She’s been eating the same brand for 2 years. I order it from Amazon. Well today I went to open the tab and it exploded in my face & went all over me and on the wall. The smell was horrible. I immediately jumped into my shower. Thank God I had my glasses on because it covered my face and hair. I still can’t get the smell out of my house and it smells like something died. On top of it my cheeks feel like they are on fire and burning. I’m sure it was a faulty seal in the can and a build up of gases. This happened an hour ago. I’ve tried contacting Amazon and I’ve tried contacting Merrick. This product needs to be recalled.

Have been using Merrick chicken kibble for 10 years. Have noticed, particularly the last 6 months my 3 kibble loving cats are getting chubby, seem unsatiated and have considerable congestion issues...then I found out that the company was sold to a multi corporation focused on money, not pet care. I have 7 cats...we depend on excellent quality in pet food to facilitate good health and reduced vet bills. I am angry that I wasn't informed sooner. NO MORE MERRICK CRAP.

Just opened a can of Merrick's COWBOY COOKOUT. Instead of the usual meaty contents, I got ONLY GRAVY and a VERY small quantity of solid food. Are you kidding? At $1.69 per can? I've purchased COWBOY COOKOUT for years which DID have excellent vet recommendations as high quality food. Is this the "new" Merrick? I am so shocked and disappointed!!! I will call the pet store AND your company to complain.

My cat (5 years old) refuses to eat Merrick Purrfect Bistro. I tried mixing with regular brand, by itself, with water added. She would rather go hungry. Now she smells the Merrick and walks away. I had to make a trip to get her old brand (FROMM) since she refuses to eat Merrick the last 2 days. I had picked Merrick because I liked the ingredients, same as in other cat foods she is used to. However, no more Merrick at our home.

Purrfect Bistro - Kitten (dry & wet) - I've read all of the reviews and have had none of the problems others have described. My 5 month old Short Hair goes nuts when it's time to eat! Mowing, purring, & prancing while I'm mixing it up. I purchased 2 cases of wet cans & a bag of dry from Amazon. I notice no off-flavors in either. I am a Professional Brewer who has gone through a rigorous sensory training program so my nose is definitely honed to detect off-flavors. And both taste fine. Yup I taste my animal’s food. I've had cats, dogs, & rabbits my whole life of 43 years and by far Merrick is the best smelling & tasting pet food.

Wow! After contacting Merrick Pet Food Customer Service about an unknown, hard lump object inside their canned "Rabbit Recipe" cat food that could harm a cat's teeth, the best they offered was UPS delivery pick up to examine the object. Not even a "Sorry this happened" or "We'll send you some coupons to make up for this."

I adopted a beautiful ragdoll Siamese cross type cat from the shelter... Changing cat food frequently to try to get away from dandruff and the poor Kitty vomiting. This is the only food that I found that she is not vomiting anymore. It's a sheer blessing. This is probably the reason why she went to the shelter to begin with. I went through minimum of 6 different types of food Kitty wouldn't even eat moist food. So that wasn't even an option. I was lucky when she liked the salmon formula and even eats the freeze-dried kidlets. Which she would not do in other formula. This works for my cat. Took me over a year to find it but we will continue to buy this food. Thank you.