FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Dog Questions

Introducing any new food to your dog should be done gradually, so as to avoid the risk of any stomach upsets. If you’re introducing a new type of food, or variety, we recommend doing it over the course of a week. As per the diagram below, start by substituting your dog’s current food with just 25% of the new Ivory Coat food you’re introducing. To ensure you’re feeding your dog the correct amount overall, be careful to substitute 25% of the recommended portion size that’s included on each pack - don’t just fill up the remaining space. Over the course of the week, provided your dog adjusts well, you can then increase the percentage of the new food, so it eventually replaces the previous option entirely.

You can feed your dog one or two meals a day with our foods. If you’re feeding twice daily, be sure to split the daily feeding amount in half for each meal. Feeding more than once a day may help to prevent bloat and aid in better digestion.

Regular pet food (the kind that does include natural grains) is still a popular choice for many pet owners as it provides the energy, fibre and essential fats their four legged friend needs. Grain free can be a taste preference for some pets. We advise checking with your vet before making any major dietary changes.

We have a product just for your dog: our Reduced Fat Turkey food is formulated at just 299 calories Kcal/100g and is also ideal for senior dogs with low levels of activity. Also be sure to check you are feeding in accordance with our guidelines and not overfeeding, remembering adding additional snacks and meals to your companion’s diet will add calories outside of what we recommend. Frequent activity is also ideal for weight management.

The guides are based on your puppy’s current weight and are increased gradually as they grow.

Small breed dogs usually weigh less than 9-12 kg as adults. Large breed dogs are usually heavier, weighing over 22kg as adults. We recommend large and giant breed puppies use our Large Breed Puppy formula for the first 24 months.

Your dog may experience loose stools when transitioning to a new food. This is common. Loose stools can also occur when changing to different meat protein in your dog’s diet or as a result of overfeeding. If your companion doesn’t experience firmer stools after a couple of days, we recommend speaking with your veterinarian.

Although there is no harm feeding our adult foods to whelping and breeding dogs, we recommend using our Puppy formula as this contains a higher fat and protein content to support healthy whelping cycles.

Cat Questions

Introducing any new food to your cat should be done gradually, so as to avoid the risk of any stomach upsets. If you’re introducing a new type of food, or variety, we recommend doing it over the course of a week. As per the diagram below, start by substituting your cat’s current food with just 25% of the new Ivory Coat food you’re introducing. To ensure you’re feeding your cat the correct amount overall, be careful to substitute 25% of the recommended portion size that’s included on each pack - don’t just fill up the remaining space. Over the course of the week, provided your cat adjusts well, you can then increase the percentage of the new food, so it eventually replaces the previous option entirely.

You can feed your cat one or two meals a day with our foods. If feeding twice daily be sure to split the daily feeding amount in half for each meal. Feeding more than once a day may help to prevent bloat and aid in better digestion. Kittens should have their feeds split into 2-4 servings.

Our entire Adult Cat range is suitable for weight management as it contains a high meat content and no fillers. Also be sure to check you are feeding in accordance with our guidelines and not overfeeding, remembering adding additional snacks and meals to your cat's diet will add calories outside of what we recommend. Frequent activity is also ideal for weight management.

Yes, all of our foods meet the Australian standards and those of the AAFCO – could expand to Yes, all of our foods meet the Australian standard and nutrition guidelines of the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).

The guides are based on your kitten's current weight and are increased gradually as they grow.

Your cat may experience loose stools when transitioning to a new food. This is common. Loose stools can also occur when changing to different meat protein in your cat’s diet or as a result of overfeeding. If your cat doesn’t experience firmer stools after a couple of days, we recommend speaking with your veterinarian.

Just like people, your cat may get bored eating the same food every day. As such, we suggest switching our formulas every few months so they can experience our full range of unique proteins.

If your cat continues to refuse to eat, please speak with your vet.

