Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I bought my first one at least 10 years ago -- and I actually still have it. I also bought 3 more because they were SO good -- now aside from the usual teeth marks on the edges of the doors and dishes, my cats have not yet broken in.
I had 3 cats at one time and each cat had to eat in their own room with the door closed -- no big deal because they had all the amenities in whatever room they had been placed. Now I have just two (RIP Princess -- 13 yrs old, taken by Cancer). La Large One will steal whatever food is not secured - so she and Cee Cee have their own separate rooms and their own Cat Mates.
With wet food, the ice packs are good for 14-16 hours maximum, depending on the weather -- even with A/C, in the summer the ice packs will melt faster, so I sometimes freeze the 14-16 hr food in its Cat Mate dish before I pop it into the Cat Mate assembly, even WITH the ice pack in the bottom of the assembly (only in the summer)-- the food WILL defrost before the door opens.
The plastic dishes are top-dishwasher safe (for me anyway). The rest of the unit can be wiped with a wet cloth to clean it.
The battery CAN fall out of its niche -- so I would suggest retaining/securing the battery (AA battery) with a bit of mailing tape (AFTER it has been placed inside the battery holder) to ensure that it stays where it belongs and the kitty won't miss a meal or two. Try not to get too much tape on the black box (right above the battery) that contains all the moving clockwork parts.
Turning the dial CLOCKWISE each time you set it will extend the life of the unit.
Sometimes (rare) the dials will pop out of gear -- I've been able to fix that by opening up the little black box (with the clock and gears) on the back of the unit but it is a tricky/delicate operation. I can take apart cars, so perhaps I have a little more experience in working with gizmos.
DON'T drop this unit and it will reward you with many good years. The hinges (where the top of the door swings up) may wear out before the unit does -- I'm a great fan of Mailing tape-- it makes a great emergency hinge, and seems to last a long time. The cats don't care -- as long as the dish door opens.
IF you are feeding outdoor stray/feral cats (and I hope they are all spayed and neutered), I would suggest leaving the feeders in a protected area and remember that raccoons and other critters will try (perhaps successfully) to break into it and possibly harm the kitties as well. Just a word of caution on my part.
IF your catsitter is being entrusted to feed your cats using the Cat Mate C20 feeders please post the instructions on the wall or fridge where s/he can see them -- both of my cat sitters had never used the Cat Mate C20 feeders before, so the instructions were extremely helpful to them (and my kitties!!)
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Cat Mate C20 Automatic Pet FeederThe Cat Mate C20 is designed to feed one or two cats, kittens or small dogs, when you are away during the day, evening or over a weekend. Food is kept fresh in two easy-clean compartments sealed by closely fitting lids and refrigerated by built-in ice-pack. Just set the timer on each lid to open at the required time, up to 48 hours later. For two cats, the lids can open at the same time.
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