# Merrick Grain Free vs Orijen



## Justin0406 (Jun 18, 2010)

A year ago I switched from TOTW to Merrick Grain Free. Immediately I noticed an improvement in his coat. I've been researching other brands. He likes Merrick but sometimes he will wait a day. (I found out a house guess had been slipping him table food and now he only want his dry food if its mixed with some meat.) 

Two Questions - 
Is Orijen (price increase worth the jump)
What can food do you mix with your dog dry food>

Thanks

2 yr old Male - 85-90lbs (Lean and muscular)


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## 3ToesTonyismydog (Dec 27, 2009)

Merrick Before Grain is an outstanding dog food made in house, which I believe is very important. Orijen in my opinion is the best dog food made today. Some good canned foods for a good price are Whole Earth Farms and By Nature. Merrick also has a good canned. Another option is finding a local butcher and getting some beef heart or any muscle meat, boil it for a very short period of time and adding it to your dogs food. I cool it down some in the freezer so it doesn't mush up the kibble. Tony just love's the gravy, so I keep the water at a minimum. Keep in mind most canned food is made by someone else and Diamond does not make any canned dog food, not even their own brand.


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## kr16 (Apr 30, 2011)

All it takes is to look at Orijens label and it gets you hooked. Its really impressive as far as ingredients go.


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## LongFunRun (May 6, 2012)

3ToesTonyismydog said:


> Merrick Before Grain is an outstanding dog food made in house, which I believe is very important. Orijen in my opinion is the best dog food made today. Some good canned foods for a good price are Whole Earth Farms and By Nature. Merrick also has a good canned. Another option is finding a local butcher and getting some beef heart or any muscle meat, boil it for a very short period of time and adding it to your dogs food. I cool it down some in the freezer so it doesn't mush up the kibble. Tony just love's the gravy, so I keep the water at a minimum. Keep in mind most canned food is made by someone else and Diamond does not make any canned dog food, not even their own brand.


I came on the forum to ask about a particular stud dog but since the food threads are so entertaining I looked through a few. So I have a question for this poster: What are your qualifications? You seem to have an opinion on every food. It is more than fine to comment on something if you have used it or have an opinion, but you even have a list that you recommend.

Have you studied all these products? Used them all? Do you run feeding trials? I am just curious. Are you a breeder or trainer?


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## spidermilk (Mar 18, 2010)

If I could get my hands on Merrick Grain Free I would feed it or at least try it. I have fed Orijen but because of the expense I feed Acana Grain Free. Based on the amount of protein, I would say Merrick is a step above Acana, but still below Orijen.

I mix a teeny tiny half-spoonful of cat food in with my dog's food. He usually gets distracted and doesn't eat if I don't put something in it. Alternately, though, I can put him in our bedroom alone with the door closed and he will eat- I guess he just gets distracted?


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

When you say "merrick grain free", you're referring to their Before Grain formulas, right? I've never fed them, but they don't look very impressive. They have three formulas - buffalo, chicken, and salmon, but they're all really just chicken formulas if you look at the ingredient list. Plus they're pretty low in calories per cup which I'm never really a fan of.

If I had a choice between the two, I'd go Orijen.

If he's doing well on the Merrick... Keep him on that. It's not like it's a bad food.


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