General

Introducing any new food to your dog or cat should be done gradually, so as to avoid the risk of any stomach upsets. If you’re introducing a new type of food, or variety, we recommend doing it over the course of a week. As per the diagram below, start by substituting your pet’s current food with just 25% of the new Ivory Coat food you’re introducing. To ensure you’re feeding your pet the correct amount overall, be careful to substitute 25% of the recommended portion size that’s included on each pack - don’t just fill up the remaining space. Over the course of the week, provided your dog or cat adjusts well, you can then increase the percentage of the new food, so it eventually replaces the previous option entirely.

You can feed your pet one or two meals a day with our foods. If feeding twice daily, be sure to split the daily feeding amount in half for each meal. Feeding more than once a day may help to prevent bloat and aid in better digestion.

Regular pet food (the kind that does include natural grains) is still a popular choice for many pet owners as it provides the energy, fibre and essential fats their four legged friend needs. Grain free can be a taste preference for some pets. We advise checking with your vet before making any major dietary changes.

Not all foods are made the same, and the specification of our food is very high. We have a higher meat content and don’t use any unnecessary fillers, meaning you often need to feed less of our foods. Our guides are based on recommended calorie intake by weight. Keep in mind, however, that these are just guides. Feeding will depend on your pet’s breed, age and level of activity. If in doubt, please consult your vet.

We have products specifically for dogs and cats who are overweight. Also be sure to check you are feeding in accordance with our guidelines and not overfeeding, remembering adding additional snacks and meals to your companion’s diet will add calories outside of what we recommend. Frequent activity is also ideal for weight management.

Yes, all of our foods meet the Australian standards and those of the AAFCO – could expand to Yes, all of our foods meet the Australian standard and nutrition guidelines of the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).

The guides are based on your companion’s current weight and are increased gradually as they grow.

This is unlikely, unless you’re overfeeding. Our foods, by industry standard, are lower in calories than most.

Like all food products, our foods are sensitive to moisture and changes in temperature, therefore to ensure your food stays fresh, it should be stored within the bag, resealed at all times, in a cool dry place, away from heat, direct sunlight and/or humidity.

As we use no artificial colourings, dyes or added preservatives in our foods, the final colour will vary according to the colour of the raw ingredients. The ingredients and nutritional value in every bag remains the same, regardless of the colour.

Your companion may experience loose stools when transitioning to a new food. This is common. Loose stools can also occur when changing to different meat protein in your dog or cat’s diet, or as a result of overfeeding. If your companion doesn’t experience firmer stools after a couple of days, we recommend speaking with your veterinarian.

Just like people, your companion may get bored eating the same food every day. As such, we suggest switching our formulas every few months so they can experience our full range of unique proteins.

Please contact us here. If your pet continues to refuse to eat, please speak with your vet.

The investors in our company have changed - however our ingredients, sourcing, suppliers and manufacturing all remain within Australia. Having overseas investors allows other dedicated pet owners the opportunity to feed our high quality products, and by continuing to purchase our products you are supporting the many Australians it takes to make our food.

Nutritional and Product Guarantee

This is very rare, as our foods are packed full of meat which pets love. However we understand that all pets are different and some may not enjoy our foods. If you’ve given it a good try, follow the steps above and return the remaining food, in its original packaging, with the receipt to the retailer of purchase within 21 days for a full refund. Or why not try swapping for another flavour?

To receive a refund on your purchase, the product needs to be returned to the retailer. Please contact your online retailer of purchase for their return address.

Should you feel there is an issue with the product, we are here to help. Feel free to call our Customer Service team who can assist on 1800 REAL PET (1800 732 573).

You should contact the retailer from which you purchased the product to discuss their process. Ivory Coat cannot replace or refund products damaged in transit sold at online stores.

Ivory Coat does not issue refunds direct to consumers. The product must be returned to the store of purchase.

Should you feel there is an issue with the product, we are here to help. Feel free to call our Customer Service team who can assist on 1800 REAL PET (1800 732 573)

If you have lost your receipt, contact your retailer direct. In many cases they will be able to reprint a copy for you. We do not provide refunds direct to consumers. You need to return the product to the retailer of purchase.

Should you feel there is an issue with the product, we are here to help. Feel free to call our Customer Service team who can assist on 1800 REAL PET (1800 732 573).

In order for a retailer to provide a refund for you, the product must be returned to the retailer of purchase, and in order to do this, you will need the original packaging.

