Tammy Joins Merrick’s Real Food Revolution

I rescued a very sweet, shy, filthy, underweight fawn little dog from a couple at the park last week. They were dragging this poor, anxious girl along the path along with their baby in a stroller. They explained to me that they could no longer afford to care for her and that they  just wanted to find her a good home. I couldn’t say no – she was the spitting image of my Virgil, who I lost over four years ago.

They handed her off to me, not asking a single question about the kind of home I would be giving her. Well, I’d like to think Tammy had just hit the doggy lottery. The couple didn’t even say goodbye to her as they loaded up in their van, leaving me with a ragged, dirty dog bowl and a 40-pound bag of some generic brand of dog food I’d never even heard of. First ingredient: ground yellow corn. Next: soybean meal. Third: ground wheat. As soon as I got Tammy home, she promptly had bloody diarrhea.

I took Tammy to the vet before I even took her inside my house. Fecal test and heartworm test, negative (yay!). The bag of food went straight to the garbage. I wasn’t concerned with weaning her over to a new food since the old one seemed to be making her sick. I decided to start Tammy off on Merrick brand dog food.

I’ve researched a LOT of dog foods. It’s part of my job – but if we care about our pets, we should all be aware of what we’re feeding them. Merrick has always stood out as one of the best for a number of reasons. First – they are among the very few companies that import nothing from China. And I mean nothing. Most vitamins (even for human consumption) come from China. But not the vitamins Merrick uses. Merrick foods use REAL meat as their first ingredient. Not by-products. No corn, no wheat, no soy, and no GMO’s. Honestly – not many pet food (or human food!) company’s can make that claim!

Merrick owns their own manufacturing facility. Their products, both kibble and canned, are made by Merrick. Of the few companies that meet the same strict quality standards as Merrick, you’ll find even fewer that manufacture their own food.

So anyhow, I decided to let Tammy try out Merrick’s newest flavor, Grain Free Real Texas Beef and Sweet Potato. The first five ingredients: deboned beef, beef liver, lamb meal, sweet potato, and peas (That sounds much better!)

The bowl barely hit the floor before Tammy had her little black nose in it. She practically inhaled her food. Is it just me, or do you just adore the sound of a dog crunching on their food?

(But if a person does that, I’ll smack them. I digress.)

Tammy is very food motivated. She loves breakfast and dinner time. I’m sure it’s got something to do with her Merrick Real Texas Beef Dog Food (and sometimes the can of Grammy’s Pot Pie I give her as a treat). She’s quickly learning how to be a dog. She doesn’t know how to play with toys, but in a week she’s learned how to “sit” and “lay down” and she’s almost housebroken.

And, her poop is completely normal, thanks to a healthy diet! Tammy has officially joined the Merrick Real Food Revolution!

Merrick pet foods are available nationwide at independent pet retailers and at Petco. Visit them online at MerrickPetCare.com.