automatic feeders

What kind of automatic feeders do you guys use?

Pros and cons?

I use the Le Bistro eletronic portion control automatic feeder. I got it back in Sept. and so far it's been good for me and my two kittens. Two things I didn't like about it is that I can't detach the feeding bowel and if your cat is smart enough, he can put his paw into the dispensing hole to get some food out. Seriously for the price that I paid of $45 from petguys.com, I should complain. I think petco sells the same one for $60.

I've looked into the Automatic Pet Feeders (you can get it at Costco for $65) but because it has a power cord, I didn't want to risk my cats chewing on it. I read a review by someone who had his apartment on fire because of this feeder. I'm not sure whether the story was true but I didn't want to risk it.

Hope you find the right one for you.

i originally got le bistro but stoli figured out how to get the food out and spent all day eating. i now have a pop up feeder that i put ceramic ramekins in so he can't tip it over,

I've got the one that looks like a water cooler for Oliver's dry kibble.... he's good about eating and only eats when he's hungry - he won't eat anything and everything you put in front of him just cuz it's there.... so it works great for us, especially if I have to be away for a day or two - that plus extra waters and litter boxes and he's ok... only con I can think of is he occasionally has to use his paw to get more kibble to fall down (it's "gravity activated" but sometime the spot where the kibble comes out gets kinda blocked... it's a big hole though, so Ollie gets it easily)

I leave the food out for my cats at all times so i think i'll go for the cheaper kind. I especially like the water. I wash out their bowl as soon as i get home and put more water but this would be so much more convenient for me. I wouldn't have to worry about it every single day.

If I go away for just the weekend. I use catmate 50 for their wet food. It has a timer you can set for up to 48 hrs and ice packs under the food bowls.

well i went to the store and i didn't see anything i liked really but i did have a question on the water fountains.

How do your cats like those water fountains? How long before replacing the whole thing? Does it get refiltered or go somewhere else for you to throw out?

My cats both love the Petmate fountains: http://www.petguys.com/-029695248700.html however, the pumps tend to burn out, especially if you let the water get low. I have had two of them and both pumps stopped working (even though I did clean them regularly). I think they may have been low on water at one point.

As a replacement, I got the Catit fountain: http://www.catsplay.com/catit.php3

One of my cats is okay with it, the other is not interested at all. Zoe will drink from it, but not as much as the Petmate Mr. Odin will sniff near it, but he does not "get" the dome (at least that is what I think).

So...even though I hate the quality of the Petmate, I just ordered 2 new pumps from thier website. I am going to set one up and keep the extra pump for WHEN (not if) this one breaks. I figure that my kids are worth a new $20 pump every 6 months or so; especially if it means they are drinking enough.

I just bought that Van Ness water feeder http://www.petguys.com/-079441007030.html and I just rinse every other day but deep cleans once a week. I'm usually gone just for a couple of days max so this works just fine for the two of them.