Merrick Backcountry Raw Infused Pacific Catch Recipe + Grains Dry Dog Food
The first five ingredients are Deboned Salmon, Salmon Meal, Whitefish Meal, Brown Rice, Oatmeal. 3 of them are a named animal protein. We put the starch at 33.1%, below the 38.51% average across the foods we hold.
It does well on most of the five things we measure, with nothing that stands out as a concern.
How we got to 78
Five things, one hundred points, and the reason for every one. We would rather show our working than ask you to trust a number.
26-32% dm reads typical mainstream.
Estimated, 6% ash assumed.
Count of named animal proteins.
Matched against the flag list.
Manufacturer, not recipe.
The numbers, without the water
Percentages on a bag include the water in the food, so a wet food always looks lower than a dry one. Taking the water out puts any two foods on the same footing. This one is 89% dry matter.
That is 5.4 points below average, so proportionally less of the bag is starch.
Everything on the label
Printed exactly as the manufacturer lists it, heaviest ingredient first. A dog food needs very little salt, so the 14 ingredients listed after salt are present in even smaller amounts. That is the salt divider, and it is why we only weigh the top of the list.
Deboned Salmon, Salmon Meal, Whitefish Meal, Brown Rice, Oatmeal, Barley, Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavor, Potato Protein, Whitefish, Trout, Flaxseed, Potassium Chloride, Salt*The Salt Divider. Ingredients are listed heaviest first, and a dog food needs very little salt, so everything after this point is present in an even smaller amount., Apples, Blueberries, Organic Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Iron Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Proteinate, Cobalt Carbonate), Taurine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Citric Acid for freshness, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus casei Fermentation Product, Dried Enterococcus faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus Fermentation Product
What those first ingredients actually are
The top of the list is most of the food by weight, so it is worth knowing what each one is. Green marks a named animal protein.
Salmon
The flesh of salmon, an oily cold-water fish, used fresh.
Salmon Meal
Salmon that has been cooked, dried and ground into a concentrated meal with most of the water removed.
Whitefish Meal
Whitefish that has been cooked, dried and ground into a concentrated meal with most of the water removed.
Brown Rice
Rice with only the inedible outer hull removed, so the bran and germ stay on the grain.
Oatmeal
Oats that have been rolled or ground, used as a whole grain carbohydrate.
How much of this to feed
A starting point, worked out from the resting energy formula vets use and this food's own calorie density. Every dog is different, so watch their weight and adjust. Your vet's advice beats a calculator.
How it compares
Same figures, same method, put next to another recipe from Merrick and the archive average.
| Metric | This recipe | Merrick Backcountry Raw Infused Great… | Archive average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Score | 78 | 89 | -- |
| Protein, water out | 38.2% | 38.2% | -- |
| Starch, water out | 33.1% | 32.0% | 38.51% |
| Named in first five | 3 of 5 | 4 of 5 | -- |
Recall history
Recalls are matched to the manufacturer, not this exact recipe. A recall on a different product still tells you something about the plant it came from.
None in the last three years. Older events stay on the record but count for less. See the recall log
Other flavors
More from Merrick, scored the same way.