Merrick Canned LID -- Most Now With Pea Protein

[lisahe]

The thread title sums it up: all three poultry-based Merrick LID canned food now has pea protein. I'm not sure when they added it, but here's their page. The duck and turkey cans I have don't list pea protein on the labels but I wonder if they already have it because the recent cans just seemed a little different. Maybe this is why several of us thought their food was inconsistent?!

Our cats loved this food and it seemed pretty low-carb so I'm sorry it's no longer an option... I've been working on reducing their intake of various gums anyway but it's always been a "sure thing" kind of food for them that I was happy to recommend.

Yet another real-life reminder to check labels and Web sites often, I guess. (I also noticed recently that Primal chicken/salmon has carrots in it, something I can't believe I wouldn't haven't noticed before, either in the food, since there are small but visible shreds, or on the label.)

 

[missmimz]

Yeah, I think the pea protein has been in there for awhile. I just got a case of the turkey and it's on the label. I only feed it as a night snack and split between 7 cats so I'm not that worried about it, but i do think the quality is declining.

 

[suzannef]

What a shame. My cats like these so much better than the chicken/turkey/duck options of Wild Calling, NVI, etc. And the price is good, even for only 5 oz vs 5.5 oz.

 

[paiger8]

That's seriously annoying. I wonder if it has something to do with Purina buying out Merrick. Did they just add the alfalfa meal as well? I don't remember noticing it before. Though I can't remember the last time I checked the label on it. It's probably been since last September or November.

Neither cat seems to be sensitive to it so far, and they only eat 1/2 can a day each, so I'll keep feeding it for now. I'd like to get them completely switched over to raw, but it'd add about $40-50 to my budget monthly and it's just not feasible at the moment. Plus, if I need to board them, canned is just easier. 

 

[foxxycat]

I am sure its because of purina buying them out. tons of people on facebook told them we will go elsewhere. and we have.

 

[paiger8]

@LisaHE  - What will you be feeding now since you're dropping Merrick? Honestly the alfalfa meal concerns me as much as the peas. Sneaking grains into cat food...

I'm so sick of searching for cat food. I thought I finally had it all down to a science. 

 

[lisahe]

What a shame. My cats like these so much better than the chicken/turkey/duck options of Wild Calling, NVI, etc. And the price is good, even for only 5 oz vs 5.5 oz.

I know, it was a great value an the cats loved it, though they had been less enthusiastic about the last couple cans, which I'll let the cats finish off what we have at home but that'll be it: I really don't like pea products in their food.

 
@LisaHE  - What will you be feeding now since you're dropping Merrick? Honestly the alfalfa meal concerns me as much as the peas. Sneaking grains into cat food...

I'm so sick of searching for cat food. I thought I finally had it all down to a science. 

They weren't getting Merrick that often -- they have a lot of cans in their canned rotation -- so it's not a huge loss, though it was always a sure thing, food they'd definitely eat. In any case, I would have cut Merrick LID anyway because of the gums!

All their foods are getting shifted a little, except the Rad Cat piece. For freeze-dried raw, they're now only getting Primal's pork but I added in chicken/lamb Feline Natural, which they love. They also get a fairly large meal of EZcomplete homecooked food every day. They love that, too. The tough part of all this is that most of their canned foods -- everything but Tiki -- have gums or tapioca and I'd like to feed as few of those as possible. I may try making more homecooked food so they get that twice a day. The cats get bored with their food so easily that variety's always a big consideration, though they get small meals of Rad Cat everyday--two days of chicken, then two days of turkey--and never get bored with that. Cats!

 

[ruthm]

Oh phooey!!! My kitten Buster just loved the Chicken and the turkey... but I did notice this last 2 cases from Chewy- he did turn his nose up and this is totally unlike him! 

Thanks for letting us know, even though it's so frustrating!

 

[lisahe]

 
Oh phooey!!! My kitten Buster just loved the Chicken and the turkey... but I did notice this last 2 cases from Chewy- he did turn his nose up and this is totally unlike him! 

Thanks for letting us know, even though it's so frustrating!

I know, it's very frustrating! I have to think the last couple cans I've fed already have peas, even though they're not listed on the label. The food just seemed a little different and the cats didn't eat it as enthusiastically as before.

