Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/01/03/smart-pet-food-bowl-closes-whe.html
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1 Like
Cool idea, but cruel to make the lid transparent…
11 Likes
“I’m sorry Pickles, I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
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how long until our refrigerators start doing this?
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vet: “So…tell me again how Pickles’ paw got broken?”
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What’s wrong with putting only the amount of food your pet is supposed to have in the bowl and not more? Somehow doesn’t need electricity, AI, camera, smartphone (and the associated $$$ subscription service) and works with any $2 bowl, not just the $190 smart special.
Re wild animals - I somehow doubt that this device is sufficiently element-proof to be used outdoors. And if you have wild/strange animals waltzing through your kitchen and eating Garfield’s dinner, you have much bigger issues than the lack of a smart pet bowl.
If this was an actual automatic feeder where you can put the kibble for several days, that would be at least somewhat useful, even though overpriced. However, it doesn’t even do that …
Seriously, who invents this crap? This is straight up there with Juicero for me - uber overpriced gimmick that doesn’t do anything more than you can do easily by hand. Well, except of recording video of your frustrated pet destroying this gizmo in order to get to the food …
27 Likes
I have two cats. The more aggressive one would get both shares.
And I kind of need this, if only I could disable the surveillance features. Honestly, I don’t need a pet eating report. But I do have a nervous cat who overeats when she gets upset, and then vomits. Then her anxiety gets even worse, with an angry human running around shouting bad words…
11 Likes
Sometimes the issue isn’t the amount – it’s the speed at which the animal eats. Some animals pace themselves when faced with a day (or half a day) worth of kibble, but others will scarf it down as quickly as possible and then puke. You can do multiple feedings of smaller amounts throughout the day, but that’s hard to do while still going to work.
5 Likes
Life Hack Tip from Mister.44:
Save yourself $189 and only feed your cat the proper amount each day if they are not self feeding.
ETA:
Feed before work and when you get home. Your cat won’t starve, trust me.
4 Likes
You aren’t seeing the problem (mostly with my parents’ cat; mine is better at self control). Even a normal 25 gram amount in the morning and evening (50 g/day is appropriate for his weight) is too much at one time and will cause vomiting. Now that both my parents are retired, it’s less of an issue, as they can give 10g or so throughout the day, but when they were working it was a hassle.
5 Likes
Yes, same problem here.
I’m thinking of a slow-turning tumbler (think of those Christmas tree oscillators) with pockets for food, no AI necessary. The aggressive cat will get its food over the one who eats properly, naturally.
4 Likes
If there’s one thing my cat truly loathes, it’s automation.
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auto update successful
error: division by zero
dispense food in: 65536.0 hours
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If anything this discussion has proven to me that cats are at least as dumb as dogs.
Doesn’t look very sturdy. That’s a problem.
http://quinndunki.com/blondihacks/?p=3023
If there’s one thing I learned in this odyssey, it’s that automatic cat feeders are the equivalent of giving a piece of dental floss to someone serving life in prison. With infinite time, you can escape anything, and (it turns out) break into almost any robot.
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“Tired of getting doxxed, swatted, and otherwise harassed at home by internet trolls while your pet gets off scot-free? Buy this IOT smart pet feeder, and then random people on the internet will be able to torment your pet just like they torment you!”
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This was actually in the first draft of 2001: “Open the fridge door, HAL!” but was scrapped later on.
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Re wild animals - I somehow doubt that this device is sufficiently element-proof to be used outdoors.
We have a cat door and on occasion an Opossum (We call him Bitey) sneaks into our kitchen and raids the cat food. Also we have a cat that we suspect had post-partum depression and overeats now while her children don’t overeat. While in concept I could use this I doubt it would identify the cats properly.
3 Likes
I have one cat who is overweight, and have considered the RFID controlled bowls in the past (wouldn’t work, they all hate collars), but recently discovered that our two Siamese cats are policing fatboy’s time at the trough. Yay, I guess, no expensive “solutions” needed anymore?
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How long would it take for one cat to figure out that it should shove the other cat in front of the machine to get its food?
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