Automatic Feeder

[HRHFluffy]

Can anyone recommend a reliable automatic feeder? I need one for Fluffy. It's for her wet food that I leave down during the night. With these warmer evenings I would rather it was kept fresh than left to go stale. I've never had one before and there seems to be quite a few to choose from.

[Shelly and Dora]

Hi Carol.

We have a duel timer 'cat mate' one. We've had it for about 4 years. Use it probably about once every 3 months. Still using the original battery. I don't like relying on a machine to play mummy but very occasionally it can't be helped and I now completely trust this 'madjic feedies ma shine'

[Kay]

I had a couple of the Petmate Digital Feeders, which offer the most options, but I have given up on them now, as they have failed to open a couple of times - which might have been my failure to set them properly, but even so I can't risk it

I've replaced them with the 48hour Catmate ones - you won't need 48 hours for wet food, but if you want to leave down dry it pays to have the longer time - you might think you would never be away for more than a few hours, but stuff happens

[HRHFluffy]

Thanks for your replies. So it looks like the catmate ones are reliable. Kay I wouldn't fancy my chances with a digital one. The simpler the better for me

[meriad]

I also the dual cat mate feeder: http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product.asp? ... ViW4vw_wcB" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It works well and best is that it has an ice pack underneath that helps keep the food cool and fresher

[Kay]

and you can always freeze the food in advance, so it is thawing whilst the clock is ticking down

[HRHFluffy]

I was just in the process of ordering the Catmate C10 (which is the single one) when I saw Ria's post about the ice pack underneath. The single one doesn't have it so I cancelled the order whilst I have a re-think. I could freeze the food first and let it thaw but only thing is I normally have things added to it like phosphorous binders etc. I had the bright idea of getting one to resolve the issue of how best to give her the overnight food. But now I'm thinking about maybe getting the dual one anyway and using it even when I'm out for short periods as Fluffy eats little and often (very often) nowadays. Problem would be in getting her to realise it's there.

[meriad]

Does Fluffy eat really cold food? If not then I wouldn't freeze it. But if yes then why not keep the pouch / tin in the fridge. That temperature, with the ice pack, will definitely keep the food cool over night.

[HRHFluffy]

No she doesn't like her food to be cold. Sometimes to tempt her to eat I have to gently heat it for her. So I suppose I could get away with not having the ice pack overnight maybe? Would the food still be fresh if it didn't have the icepack under it?

[Shelly and Dora]

Dora doesn't like her food cold either so I never use the ice packs and it always seems to stay fresh enough x

[HRHFluffy]

Thanks Shelly that is useful to know. Which model is yours? Is it the C20 in Ria's link?

[Kay]

I have that one - if you want to save some money though how about this one from Zooplus?

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_ ... ers/101941" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[HRHFluffy]

Funnily enough Kay I was looking at that earlier. Zooplus charge a small fortune to send to me though. However I found the C20 on ebay for £18 free delivery which I thought was pretty good. Cheaper than on amazon too. If I go for the C20 then the option is always there to use the ice packs if needed for when I'm out any length of time.

[Shelly and Dora]

Carol, yes the one we have is the c20.

Having just got up to check Dora got quite excited when I pulled it out of the cupboard to look!! Several pitiful meows later & yes, she's just had a semi handful of biscuits as she was so helpful....x

[HRHFluffy]

Oh Shelly Dora makes me laugh. Clever girl for remembering what it's for. Thanks for checking for me and thanks to Dora for being so helpful. Glad she got a "reward" for her efforts x

[HRHFluffy]

Thanks all for your advice. I've finally gone for the c20. I took so long to make my mind up that the one I was interested in on ebay had sold out. Managed to find another one on there for a few pence more though. Will be interested to see what HRH makes of it. Should be fun!

[KittyWitty]

Carol, it'd be interesting to know how Fluffy gets on with it - was maybe thinking of getting on for my babies!

[Kay]

in my experience the biggest problem with feeders is not that they are ignored, but that they are staked out until they open - so put it within sight of a comfy spot

[HRHFluffy]

Thanks Kay for the warning.

It won't be here til next week some time so I'll have a think about where to put it. One of the reviews I read about the trixie one was that when the owner came home they found it had been moved from one end of the hallway to the other. Sounds like a very frustrated cat couldn't wait any longer for it to open.

[kitterntamer300]

Hi, new to this forum. I'm looking for an automatic feeder (I am often out at work for 10 hours or so and I heard cats prefer a few small meals). My sister gave me a pet mate digital one with two compartments, you can programme it for a specific day and time. My cat had broken into it within 3 hours!

Anyone else with a determined pest found a claw proof feeder? I've looked on Amazon and the only one I've found with positive feedback in this area is $120 plus UK shipping.

My kitty can wait a couple of hours in that case!

[Ruth B]

I've just come across this thread and I can say that we have a Catmate C20 (or at least it looks like the one in the picture) and no cat has ever broken into it. The lids won't open unless the dial shows 0 and even with oposable thumbs I can have problems opening it, if it isn't lined up perfectly it doesn't open. We don't use it often, just a few times when we thought we might be late back or for the juniors to give them an extra meal during the night when we first had them and they were confined to one room during the night and most of the day. We never used the ice pack as normally it was used when the house wasn't getting too hot and as it is covered there isn't a problem with insects or other bugs getting it before the cats do. If it has a down side, the clock timer ticking can seem awfully loud on a laminate floor.

One thing we did find really useful was spare bowls to go inside. The feeder only came with two bowls, one for each side, so they had to be washed before they could be used again. At one point we were using it when we had family problems and were out of the house for 12 - 14 hours at a time, all we wanted to do was fall into bed when we got in, having spare bowls meant that we could leave them to soak while we were out and use the spares, a quick wash when we got back in and they were ready to use next day. Far better than trying to scrub dried cat food off when half asleep.

[Kay]

I prefer those type too - I had two of the twin dish digital ones but kept getting the settings wrong - I left them down when I was away for 36 hours and found only one of the four had opened

my cats weren't clever or perhaps desperate enough to break into the unopened ones, but I did feel guilty, so I gave them away and went back to the manual ones - if they have to be down too long for wet food then dry can be used, and I have left frozen wet food inside with the timer set for 12 hours so it is thawed when the lid lifts

[alanc]

My neighbor uses two of the Catmate C20's. They generally work well, but there is a problem with two cats, as the timing mechanism is not so precise that both will open at exactly the same time, so one cat can get to scarf the lot as each one opens! I usually have to go round to check and open the tardy feeder so both cats get to eat. There was also a near disaster a fortnight ago, when one feeder was tipped upside down by one cat trying to open it. Feeder couldn't open then!

[catslave16]

Kay I must just say I simply adore your groovy cat