Pet Food Reviews

25/05/2026

Poo!

The new advert for Lyka dog food 💩😝

What do you think?

A great dog poo is worth singing about, don't you agree? 💩🎭

24/05/2026

Just a heads up to Frontier Pets lovers (and of course healthy dog lovers!)

Frontier Pets have a limited edition goat recipe in short supply, so get in quick!

If you don’t know why I recommend Frontier Pets so highly, read the review - https://www.petfoodreviews.com.au/frontier-pets-dog-food-review/

(And if you’re new to Frontier Pets, there’s a cheeky money off coupon in the review!)

14/05/2026

“Meat first” is one of the biggest marketing hooks in pet food — and it works because most people assume the first ingredient must make up the majority of the food, when it doesn’t!

That’s not how ingredient lists work.

In Australia, ingredients are listed in descending order by weight before processing. Fresh meat contains a lot of water, while ingredients like rice, peas, lentils, potato, oats and other starches are much drier. Once kibble is cooked and that moisture is removed, the dry ingredients can contribute far more to the final product than people realise.

A food with chicken listed first and rice listed second doesn’t automatically mean it’s mostly chicken. After processing, that rice may make up a significant portion of the finished kibble.

Then there’s ingredient splitting — an age old trick. Instead of listing a large amount of one ingredient like rice, a label might break it into multiple parts such as rice, brown rice, rice bran, and rice flour. Each appears lower on the list individually, but combined they may outweigh the meat ingredient.

The same thing happens with peas, lentils, potatoes and other plant ingredients.

This doesn’t automatically make a food bad, but it does mean “meat first” is often used to create a perception that isn’t always reflected in what ends up in your dog’s bowl.

Look at the full ingredient list, consider how many starch ingredients are included, and don’t assume the first ingredient tells the whole story. That’s exactly what pet food marketing wants you to do.

21/04/2026

Funny and… sadly true for many kibbles sold worldwide.

If a kibble says “Chicken Flavour”, or “With Chicken”, it doesn’t necessarily mean there’s much chicken at all (or other meat or fish).

Why?

Because meat and fish is a much more expensive inclusion than alternative ingredients like those shown in the picture.

So, instead of using optimal protein for your dog or cat, bargain basement alternatives are used - corn, CGM, wheat gluten, rice, peas, soybean meal, and so forth.

These are often combined with the “meat first” trick, where some kind of meat is listed first on the ingredients, then a set of ingredients like those pictured. You read it as “meat” and “other stuff”, but the reality is all that “other stuff” makes the meat a fraction of the formula.

This tricks you into believing your pet food is meaty, when most protein comes from plants/grains (not to mention a load of unnecessary carbs).

The result - cheap to manufacture pet food, which you’re willing to pay a premium for because you’ve been duped into believing it’s appropriate for your meat-loving pet.

14/04/2026

A must read for cat owners 🐈

Yes, cats should drink water. Obviously. That is not the issue.

The issue is that cats are designed to get most of their moisture from their food. Not from standing over a bowl trying to make up the difference from eating dry little nuggets all day. A cat drinking water does not magically turn a dry diet into a moisture rich one.

This is one of those things that has become so normal in pet feeding that people stop questioning it. A cat on dry food drinking often is seen as completely reassuring, when really it can just mean the cat is doing its best to compensate. Some do better than others, some seem “fine” for years, and some are quietly running low grade dehydration as their normal.

And before anyone starts, no I am not saying cats should never drink water. I am saying food moisture matters far more than most people have been led to believe. Cats are obligate carnivores. Their natural diet is moisture rich. Their bodies were not built around living off dry food and hoping the water bowl fills in the blanks later.

So when someone tells me their cat drinks heaps of water, I do not hear “great, problem solved.” I hear a cat trying to get moisture wherever it can.

This is one of the biggest reasons I care so much about wet food, balanced raw, and properly rehydrated freeze dried meals. Moisture is not some optional bonus. It is a massive part of what makes a diet actually appropriate for a cat in the first place.

If your cat is eating dry food, this is not about guilt. It is about understanding what is actually normal for the species and making better choices where you can.

Because “he drinks plenty of water” is not the reassuring sentence people think it is.

My cats are fully raw fed and barely use the water bowl. That is not because they are dehydrated. It is because they are getting most of their moisture where they are supposed to from their food.

Have you noticed the same thing with your own cats? Yes or No?

12/04/2026

New study shows alarming results 🐾 😝

23/02/2026

Reports of sickness from Ivory Coat dog food and cat food from The Real Pet Food Co have continued for many years, so I thought it's worth sharing the latest report from the APOG website.

You can read the full report (along with many others) here - https://www.apog.com.au/recall-issue-log/ivory-coat/

"​My personal experience has been devastating. Since using this product, my toy poodle has suffered from: Severe fevers, Inconsistant vomiting, Chronic diarrhoea and blood in stools alongside five months of Incontinence, rashes, allergies and more.
​
My pooch has been in so much discomfort, in and out of hospitals, requiring numerous specialists, endless tests, and up to four baths per day and all since the beginning of January 2025. We could not pin point what was occurring however I almost lost my toy poodle and have spent upwards of $9,000 as a result of this food.

It is heartbreaking that a company is allowed to operate in such a way here in Australia all the while pets suffer.

Please, take note: this product could ruin your pet’s well-being and your life if you lose them. My experience is unfortunately backed by hundreds of similar reports on consumer sites—do not risk your pet’s life on this once-trusted brand."

Ivory Coat Ivory Coat Recall & Issue Log Key informationThe information on this website relates to suspected adverse reactions to a pet food or pet product.Information on suspected adverse reactions should not be interpreted as meaning the pet food or pet product is unsafe to use. Only a detailed ev...

08/02/2026

Hi everyone 👋

Quick reminder: cats are 100% carnivore.

Yes, it’s strange how most commercial cat foods are loaded with carbohydrates and sugars which your cat isn’t biologically designed to digest… until you factor in profit 💰

Many people believe dogs are omnivorous, which makes carbohydrates and sugars feel more justifiable.

So here’s a table showing the differences in digestive systems between a dog and a cat… so you can tell them apart.

Feel free to share.

08/02/2026

I didn’t realise I’d missed a SavourLife car food review…

So here you go.

SavourLife is an Australian brand of cat food which is better than most dry cat foods you'll find in the supermarkets.

05/02/2026

Addiction dog food - Looks appealing, with dry food resembling Taste of the Wild, and air-dried which *appears* similar to Ziwi Peak or Eureka.

Lots of people were asking me to review this new range of dog food, so here you go - https://www.petfoodreviews.com.au/addiction-dog-food-review/

(I've even covered the Vegetarian option... but you can imagine what I think of feeding that to a carnivorous predator animal)

Addiction is a New Zealand brand of dog food, and I feel the packaging and ingredients somewhat target a Taste of the Wild look and feel - which is one of the