Wingaling Homestyle dog food!!!!!Do not try it!!!

[Chica]

Hello,

BEWARE OF THE DOG FOOD BRAND BY MERRICK PET CARE!!!! I BOUGHT THIS FOOD ON RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE PET STORE OWNER!!! HE SAID HIS DOGS LOVE IT MIXED WITH THEIR DRY FOOD. SO I TRIED IT FOR CHICA. I DIDN'T EXPECT TO FIND BONES IN IT.:eek: :(

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v415/chica1/bones.jpg


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v415/chica1/merrickpetfood.jpg



I WROTE AN E-MAIL TO THE COMPANY.

Hello,

I was disturbed by what I found in your product of dog food. I found bones in the food I was feeding my dog. I was very shocked at this discovery in your dog food. That is why I am writing you to let you know that this is so dangerous for a dog to swallow. It could kill the dog, or cause damage to the intestines. I would have thought your dog food would never have this problem. But since I did find the bones and I did save them, and the can I found them in. I am afraid to feed my dog your product any more. I will report this also. No one should have their dogs eating this product with the potential of giving their dog bones in their food that could hurt the dog in any way. I think the BBB and the Humane Society should be aware of this problem.

[wolfsoul]

Merrick is commonly known to have bones in their food -- I've read several complaints on other forums about it. Their ingredients look good too, but their meat is rotten stuff they get from Tyson Meats. As far as I'm concerned, Merrick isn't a very reputable company, and after all of the complaints I've seen, I won't be buying their food for my pets any time soon!

I'm glad you found the bones before Chica ate any. :)

[king2005]

Dang, & I thought Kibble n Bits was bad dog food!! Thats my new #1 bad dog food, sheesh

[Giselle]

Wow! I also heard of finding bones in Merrick canned foods.

However, can I ask if you smushed the bones, yet? Oftentimes, canned dog food is pressure cooked to a very high temperature in which the meat breaks down but the bone remains wholly intact. However, when you apply slight pressure to the bone via a fork or flat butter knife, you'll find that the chicken bones slices nicely and actually crumbles into harmless powdery mush. In fact, this is how many many people make their own homemade canned food. I can actually make another topic with the recipe for the homemade canned food. :)

[Chica]

Giselle;

These bones will not break up, they are hard as rocks or bones...so I picked them out of the food I was going to serve Chica. Can you imagine Chica swallowing them..

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v415/chica1/bones.jpg

She would probably have died from choking on them, or puncturing here intestines!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v415/chica1/chicasign.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v415/chica1/prettybaby.jpg

Thank you everyone for letting me know more information about this product! The FDA should take it off the market!!!!!!!!!!!

[Daisy and Delilah]

Sherry, this is awful. I'm cringeing at the thought of little Chica getting a hard bone. Good job at finding the bones. We love Chica with her pink bow!:D

Terry

[finn's mom]

Wow! Those are even cooked ones, from the looks of them. Finn eats raw chicken bones, but, never cooked ones. If they would smush up, that would be one thing, but, I'm glad you found them before your girl did. That's nasty.

[Bigyummydog]

:eek: :eek: :eek: :mad: :mad: :mad:
I don't know what people think sometimes.
Do they feed their own dogs this stuff??

[Chica]

Bigyummydog,Finn's mom,Daisy and Delilah:

I appreciate your comments. Thanks for loving Chica the way you do. She is so lovable. Those people out there making food for animals seem uncaring!!!!:( They should be embarrassed by making and selling this crapp!!!!

[Giselle]

:( That's terrible. I was hoping the bones would smush because somebody posted a topic like this on another board, but their bones were smushy. I used to think Merrick was a heaven-sent canned food. Guess not! :(

[elizabethann]

I posted a thread about 2 months ago about Wingaling. I feed my dog Fenway, Merrick dog food. I fed him the Wingaling with the bones and I thought he would chew them. But I noticed after 1 minute of putting the food down the bones were gone so I freaked out thinking he had bones in his tummy just sitting there. So I decided to no longer feed him Wingaling. But then someone on this board said the wings were soft and to test how soft they were. So I bought another can and sure enough, they were soft bones. So I continued to buy it. But after reading your thread, I don't think I will. However, I will continue to feed Fenway the other Merrick food. He eats a 1/2 part of Merrick dried food with a 1/2 part of Innova dry food. I also feed him Innova wet food sometimes. I always thought Merrick was a good company and the place that I purchase it raves about it. Fenway eats Grammy's Pot Pie dry food.

