Double portion served Has anyone had the problem of the feeder dropping two servings in a row? Luckily I've heard it (at 5 am) and was able to remove the extra portion before my food obsessed cat ate it all. But I have no idea whether it happened when we were away last weekend (the first trial) as the # of meals dispensed indicator does not show when it does that double drop. Is there any solution other than to return it? Double portion served Has anyone had the problem of the feeder dropping two servings in a row? Luckily I've heard it (at 5 am) and was able to remove the extra portion before my food obsessed... » Read More Double portion served Has anyone had the problem of the feeder dropping two servings in a row? Luckily I've heard it (at 5 am) and was able to remove the extra portion before my food obsessed cat ate it all. But I have no idea whether it happened when we were away last weekend (the first trial) as the # of meals dispensed indicator does not show when it does that double drop. Is there any solution other than to return it? « Show Less
755922
I'm not sure if this is the problem - but if the feeder is dispensing more than 1/4 cup at each meal (meaning your meal size setting is greater than "1"), the "feathers" that control the food coming out open more than once, so it might sound like the cats are being fed twice, but it is actually just two or three turns of the feeder to get the food out. If the meal size setting is on "2" then you'll hear it twice, if its on "3" then you'll hear the feeder three times in one sitting. I'm not sure if that's what you mean but I thought maybe that could help :) I'm not sure if this is the problem - but if the feeder is dispensing more than 1/4 cup at each meal (meaning your meal size setting is greater than "1"), the "feathers" that control the food coming out open more than once, so it might sound like the cats are being fed twice, but it is actually just two or three turns of the feeder to get the food out. If the meal size setting is on "2" then you'll hear it twice, if its on "3" then you'll hear the feeder three times in one sitting. I'm not sure if that's what you mean but I thought maybe that could... » Read More I'm not sure if this is the problem - but if the feeder is dispensing more than 1/4 cup at each meal (meaning your meal size setting is greater than "1"), the "feathers" that control the food coming out open more than once, so it might sound like the cats are being fed twice, but it is actually just two or three turns of the feeder to get the food out. If the meal size setting is on "2" then you'll hear it twice, if its on "3" then you'll hear the feeder three times in one sitting. I'm not sure if that's what you mean but I thought maybe that could help :) « Show Less
755923
I have the same problem. It doesn't seem to be measuring the portions very carefully at all. I have it set to two meals of 1/4 cup a day, and sometimes it only drops out like 5 or 6 kibbles, and then other times it will plop out like 3/8.
755924
Mine seems to deliver less than the full portion and other times more than it should. It is a concern when we are away that the cat will get the right amount of food!
874407
When I went away for a weekend, I first took the tray out, filled compartments 3 and 6 with wet food and water, smushed it up, and put it in the freezer over night. I had 1, 2, 4 and 5 with dry food for 4pm and 11pm feedings, and the wet food for the mornings. I put the whole machine on two ice packs. When I got back there was only a little wet food residue in the tray and my cats seemed happy.
1602265
I did something similar. I put the tag on my chubby cat and leave the feeder open all the time. He is not supposed to eat the food in the feeder so it closes when he comes up to it.
256975
It all depends on how much you feed at each feeding. I only feed my cat twice a day with dry food and its only a 1/4 cup, she also gets canned foos once a day and she is fine and the food in the feeder last a month and a 1/2. Hope this helps I think its a great feeder!!!!!
1467026
You may want to send it back for a replacement. I myself, as well as my pet, love this feeder and I would recommend this feeder because not only is it a healthy way of feeding but it holds the right amount of food for my pet. The people who designed this feeder are very concerned about satisfaction and wellness of your pet.
2114454
I've been using this feeder for a week now. Good thing is that it dispenses the food. Bad thing is that it dispenses TOO MUCH! The description says, it can dispense from 1/4 - 3 cups. "1/4" is not an option on the feeder. Should I return or did I not set it correctly??
263820
Since my cat has been eating this I have noticed that she is nt pucking as much. We also have seen she does not eat her food like she did before. She seems like she is actually getting full now. Mind you we have her food set to feed her at set times a day now but she is leaving food now. Where she was not before. She was getting sick all the time now maybe once a week or every other. I hope this helps.
1371652
Hmmmm, I did not notice if it was or not. Sorry, I actually switched to Diamond cat food, due to the cost, and it didn't seem that switching my cat to an LID cat food was helping his problems, and he was getting thin again. He seems really interested in the Diamond cat food, but he really likes change. I was just concerned about the ingredients in cheaper foods. But he is happy with Diamond so far until I switch it up again. I hope this helps.
41605
I know it's fine for a couple days for my one cat, but two cats it may not be enough. The problem are the holes on the side won't allow you to fill it too high. Another problem is if it's too full of food the cats can get to it easier/faster, which defeats the purpose of the bowl. If you bought two bowls then that would be perfect. I also found plastic versions that are cheaper, but they could be overturned/moved around easily.
2102843
Is there ever any rhyme or reason to what cats will choose to eat? Not aware of any changes in composition of the food. Their (Newman's Own) website seems to be pretty up front about their products. You might check there to see if there have been any changes.
2254661
I've had this feeder for 2 days and my cat has also knocked the hopper off the base - twice! It doesn't "twist & lock" into place, it just sits on top sort of "tongue & groove" like... I have the model with the barrel shaped hopper. Maybe the one with the saucer shaped hopper is a newer one that allows the hopper to lock onto the base? If someone could verify that would be great! Soo tired of picking up kibble...
1202408
I love my cat mate. You can adjust the number of "servings" it dispenses. One serving is about an 1/8 cup. So approximately 3 servings would be 1/3 cup. Then you can set it to feed all at once, or multiple times in a day. I did have to make a screen to go around the dispenser spout to prevent my kitten from digging food out. And once you have it set up, it is easy to change the settings.
2003331
Mine kept doing that over and over again and I was just about to send it back - I contacted the company and they offered me a label to ship it back to them so they could look at it - when we ended up changing our pet's food to a larger size kibble and now it seems to work pretty well. I think the error message means that it's getting jammed. That has happened to us a lot. It's better now, but it still won't feed on the program schedule, so we just press the buttons manually twice a day, which kind of defeats the purpose of the feeder. Not great quality.
864987
my cat actually learned to eat out of the top of it, so what I did was placed his old bowl which was heavy ceramic on the top and that can both weigh it down and keep the kitty from eating out of the top of it, hope that helps
1380972
yes, yes, and yes. I love the product and use it 24/7/365 so our cat has a schedule of when he is fed. He is on a diet so he is fed 4 small meals a day instead of 1 or two large ones. bonus is the people at super feeder are really nice so if you have any problems outside of their demo videos, just call or email them and they will get back to you.
1751741
No, the food drops into a closed cylinder that rotates to drop the food to the dish, then rotates back to be solid. We had a cat that broke multiple previous drop feeders like this. This one, however, he has not been able to steal single piece of food in the years we've had it.
796501
What is dispensed is determined by how much the animal eats. There is no timer on this inexpensive model. In our case, we have two cats.I do not see that you can control the amount of food eaten each day unless only put out a certain amount. Don't need this to do that.