Itchmo: News For Dogs & Cats

When the CEO from Pillar Pet Products emailed me about reviewing their Perfect Petfeeder, I was incredibly intrigued. Both my dog and I had never used a pet feeder/pet food dispenser before, and I was incredibly curious to see how my dog would react to it.

The Perfect Petfeeder is geared towards cats and small to medium sized dogs. Although when I spoke to Scott and Gretchen from Pillar Pet Products, they said that there are a few dog owners that use the Perfect Petfeeder for their Labradors (a model for large dog breeds is being considered). The product can also feed two pets with one unit.

First of all, this is no flimsy piece of machinery. It weighs about 20 pounds when empty. When I first took the Perfect Petfeeder out of the box, it looked solid and almost indestructible (just like a KitchenAid mixer — those appliances last forever). Set-up is relatively quick and painless, and there is an easy to understand manual to guide you through the process.

Programming your pet’s feeding schedule is also easy to do and includes: the time of day, number of meals, if you want to activate a meal chime, and the specific meal amount. Meals can be programmed to be as little as several pieces of kibble to as much as several cups, and different meal amounts can be programmed for each specific time.

I was then ready to start feeding my dog with the Perfect Petfeeder. I waited until the specified time and sure enough, I heard the meal chime go off, and kibble started to come out. At first, I thought I was in Las Vegas because the sound reminded me of coins coming out of slot machines. (Unfortunately, no money came dropping out of the product — only dog food.) I ran over and was excited to see that the correct amount of food I programmed was sitting in the bowl.

My dog had the opposite reaction. He first barked when the meal chime went off and seemed utterly confused when he saw his food coming out of this strange contraption. I tried to persuade him to eat from the bowl, but he was definitely not having any of that. I tried offering him some pieces of food in my hand over the bowl, and he cautiously grabbed those pieces but ran away from the dispenser. He sat there for a couple of minutes just staring at it and contemplating if this strange metal thing was going to take his tennis ball away from him.

After two days of getting used to the Perfect Petfeeder, my dog has become accustomed to the dispenser. He now eats from it freely and willingly. I think he knows that the Perfect Petfeeder is not here to ruin his world but instead is here to give him food.

Overall, I was extremely satisfied and happy with the Perfect Petfeeder. It is very sturdy and seems to be quite pet proof. I studied the product and there doesn’t seem to be a way that a dog or cat (even the sly ones) can get food from the dispenser by simply reaching up into the product, banging it or knocking it over to get more food.

Some other features of the product:

• Back-up battery: If the power goes out, your pets will still be fed thanks to the back-up battery in the Perfect Petfeeder.
• Very easy to clean and most of the parts that touch pet food can be put in the dishwasher also.
• Reminds you when you need to refill the Perfect Petfeeder. We got to that stage and it gently reminded us with a message and a beeping sound that we needed to fill it up with more food.
• There is a suspend feeding feature, and there is also a feature that allows you to feed freely if your pet needs more food in between scheduled meals.

There is a bit of initial sticker shock from the price of the Perfect Petfeeder — $499.00. The price is more than most pet food dispensers, but the Perfect Petfeeder seems to be a lot sturdier, more effective, and more reliable in comparison to other products. And after spending some time with the Perfect Petfeeder, I understand that it is a quality product that will last for years.

In fact, I would call the Perfect Petfeeder the KitchenAid of pet food dispensers.

For more information, visit the Perfect Petfeeder website.