[KYS]

Ok, Sherry I know you are upset but
take a deep breath. :)
I went to the web site and looked up the ingredients.
Click on the link below and in their ingredients.
Right their in black and white it says "read before feeding"
and talks about chicken bones in their cans of Wingaling food.
(but from what I read the bones are supposed to be soft
and mushy but not hard.)
See what they say when they write you back.


http://www.merrickpetcare.com/store/detail.php?c=15&s=20291

[Xeph]

If you didn't expect to find bones in it...you didn't read the label. Because it tells you EXACTLY what's in the food so you're aware of it.

I have fed my dog this food to put weight on him...worked wonders. I just manually smushed up the bones. This is NOT a bad food...it's a quality food. But like any other food, kibble or canned, it needs to be given properly or it will cause problems.

The object is to add things to the diet that you can't get in normal kibble (like a true meat product that you can actually SEE, instead of just assuming that it is what they say it is). It's great stuff, if it is fed properly...and quite honestly, I think you're blowing this out of proportion.

When I bought the stuff, the store owner told me EXACTLY what was in it (including whole turkey wings), and told me what I'd see (carrots, peas, etc), and when I went home, I read the label for proper feeding instructions. Nary a problem with my dogs.

Like I said, if you had read the label....

[Vette]

Whether its on the lable or not.. cooked bones can cause
problems in more ways then one and can be to harmful dogs.

cooked bones are very britle and can splinter easily when
the dogs chew them. and they can end up with throat
and stomach splinters. :eek:

not something i would want from a can of dog food
thats supposed to be good for my dog.

unless it states (raw bones included) or (all raw meterial) on the lable.

[Kfamr]

If they are hard bones then apparently there's something wrong.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by Xeph
...and quite honestly, I think you're blowing this out of proportion.

She's already stated that the bones were hard. If they had been soft, no problem. Hard, cooked bones are a problem. I don't think it's fair or kind of you to say someone concerned for their dog's safety is blowing it out of proportion. All she's done is write them and then tell us about it.

[beeniesmom]

OH COME ON!
Do not panick..... if you squeeze the bones in between your fingers THEY ARE SOFT. Bone marrow is good for dogs.

[Kfamr]

Originally posted by beeniesmom
OH COME ON!
Do not panick..... if you squeeze the bones in between your fingers THEY ARE SOFT. Bone marrow is good for dogs.




Originally posted by Chica

These bones will not break up, they are hard as rocks or bones...so I picked them out of the food I was going to serve Chica.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by beeniesmom
OH COME ON!
Do not panick..... if you squeeze the bones in between your fingers THEY ARE SOFT. Bone marrow is good for dogs.

Let's not belittle the fact that she was scared to feed her dog this food. If you feel like someone is over-reacting, educate them in a polite, constructive way. Don't make them feel badly for being afraid of something. Take her feelings into consideration. Let's just be nice about this. And, as Kay already quoted, and, as I'd stated just before you said something, she has stated already that the bones were not able to be smushed.

[KYS]

Hey! we all over worry about our dogs. That's why
we are members of Pet Talk. :D

I am still curious to see what the manufacturer replies
back about the bones being hard and not soft.

[bckrazy]

I've also fed Gonzo Wingaling, and the bones were soft and mushed up easily. He loved it, but its really expensive and it has high cals so he only gets some canned food once in a while. =( I would also complain to Merrick if I found hard bones... its good you found them before Chica!!

[Vette]

I agree... i wouldnt feed or even buy this prodcut because of the bones alone.

bone marrow maybe good for dogs,, but.. splinters arent.


if your want your dog to have real bones,, raw is the way to go.

[beeniesmom]

Sorry, I wasn't trying to belittle your feelings Chica.
I've never had hard bones in my cans.
I mush it all before giving to Beenie.
At this point, you should contact the company and tell them what you found.
A malfunction in the cooking process could result in a very dangerous situation.

