Cat Mate C500 Automatic Pet Feeder With Digital Timer For Cats and Small Dogs

We use this feeder to hold dry food for our cats. We originally got this feeder for wet food to keep on ice but found it more useful to keep dry food on rotation. It’s a good product and works well with the timer. However, we never used it for wet food so I’m not sure if it’s really worth the extra premium for this product.

A well-designed British-made product.

Our cat Mila just loves her food and if we were to leave for more than a few hours, she would eat everything in her food bowl in next to no time - and then get very hungry later. That's where her new Cat Mate 500 feeder comes in handy. The only issue we have with it is that she knows there is always more food in the hidden trays, so she knocks lumps out of it trying to gain access. Thus far, the sturdy plastic body of the unit has remained intact! Also, to set the automatic feeding times, it's best to ignore the confusing instructions and refer to the helpful videos on YouTube.

Fatal design flaw

This is the best cat feeder there is; it would be absolutely on point if it wasn't for one fatal flaw the tiniest bit of water and the whole thing breaks. If your pet is a messy drinker, keep the water bowl away from the feeder. I've gone through 2 of these now and it's frustrating that they don't offer the parts required to fix it. At this price it's not exactly a disposable product.

Good auto-feeder, not good staying cool

I've had this feeder over 3 years and love it. As an automatic feeder, 5 stars. As a feeder that keeps wet food cold throughout the cycle, 0 stars. I bought it to keep wet food cool, but it's impossible for the packs to stay cool very long and it just gets gross in there. My assessment is that no feeder could do this effectively. So we put dry food in this feeder and provide wet food on a plate at the regular feeding times. It's great for middle of the night feedings to keep the cat happy and not wake us up. It's definitely not quiet, so your cat may be skeptical at first. Ours was very quick to learn that the noise means a tasty treat.

Good feeder, a little expensive but worth it in the long run.

Definitely recommend this as a feeder for wet food. Cat Mate do an equally good dry food automated dispenser for non-wet food. It's a bit pointless having the always open segment, which makes it a 4 stage feeder instead of 5, but being able to do 4 different days worth of feeds at 1 specific time of the day is almost unmatched in this sort of product category. I feel 40 pounds is a little bit much, this could easily be 30 pounds and would definitely be worth it at that price. At 40 it feels more of a luxury purchase but it is rock solid in functionality.

Keeps wet cat food cold all day

Expensive but workable solution to keep wet cat food cold throughout the day. You just pop in the two ice packs, fill the compartments of the feeder and snap on the lid. Programming it was also simple and it runs on three AAA batteries. Easy to clean and easy to train my cat on. Its pricey but less so if you buy it on eBay!

Loving it

We are loving this so far. We plan to use it for soft food when we cant get home in time to feed kitty. We dont currently need all five food dishes but wanted to have for future options. We have tested it and found that icepacks work good for same day feedings, programming is simple, unit has been reliable, and food trays clean up easily. Cat is fine with it and already knows what that sound means. The 1 open dish was great for introducing it to the cat. Size of the unit is reasonable. The display is a little small, but I would not want it bigger if it would mean a bigger unit. We havent had it long enough to need to replace batteries but love that it has a battery life indicator. Also is nice that you can just turn it off. This unit uses batteries only, but so far ... MoreWe are loving this so far. We plan to use it for soft food when we cant get home in time to feed kitty. We dont currently need all five food dishes but wanted to have for future options. We have tested it and found that icepacks work good for same day feedings, programming is simple, unit has been reliable, and food trays clean up easily. Cat is fine with it and already knows what that sound means. The 1 open dish was great for introducing it to the cat. Size of the unit is reasonable. The display is a little small, but I would not want it bigger if it would mean a bigger unit. We havent had it long enough to need to replace batteries but love that it has a battery life indicator. Also is nice that you can just turn it off. This unit uses batteries only, but so far this seems just fine and there are no cords to chew.

Purrrrfect peace of mind!

Love this version of feeder!!! I travel and work odd hours. This feeder has a digital timer you can set for 4 feedings. It was so much easier to set up than than the other manual timer feeders. I have 2 cats and 2 feeders. When the timer goes off, they open at the same time and not a few minutes apart because you have to manually set pins and barely see the timer lines.The lid snaps on tight so the cats are not able to open it on day one and eat everything! It also rotates under one opening so you can place it by a wall and not leave room for the cat to rotate around the feeder. The older version of this feeder with the pin timer was unreliable and easily opened by my cats and I had to leave them a good distance apart because the top rotates to each spot and the ... MoreLove this version of feeder!!! I travel and work odd hours. This feeder has a digital timer you can set for 4 feedings. It was so much easier to set up than than the other manual timer feeders. I have 2 cats and 2 feeders. When the timer goes off, they open at the same time and not a few minutes apart because you have to manually set pins and barely see the timer lines.The lid snaps on tight so the cats are not able to open it on day one and eat everything! It also rotates under one opening so you can place it by a wall and not leave room for the cat to rotate around the feeder. The older version of this feeder with the pin timer was unreliable and easily opened by my cats and I had to leave them a good distance apart because the top rotates to each spot and the cats had rotate around it to eat.A major shout out to Petguys.com...their price was the cheapest on the internet. The customer service was outstanding. I left a voicemail before they opened looking for tracking information and never expected a call back. I called again and got my answer AND someone also called me back to ask if my questions had all been answered! CUDOS

Updated Cat Mate

The updated Cat Mate rectifies several issues with the older model. Primarily it foils my little big boy (19lb) boy's ability to intimidate the older catmate into feeding him early. He could knock the older machine's clock mechanism cover off and manipulate it to uncover his food early. The newer model is much less manipulatable. It also has ready made holes to allow the base to be fixed to his eating shelf thereby keeping him from pushing it onto the floor from 3 feet up in hopes of getting at the food.One drawback is that the cooler blocks are different shape and I will need a spare pair. Also question if the three batteries will last a whole year.

Wonderful feeder!

It is very easy to program, easy to insert batteries, nice ice packs. It is a good quality product, with easy to read and understand instructions. It is very easy to clean the food dish and lid.