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My Dog's Picky Phase and Trying Merrick Wet Food

Alright, let me tell you about this whole Merrick wet dog food thing. It all started 'cause my dog, Max, suddenly decided he was too good for his regular kibble. Just turned his nose up at it one day. Sniffed it, walked away. Drove me nuts.

So, I figured, maybe try some wet food, mix it in, make things interesting for him again. Went down to the pet store, you know, staring at that huge wall of cans. So many choices. I started reading labels, just grabbing random ones at first. Then I saw the Merrick cans. The packaging looked kinda fancy, I guess, but I mostly looked at the ingredients list on the back.

First Impressions and The Purchase

What caught my eye was seeing real meat, like deboned chicken or beef, listed right at the top. Not a bunch of weird fillers or meal first thing. Seemed more like actual food. They had a bunch of different flavors, like Thanksgiving Day Dinner and Grammy's Pot Pie. Sounded better than what I eat sometimes. I grabbed a few different kinds, figuring I'd see if Max liked any of them.

The Actual Feeding Part

Got home, popped open a can of the beef one first. Honestly, it didn't smell bad like some wet foods do. Kinda like a thick stew. I didn't want to just dump a whole can in his bowl right away – read somewhere you gotta transition them slowly. So, I scooped out maybe a quarter of the can and mixed it really well with his usual dry food.

Put the bowl down. Max came over, sniffed it suspiciously like he always did. But then, he actually started eating! Didn't just pick out the wet stuff either, ate the kibble mixed in too. Finished the whole bowl, which he hadn't done in weeks. That was a good sign.

Watching and Waiting

Okay, so he ate it once. Big deal, right? The real test was seeing how it... uh... came out the other end. And if he'd keep eating it. So, for the next few days, I kept mixing a bit of the Merrick wet food into his meals. Tried the different flavors I bought.

• Tummy Check: Kept a close eye on his poops. Everything looked normal, no weird colors or softness. Good sign, no stomach upset.
• Enthusiasm Check: He kept eating his meals without hesitation. Seemed genuinely excited when he heard the can opening. Licked the bowl clean most times.
• Flavor Favorites: He definitely seemed to prefer the chunkier stew-like ones over the pâté style, but he ate them all.

Longer Term Use

After that initial success, I kept buying the Merrick wet food. Didn't use it for every single meal, mostly mixed it with his kibble to make it more appealing. Sometimes gave him a bit more as a treat. Been doing this for a good few months now.

His coat looks pretty good, shiny. His energy levels are fine, still zooms around the yard like a maniac. The biggest thing for me is that he's consistently eating his food without a fuss. Mealtime isn't a battle anymore, which is a huge relief.

So yeah, that's my journey with Merrick wet food. Started 'cause of a picky eater, read some labels, gave it a shot, watched how he reacted, and stuck with it 'cause it worked for Max. It's decent stuff, seems like real food, and my dog actually eats it. That's the bottom line for me.