 

[thegreystalker]

It seems that for some of you, pea protein content is a deal-breaker. Do you feel the same way about the formulas created by Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance?  I'm considering whether or not to buy a couple of cases of the DVP Duck and DVP Venison.  Both contain a fair share of ground peas.

 

[lisahe]

 
It seems that for some of you, pea protein content is a deal-breaker. Do you feel the same way about the formulas created by Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance?  I'm considering whether or not to buy a couple of cases of the DVP Duck and DVP Venison.  Both contain a fair share of ground peas.

Yes, I do feel the same way about those. I won't feed peas. I believe they don't belong in cat food: they're often used as fillers and they're carby. Beyond that, cats need meat-based protein rather than plant-based protein -- they're not really built to process vegetables.

If I looked up the right foods (I went for the LID, is that right?) and the data on the Catinfo.org chart are still correct (some formulas may have changed since 2012) the foods you mentioned have dry matter carbohydrate of 22% (duck) and 15% (venison). Dr. Pierson, keeper of the list, recommends keeping carbs at 10% dry matter or lower. Most of our cats' foods are even lower.

I make a few vegetable exceptions and do feed foods with low-carb vegetables that are used as nutrients in foods -- many are greens -- but I avoid peas of all kinds, carrots (I just took Primal chicken/salmon off the menu because I noticed it has carrot; I don't think it was there before), and potatoes (one of our cats has a sensitivity to potato). So, when it comes to vegetables, carbs are where I draw my very thick line. Our cats' sensitive guts (they're Siamese mixes; they're prone to digestive issues) are one reason I don't buy foods with carby vegetables but it also irritates me tremendously that pet food makers put so many relatively high-calorie vegetable fillers into foods for cats in the first place. They may save money with fillers and/or think humans will buy their cat foods that sound healthy because they have vegetables. But cats and humans have different nutritional needs and it's meat that cats need. When I told our vet that Edwina had stopped vomiting after we stopped feeding her foods with potato, the vet said, "Potato doesn't belong in cat food anyway!"

I know that's probably a whole lot more than you bargained for.

I don't mean to lecture, I just find it increasingly difficult to buy decent cat foods without all manner of caloric fillers and unnecessary thickeners, many of which can lead to health issues. That frustration is a big reason I've begun making homecooked food for one meal a day: our cats love it and it's food I actually feel good about feeding to them. With most commercial foods -- many of which add insult to injury by being disproportionately expensive -- I have a feeling of "pick your poison," and that's a sad statement. All I want is to feed the cats simple food that's good for them!

 

[lisamarie12]

The thread title sums it up: all three poultry-based Merrick LID canned food now has pea protein. I'm not sure when they added it, but here's their page. The duck and turkey cans I have don't list pea protein on the labels but I wonder if they already have it because the recent cans just seemed a little different. Maybe this is why several of us thought their food was inconsistent?!

LisaHE, just an FYI re: pet food labeling: it is my understanding that pet food companies are allowed, per the FDA, to keep the same label ingredient list for up to six months of having made an ingredient change, which is outrageous really, considering pets with allergies and/or ingredients that one wishes to avoid.

I agree with you re: peas, I've eliminated peas from the cats diet entirely, no more Instinct and Merrick I didn't trust anyway, post takeover by Purina.

 

[lisahe]

LisaHE, just an FYI re: pet food labeling: it is my understanding that pet food companies are allowed, per the FDA, to keep the same label ingredient list for up to six months of having made an ingredient change, which is outrageous really, considering pets with allergies and/or ingredients that one wishes to avoid.

I agree with you re: peas, I've eliminated peas from the cats diet entirely, no more Instinct and Merrick I didn't trust anyway, post takeover by Purina.

Thank so much for mentioning the labeling, LisaMarie12, I'd meant to note that... I have to think the cans I have must be post-pea even though they don't say they are! Especially since our cats don't like the food nearly as much--I remember that they didn't like other Merrick foods with peas that were leftover from Brooksie, who so loved Cowboy Cookout in her last weeks!

 

[bonepicker]

What about whole Earth Farms by Merrick, my cats like that as well as all the Merrick. Heck I had cats that lived to 20 eating Friskies, I think most cats do fine on most wet foods.

