Petmate Le Bistro Portion-Control Automatic Pet Feeder, 10-Pound Capacity, Black

I read all the negative reviews on this feeder and I compared to all (yes, all) the other feeders on the market right now. Hands down, this is the best one, even with its (minor) glitches. I used to own a pet sitting company and I have seen every kind of pet feeder there is. I used to wish for someone to create one like this Petmate Le Bistro feeder. Granted, it does need some additional engineering/design work, but until that happens or someone creates a better feeder, this one gets five stars. Here is the scoop:

The Pros:
1)Will feed 4-5 pounds of food!
2)Will feed three times a day at the exact time you choose.
3)Dispenses the portion you specify.
4)LCD display counts meals so you *know* your furry friend has been fed (even if they act like they haven't)
5)Food is not "hidden" (like some feeders) so you can see it going down
6)Removable bowl for easy cleaning
7)Quiet operation that does not "tip off" other animals in the house if the feeder is meant for a particular furry family member (yes, we have two cats and only one eats from the feeder, the other cat who happens to be a food hog is clueless about it, even after three months of daily early morning feedings to our "special needs cat"). Note: we have a big house with cats that tend to avoid each other unless food is involved, so #7 may not apply in smaller homes/apartments or with pets that are always together in the house.
8) Excellent Customer Service from Petmate.

The Cons:
1) Portion control is not precise (but I created a solution for that, see below and see pic)
2) Battery power can get low enough for the unit to cease dispensing food, yet low battery indicator does not come on and LCD still displays. This happens if you use low voltage D cells (some generic brands are 1.3V each). The unit needs 4.5 volts of power (1.5V per D cell) to operate correctly. Use name brand batteries and it will be fine. To the feeder's credit, the "meal" icon will blink if the unit does not dispense a meal, indicating the unit is clogged or simply under-powered.
3) If the unit were knocked over, it would most certainly spill food everywhere as the lid is not well attached. This unit might not be a good match for rambunctious dogs, but fine for all other fur babies.
4) If you take the batteries out, you will have to reprogram some settings. It isn't a big deal, the programming is fairly quick and simple.

The Portion Control Fix! Based on a tip from another Amazon reviewer, I tried all sorts of funnels and plastic cutouts to try to limit the flow of food into the paddle wheel. The funnels/plastic plate/partial covers didn't work, even with the uniform shape and small size of Hill's Prescription diet cat kibble. The food would either get clogged and not drop down to the paddle wheel or it would just continue to fill the paddle wheel as if there was no restriction at all. What I ultimately came up with is what I call "saran wrap pillows" that are secured to the paddle wheel itself. Check out the pic I uploaded to see a detail of the "pillows" I created. You could use another material to "fill" the paddle wheel, maybe cut foam pads or other material. I needed to limit the portion to about 1/8 a cup of food at a time for our kitty. It took about an hour of experimenting (including the various "funnels") to get the right size portions, but I did it and my "pillow" solution has been working great for three months! Here is what you do. Get your saran wrap and a 20 inch piece of string. Start with three pieces of saran wrap that are the same size. Fold in layers like a sheet (to the same width of the paddle wheel compartment) and then gently roll to create your "pillow". If you need to cut your portion from 1/4 to 1/8 like I did, then you will create pillows that will fill 1/2 of each section of the paddle wheel (each section of the paddle wheel holds approx 1/4 cup). To Adjust the size of the pillows, either trim away some of the strip or wrap another strip of saran wrap to existing pillows. Don't put them into the paddle wheel just yet. Slide one end of your string between the center "fingers" of one of the paddle wheels (this should hold the string in place, but if your string is too thin, you may need to double it or knot it so it stays). Use the manual feed function to rotate the wheel until your string is pulled all the way around the wheel and you are holding both ends again. Now place your first pillow into the paddle wheel and use the manual feed function to rotate the wheel one third. Allow the string to travel with the wheel and wrap around your first pillow. Keep loading your other two pillows in the same manner and then tie the string in a quick knot (that you can undo). Now test! I used a measuring cup to verify the amounts dispensing from all three wheel compartments. Adjust your pillows until you have the right amount and then tie your string with a strong knot (but don't cinch down or you will flatten your pillows). It sounds complicated, but isn't so difficult. Once you get a look inside at the paddle wheel, it will make much more sense. Again, check out the picture for a detailed look at my "Le-Bistro paddle wheel pillow". :-) Good luck!

Like others - I was not fond of the initial programming. But I kinda figured it out. If i didnt have the directions in front of me, it'd take much longer. I'm not fond of having to re-do it when the batteries go.

But more importantly, the feeder does the job very well. Already my cat is eating less. It used to be 1+Cup every day when I get home from work, now its 1/4Cup 3x a day. So now I dont worry if I go out after work, or spend a night elsewhere. I would recommend it to anyone.

I was hesitant to get one of these after reading the other reviews, but decided it was worth a shot for the price.

First, regarding programming the thing - it's true that it's not intuitive, but the directions are accurate. Certainly don't lose them, but I don't see this as a major issue.

Second, regarding cats being able to break into them - I think it depends on the cat. If they do tip it over, the lid will probably come off. If you have an exceptionally clever cat, it's probably not the thing for you. Our cat is on the "slower" side - she did figure out where the food comes out of and could reach her little paw up the opening and manually spin out some more food. So, we had to glue a piece of plastic over half the opening so she can't get her paw up there. That took care of the issue for us. She doesn't try to tip it over but we also placed it between two pieces of furniture on the floor so she doesn't have a lot of opportunity to tip it over either.

Our cat adores this "magic food machine". Literally. She sits about a foot away from it 90 minutes before it goes off and gazes at it lovingly. It took her about 3 weeks before she stopped yowling at us to feed her, and now she just sits there patiently and waits. We've used it for over a month now and are very happy with it.

I bought this for my cat. In no time he figured out how to tip it over and get all the food. And the rotating system stopped working the first week with new batteries.

I read the amazon reviews before buying and cannot believe people give this anything less than 5 stars! I paid $80 at Petsmart for this exact item because I had to have it that evening because I was going out of town - so I can assure you this is a great deal! It is so easy to use. My cats are fed in the morning and evening (you can also do a lunch time if you like) and no longer bother me for food and seem to be less stressed because they are not begging for food all of the time. So easy to use and they have never tried to get into the food container/storage. There is really no way they could - it is all super secure. I highly recommend this to make your life easier!