[elizabethann]

Please let us know what Merrick says about your findings. It would be much appreciated.

[Chica]

This is the e-mail from Merrick:

Dear Sherry,

You have our newest variety, the Wingaling which has three complete chicken wings in each can.



If you notice on the back of the label it states:

"Our whole chicken wings offer tender chicken cooked on the bone and as a result of the cooking process, the bones become soft as well. Feel free to serve whole or to break apart the wings and serve as a complete meal."



We hand place chicken wings in each can and then turn them upside down and cook them in large pressure cookers at a high temperature for a designated amount of time. This allows the fragile bones in the wing to become soft and mushy and is an excellent source of natural nutrients that are not found in other varieties. Try pressing down on the bones with fork prongs to see how soft they are.



We offer a variety (14 flavors) for the dogs because we realize, just like us, they like to try new flavors. We also realize that not everyone is going to like all 14. If you have purchased more Wingaling, you may return it to your retail store for an exchange if you prefer.



From the beginning our products have been made in our own production facilities (a practice that continues today) allowing us to proudly say that all of our products are made in America (Texas). At Merrick, we love animals – they come to work with us every day and remind us why we do what we do.



If you have more questions, please email me or call 800-664-7387 extension 830.



Sincerely,

Diane Smith

Director Customer Relations



P.S. Yes, we are changing the label on the Wingaling and placing the “edible chicken bones” on the front of each can.


Everyone who posted their opinions, thank you. I was being carefull when I saw the bones. They were hard and not soft like they say. So I might try another can again to see if it has soft bones. But I won't give them to Chica because they might be dangerous for her intestines. I will pick out the bones first. Chica did like the food.:) :)

Chicas mom







--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

:) :)

[finn's mom]

That's cool that they wrote you back, but, they didn't even acknowledge that the bones were hard. I'd definitely give her the bones next time if they're soft like they're supposed to be. When smushed up, they won't dangerous, they'll be beneficial!

[elizabethann]

Hmmmm...interesting. Personally, I think I'll stop feeding Wingalings to Fenway. That's okay, he enjoys Grammy's Pot Pie and the others (except for the Campfire Cookout one...he doesn't seem to enjoy it very much).

Thanks for sharing the response with us.

[lv4dogs]

I'm not fond of any Merrick products. I won't use any of their products.
Some bones are ok to feed dogs, but not cooked poultry bones.
From the get go I was going to bet that they know & they put the bones in there intentionally as part of their diet & come to find out I was right. I do think that feeding bones is an important part of their diet but not cooked whole poultry bones.

[Almita]

WOW that is bad how people sell bad food. We always get one type of dog food but I'm not sure it is bad or not they love it and they are small so i would have to say that dog ffood is the worst I have ever seen!

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by Almita
WOW that is bad how people sell bad food. We always get one type of dog food but I'm not sure it is bad or not they love it and they are small so i would have to say that dog ffood is the worst I have ever seen!

The dog food is good, this batch just had hard bones instead of soft ones, that's all. She even said she was still going to feed the food to Chica.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by lv4dogs
I'm not fond of any Merrick products. I won't use any of their products.
Some bones are ok to feed dogs, but not cooked poultry bones.
From the get go I was going to bet that they know & they put the bones in there intentionally as part of their diet & come to find out I was right. I do think that feeding bones is an important part of their diet but not cooked whole poultry bones.

If the cooked poultry bones are ground up or soft enough to smush up (like with a mortar and pestle), then, they're no more dangerous than uncooked. The only reason cooked is bad is because it splinters so easily, but, if it's smushed up, that's not an issue.

[lv4dogs]

Originally posted by finn's mom
If the cooked poultry bones are ground up or soft enough to smush up (like with a mortar and pestle), then, they're no more dangerous than uncooked. The only reason cooked is bad is because it splinters so easily, but, if it's smushed up, that's not an issue.

Yup! I thought I added that I guess not. lol Thanks for posting that!

I feed my ferrets a raw diet for thier dinner every night & grind up the meat, bones & all in the meat grinder. The dogs eat some sometimes too.

[Chica]

Thank you everyone for your input. :) I bought another can of Merrickm but only Chicken pot Pie. I will try that one again for Chica.:)