 

[lisahe]

What about whole Earth Farms by Merrick, my cats like that as well as all the Merrick. Heck I had cats that lived to 20 eating Friskies, I think most cats do fine on most wet foods.

Good question, bonepicker! I was thinking about this in the shower (cat food really does obsess me, doesn't it!?) and wondering about this, too. So.

Some Whole Earth Farms food already had potato and peas so I didn't feed them; I'm not including alfalfa in this summary. But here's the WEF pate canned food summary, based on their Web site, accessed this 17th day of June 2016:

Salmon: peas

Beef: no potato or peas

Chicken: peas (I note: this one's 3/4 of the way to Scarborough Faire, with rosemary, sage, and thyme, hmm)

Duck: no potato or peas (our cats have eaten this one but they didn't like it as much as the Merrick LID, but of course!)

Turkey: peas

Tuna/whitefish: peas

And I definitely hear what you're saying about just feeding wet food being a good start -- though I think foods like Fancy Feast and Friskies pates are often a better choice than a lot of the higher-carb, higher-cost foods out there. (I'd much sooner feed byproducts than potato, for example.) Our Brooksie, whom we fed horrible cheap dry food and wheat gluten-loaded Fancy Feast for years lived to be at least 16 or 17, despite having a million illnesses, some (heart) not even related to diet! For better or worse, the cats we have now have far more sensitive systems at a much younger age, probably partly just because they're Siamese mixes -- I'm lucky I learned so much from our feeding mistakes with Brooksie.

 

[bonepicker]

Interesting mine eat the WEF duck and beef, that's what they like along with Soulistic chicken dinner in gelee, and pride rabbit. They also love Frisky pate, go figure. I have a male cat who is 6 and has NEVER thrown up, not even once.

 

[lisahe]

Interesting mine eat the WEF duck and beef, that's what they like along with Soulistic chicken dinner in gelee, and pride rabbit. They also love Frisky pate, go figure. I have a male cat who is 6 and has NEVER thrown up, not even once.

Wow, six years and never vomited, that is something! At least Edwina does pretty well if I do things right: today, though, I made a double mistake (too little much food a little too soon after the last meal) that resulted in a scarf and barf. Eek!

 

[thegreystalker]

Your points make sense, LisaHE.

Also, I am puzzled as to why people think Meat By Products and Poultry By Products aren't healthy foods for cats.  Cats eat organs etc. in the wild.

 

[lisahe]

 
Your points make sense, LisaHE.

Also, I am puzzled as to why people think Meat By Products and Poultry By Products aren't healthy foods for cats.  Cats eat organs etc. in the wild.

I'm not exactly sure, either TheGreyStalker, though suspect this PetMD blog post (here) might give us both a clue

: apparently a lot of people think byproducts can include feces and roadkill. And Dr. Pierson, on catinfo.org, writes (here) that, among other things, "I would much rather see a cat eat an all-by-product canned food than any dry food." The bolding and italics are all hers!

I wonder if one reason some vets (including ours) aren't thrilled with foods like Fancy Feast and Friskies is that their phosphorus levels are relatively high? I'm not sure. I'd much sooner feed a food that has, say, meat plus by-products as fillers than meat plus peas or potatoes as fillers. Of course neither's going to happen around here since I'm slowly eliminating lots of ingredients from our cats' menu because of their hinky stomachs... gums and carrageenan are ubiquitous, meaning I'm left with about one brand, Tiki Cat. (Weekend project: going back to old threads about foods without carrageenan and gums.) We're lucky the cats love Tiki Cat as well as their raw and homemade foods, though I'm really hating scaling them back on canned food because they're so convenient, particularly when I travel and have to explain to my husband how to feed them!

 

[missmimz]

I'm going to phase out Merrick once I'm done with the turkey and chicken that I already have. I'm so frustrated because my younger cats still need to eat a lot so I need to supplement with some canned. The only other canned they like other than Merrick is ZP and weruva, and ZP just had a huge price jump. $45 for 12 6oz cans is ridiculous! I'm trying to get mine to eat some cooked with EZ but they just don't really like cooked, and they pick at Tikicat more than actually eat it. Sigh.