Should you feel there is an issue with the product, we are here to help. Feel free to call our Customer Service team who can assist on 1800 REAL PET (1800 732 573).

If the bag has torn, the best thing to do is to tape the tear up and then place the bag with food still in it into an airtight container, preferably made from tin (plastic containers are porous and retain bacteria so keeping the food in the original packaging and placing this into the storage bin will maintain freshness).

Our packaging is designed to best keep the food, and utilising this is the best way to ensure the longevity of the product.

All retailers will have their own policy on return of products to their stores. Ivory Coat, however, has an agreement with all our retailers to accept returns that meet our product guarantee.

If you’re having any difficulties, free to call our Customer Service team who can assist on 1800 REAL PET (1800 732 573).

We have unfortunately closed our Inverell factory in NSW where Ivory Coat has been proudly made for over 6 years. We are transitioning the manufacture of our Ivory Coat dry foods to our Dubbo factory in NSW. This world-class manufacturing facility has different manufacturing equipment and processes which required some recipe adjustments.



We invested in our Dubbo manufacturing facility to bring innovative technology to our super premium Ivory Coat dog products. Knowing how much dogs love the taste and nutrition of meat, Ivory Coat now combines raw Aussie meat with dehydrated meat meal in our kibble making it delicious and enticing dry food your dog is sure to love.



Our range continues to be developed by our skilled Research and Development team that formulate recipes specific to the needs of pets according to their life-stage, breed, and based on the latest AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) guidelines on nutrition and ingredients. We continue to use all Australian meat and natural superfoods chosen for their health benefits to deliver a range of products with the specific nutritional requirements for your pet.

We have made some changes to some ingredients as well as how they are listed on our product labelling and have based our recipe changes on the latest AAFCO guidelines available to the pet food industry.



The biggest change is that our dry dog food recipes will now include real meat in the kibble. Through our innovative technology we can deliver better quality protein in a delicious and enticing dry food your dog is sure to love. Protein plays a critical role in pets' diets by providing energy and promoting lean muscle mass and an important factor in this is the quality of the protein rather than the quantity.



We have also trialled the range with pets to ensure the same great palatability and digestibility



If you need any assistance transitioning your dog to the new label products, please let us know or visit our website for more information.

We know our customers only want the best for their pets, so our new labelling and ingredients listings are designed to provide more transparency on what we include in our recipes.

As we have made some changes to our ingredients and how these ingredients are listed on our product labelling, we encourage our customers to review the labelling and follow our food transition guide when swapping to our new formulas.

The biggest change is that our dry dog food recipes will now include real meat in the kibble. Through our innovative technology we can deliver better quality protein in a delicious and enticing dry food your dog is sure to love. .

Protein plays a critical role in pets' diets by providing energy and promoting lean muscle mass.

An important factor in this is the quality of the protein rather than the quantity. We still include meat as the #1 ingredient across our dry food range, and now include real meat in the kibble. This means our foods will be high in quality meat-based proteins with the same great palatability and digestibility.

Although we have made some changes, our dry food range continues to provide your pet with a complete and balanced diet containing the right levels of all the essential nutrients they need to thrive.

For your understanding, the minimum requirement from AAFCO for Protein for adult dogs is 18% on a dry matter basis.

We only include the best ingredients in our Ivory Coat foods, and due to our strict requirements for quality, as well as impacts of Covid-19 to our ingredient supply chain, we have elected to include chicken (either as raw Aussie meat or as dehydrated meat meal) in most of our range. This ensures we can maintain consistent supply of our foods all year.

Our new dry dog food recipes will now combine raw Aussie meat with dehydrated meat meal. This innovative technology enables us to deliver better quality protein in a delicious and enticing dry food your dog is sure to love.

We continue to cater to pets that may not be able to tolerate certain proteins in their diet. Our Ivory Coat Adult Chicken dry dog food will only contain only chicken-based protein ingredients, so will be a great option for dogs with intolerances to red meat or fish.

Our Salmon & Ocean Fish Grain Free dry dog food also continues to be free from chicken-based ingredients, and we have also changed our Kangaroo & Brown Rice Holistic Nutrition dry dog food to be poultry free.

