Inflation or Price Gouging in Pet Food?

This price gouging has been going on since early in Pandemic. Wellness Dry Dog Food 15lbs was under $30.00 at the time, now I am paying over
$46.00 for the same product. It seems that all mfgrs. are using this as an excuse to price gouge. I realize that the cost of goods has increased, but why is this heavily consolidated pet food industry taking advantage of pet owners. I am quite sure that when their costs go down, the prices we pay will not follow!

PRICE gauging! On everything…How come one store is higher than the other when they are near each other!! or not. Everyone is out to cash in!! ITS BS.

Its excuse after excuse. Oh its the distributor!!!!! Do doubt that!!! its greed by individual stores!!!

I sell pet food at my small store. I do have to mention one thing…Merrick foods have been sold in the past on Chewy for what it cost me actually buy it WHOLESALE. They are finally catching up on that one. Due to that I quit selling most of it…if I cant even compete in the same ballpark…why would I? Glad of it too..it was already too high for what you get and now…just insane. I will continue to support those foods that limit cost increases to what they have to, and actually reach out to explain themselves before they do it!

My cat is 15 years old with stage 2 kidney disease and has to be fed veterinary diet wet cat food. I started out paying about $37.00 for a case of 24 5.1oz cans. Then it jumped to about $54.00. Now it is up to $71.76. I have no choice but to buy it as most non-veterinary diets are too high in phosphorus for a cat with kidney disease. So they have us over a barrel and know we’ll pay it to keep our animal well. TOTAL PRICE GOUGING. It’s bad enough that the ingredients in most pet foods are totally inferior and detrimental to an animal’s health.
So all in all, it just goes to show that the overwhelming majority of the pet food industry is more interested in the bottom line than in the welfare of animals.

I keep hearing that the increase is due to the poor supply of aluminum available to make the cans. If this is true, why haven’t companies invested some of their “record profits” in new manufacturing options? Instead of cans why not use little pouches like tuna comes in? Another option might be cartons, like shelf stable milk and pomi tomatoes use. Unfortunately, I see a future where people can’t afford pets anymore.

I contacted wellness and of course got the excuse that their prices for ingredients has increased and that they would not lower their quality for cheaper ingredients. When we all know that wellness will not allow retailers to sell their products for lower prices. I feel this is ingenious on wellness part. Even with prices going up everywhere, pet food should not cost more than people food. It’s not full of caviar and lobster,it’s cheap foods like chicken and turkey and low quality fish, at best.Worst of all its our pets that suffer the injustice of pet food companies that care little for our pets and mostly for their pockets. They profit and profit big off our fur babies.What I need is the recipes and knowledge of making my own pet food for my babies, yet through fear of not giving our pets all the nutrients their little bodies need I am stopped in my tracks of doing just that. Is it a scam? Was the whole last 15yrs of buy this not that a scam? How do I know for sure what is in those expensive little cans. Is it really what it says or not? I don’t know but my level of trust has been eroded.

Here we are in 2024 and its still happening! Now my flea and tick meds that I bought in November 2023 advantix for 55.00 has jumped in feburary 2024 to 80.00 bucks! I was so mad i called the company, this is what i got. We have not had a price increase, any pricing over what we sell for is on the retailer. i called purina about the 20.00 dollar a bag increase in a few months time, same deal it isnt us! Its a load of horseshit and people across America should save those receipts and invoices from what you paid before and what you are paying now. We need to go collectively and make our voices heard in congress.

This is obscene what they are doing across the board in animal health and nutrition. We have a vaccine clinic in my area for low income people, up till last year you could get your pet vaxxed rabies and 5 way for 25.00, now its 48.00, office visits were 29.00, now they are 45.00. But its food and meds that have really jumped, this cant be allowed, and we should get congress involved. At this rate you will be paying 100 bucks for a bag of purina dog chow soon! These companies dont care they made their billions if they have to shut down production it wont hurt them. Congress wont care either unless there is a major outcry from the public.