Is Black Hawk the best dry adult cat food in Australia for my cat?

It's really important to consider your sources when it comes to information about pet foods. For example, a popular pet food "review" website here in the US is run by a human dentist with no veterinary training. I recommend feeding balanced diets that meet the World Small Animal Veterinary Association nutrition guidelines (https://wsava.org/global-guidelines/global-nutrition-guidelines/). Examples of these good quality brands, which I recommend, include Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Purina ProPlan, Iams and Eukanuba. All of these brands have been formulated by a veterinary nutritionist and have been appropriately tested. I think Royal Canin (or one of the other brands I'd mentioned) is a much better option than Merrick. I hope this helps and that all goes well!

This last decade has brought an incredible amount of new products to the shelves and I know it must be daunting and very confusing to consumers. Unfortunately, most information about these foods comes from the pet store employee or an equally unqualified source on the internet. It's very wise of you to ask an expert. The truth about most of these foods is that their claims usually amount to nothing more than that of a fad diet (i.e. paleo or atkins) and are not supported by sufficient evidence (even though they will make it sound like it is). As scientifically trained practitioners, us vets prefer to offer evidenced based treatment and the same goes for feeding suggestions. Wet food will encourage water intake and may make the stools more soft, but does not cause diarrhea. Lightly cooked, grain-free, natural, etc. are really just marketing gimmicks meant to increase sales. They mean essentially nothing and normally do not have any good evidence to back their claims. The most important thing on that bag is a tiny bit of writing under the guaranteed analysis called the AAFCO statement. This statement tells you what actual research went into making the product. Below is a link to an article that will help explain this more and give some other info about feeding your cats: https://www.petcoach.co/article/what-to-look-for-when-choosing-your-pet-s-food/ High protein is nice and all of the foods with an AAFCO statement have the minimum necessary amount of protein (around 30%) in the diet. More importantly, they will have ensured the necessary amino acids are in the correct quantity. I know the answer may still be somewhat vague, but if you stick to the basic principles of choosing the right food, then you should be successful in feeding a good and nutritious food to your cats. Below is a link to another helpful resource with good information about pet foods. https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/ucm047113.htm I hope that helps and all is well for your cats.

I'm not familiar with this brand of food to be honest. Brands I recommend include Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Purina ProPlan, and Iams. I would feed Ryo one of those brands, and make sure it's a kitten formulated food. He needs kitten food until he is a year old. Best of luck.

Wellness, Weruva and Royal Canin are all good choices. When it comes to a canned food, look for one with a named protein source of animal (not plant) origin. Choose a food that comes from the can looking like a hockey puck. Avoid foods with gravies or sauces. These are typically higher in carbs which can predispose a cat to obesity. Avoid meat meals, by-products as well as store or discount brands. These latter two contain low quality ingredients and more fillers.

I never recommend Blue Buffalo. It's a terrible quality of food, they have no quality control (they don't own their own factories), and there have been recalls on the food. I don't recommend Rachel Ray either. She's a TV chef with no experience in animal nutrition. As for the others, they are grain free. Grain free is a fad, and I never recommend feeding it. The foods I recommended to you in your other post are high quality. I hope this helps.

I like EVO, Nutro and Avoderm brands. You ask 15 vets and you'll get 15 answers :) It is personal opinion for sure. I would try a brand and see if you cat likes it. If so, and it seems to agree with her then continue. If it doesn't seem to agree with her (diarrhea, vomiting, poor hair coat, less energy) then I would try a different brand until you find one that does agree with her. I hope this helps! Best wishes to you and Pitsy!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Romeo. What a handsome boy! Pet nutrition is a confusing topic and the internet is filled with inaccurate information. I agree that high quality ingredients are important. However, it is equally important that these ingredients are combined appropriately and in the right proportions to give the best nutrition. For this reason, I support companies that have board certified veterinary nutritionists on staff and perform feeding trials in live animals as opposed to simple laboratory analysis. I like Purina ProPlan, Royal Canin and Hill's Science Diet. They are will have each have a variety of flavors and formulas that would be appropriate for him. I hope this information helps!