If you are looking for a single animal protein diet, please contact our friendly team on 1800 732 573 (option 1) so we can assist you in finding the best product for your pet.

We encourage our customers to review our labelling and follow our food transition guide when swapping over to our few formulas.

As we have made some changes to our recipes this will also result in some changes to our nutritional analysis. The Metabolizable Energy (ME) of our foods is a calculation based on the protein, fat, fibre, and other nutrient levels.

With the inclusion of real meat in the kibble, our range delivers higher quality meat-based proteins with the same great palatability and digestibility.

The changes also mean we have also updated and simplified our feeding guides to make it easier for our customers to incorporate a mixture of our Ivory Coat foods into their pets' diets.

We have also moved to using a different method used for calculating pets' daily energy requirements, which our feeding guides are based on. Our dry food feeding guides are now calculated based on the most up to date daily energy requirement calculation methods compiled by globally recognised nutritional experts (NRC – National Research Council).

If you need any help working out how much to feed your pet, check out our Food Check Tool or contact our friendly team on 1800 732 573 (option 1).

Product Changes

Our quality assurance procedures ensure our foods are nutritious and safe for your pets. Our Ivory Coat dry food recipes have been updated as we transitioned the manufacture of the dry foods from the current / old factory in Inverell NSW, to our world-class Dubbo factory in NSW. The Dubbo factory has different manufacturing equipment and processes and, as a result, some recipe adjustments needed to be made.

Our pet food experts have developed an improved recipe that stays true to the brand’s heritage using the very best technology to unlock even better nutrition and health for your pet. We are now using innovative technology to include real meat in our kibble so we can continue to produce delicious and enticing dry food your dog is sure to love. The new dry food will be available in stores from March 2022.



Our food safety systems ensure your pet food is of the highest quality. Our Quality Assurance & testing procedures begin from the moment ingredients are sourced from our trusted local suppliers and continue through to packaging and beyond so that your pet’s food is safe and in the best condition when you are feeding.



If you have any questions on our products or need further guidance on transitioning your pet’s diet, please contact our friendly team on 1800 732 573 (option 1).

Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids are essential for many roles within the body, including skin and coat health.



Omega 6 fatty acids, whilst not considered essential by AAFCO, help to provide supple skin and a glossy coat. Omega 3 fatty acids have excellent anti-inflammatory properties, which can assist animals prone to skin inflammatory disease.



We continually seek ingredients that provide a benefit to the pet. There is some research on the benefits of coconut oil in human nutrition, but far less on this ingredient in pet nutrition compared to other ingredients. For this reason, we selected other fats and oils, such as Canola and Salmon oils. These are far richer in Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids which better support healthy skin.

Our new Ivory Coat dry foods are now being made at our Dubbo factory in NSW, another of our world class Australian manufacturing facilities. As a result, some recipe adjustments needed to be made to suit the different equipment. Therefore the kibble may look a little different.

The good news is our dry food recipes now include real meat in the kibble and this has resulted in a different appearance and aroma.

We’ve launched the 8kg bag format across our most popular flavours and small breed products.


Please let us know what products you’d love to see an 8kg bag in and we’ll pass this along to our team.

We include kangaroo meat only in some products as it is an excellent source of lean protein, and a great alternate protein for pets with intolerances to more commonly available proteins such as beef, chicken, and lamb.



We respect our customers individual preferences for meats they choose for their pets and therefor offer a variety of different proteins in our pet food ranges

Our Ivory Coat foods are made in Australia from mainly local & some imported ingredients.



We continue to include all Australian meats as the #1 ingredient across our Ivory Coat range and wherever possible we source all other ingredients locally from within Australia.

Our Ivory Coat foods are made in Australia from mainly local and some imported ingredients. Details of our suppliers are confidential, though we can confirm they are all reputable and trusted suppliers to the Australian pet food industry.

Our Ivory Coat foods are 100% Australian Made with all Australian meats as the #1 ingredient, and we source our other ingredients locally from within Australia wherever possible

PET CARE AND PRODUCT SUPPORT

We are available Monday to Friday to answer any of your questions.

1800 732 573

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