Sure Petcare launched the SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeder Connect in April 2019. Following on from the success of the SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeder, which launched in 2014, the Microchip Pet Feeder Connect gives cat and dog owners the ability to stop pets stealing each other’s food, monitor their pet’s food intake and accurately weigh their pet’s food with ease.
The product links to the Sure Petcare app via a Hub to give owners real-time updates when their pet eats from the feeder and how much they eat at each sitting. It can even monitor wet and dry food independently. This data is stored in easy to read graphs within the app so that the owner can start to learn their pet’s normal eating behaviour, helping them to spot changes which could be an indication of illness or distress. Spotting these changes early could be key to treating a potential health issue as soon as it occurs. Up to ten Sure Petcare Connect products can be linked to one app, making it easy for pet owners to monitor their pets’ behaviour all in one place.
The Microchip Pet Feeder Connect has integrated weighing scales. On first use, the owner sets the portion weight within the app, and then each time the bowl is filled, LEDs on the front of the feeder light up and then flash when the correct weight has been reached. Many pet owners using standard food bowls for their pet don’t weigh their pet’s food, putting their pet at risk of obesity and weight-related illnesses. There are 10.9 million cats in the UK and 50% of the adult population own a cat. According to the PDSA, 60% of cats are considered to be overweight or obese, so the potential market impact for the Microchip Pet Feeder Connect is huge.
The Microchip Pet Feeder Connect has been designed with ease of use in mind, making it accessible to all. Once set up, it works in the background without fuss or drama. It’s easy to clean, with a removable mat, bowl, bowl supports, lid and cleaning access cover on the underside of the feeder.
Sure Petcare recognises that cats in particular can be wary of new products, especially if they’re expected to suddenly start using them every day. The Microchip Pet Feeder Connect has a four-stage training mode that closes the lid by varying degrees to allow the pet to get used to the movement gradually. There are also extra training tips in the manual that help the owner to introduce cautious pets to the feeder.
We’ve already had positive feedback from customers using the product, featured in the case studies on our website: https://www.surepetcare.com/en-gb/advice-news/case-studies/surefeed-microchip-pet-feeder-connect Highlights include cats that have lost weight since using the Microchip Pet Feeder Connect, a cat on an expensive, specialist diet that now has exclusive access to her food and owners that have peace of mind now that they can monitor their pets’ feeding.
Jon Bowen, Royal Veterinary College vet and animal behaviourist said of the product: “Although I’m a vet, I still have the same concerns as any other pet owner. For me, the three advantages of this product are peace of mind, knowledge and control. With my own cat, Bertie, it gives me great peace of mind to get alerts during the day so that I know that he is coming home at regular times to eat, even when I’m out at work or away. From the knowledge perspective, changes in food intake are an early indicator of illness, so if I see that Bertie is eating less then I know that I should check him over in case he has an injury or an infection. Monitoring his food intake is going to become even more important as he gets older and starts to suffer from conditions like kidney disease. Having had a multi-cat household in the past, I’m also aware of how important it can be to be able or control what each cat eats. Nutrition is becoming a more important part of healthcare, with specialised diets for specific health problems, and in a multi-cat household a microchip feeder is one of the only certain ways to ensure that each cat gets the correct food.”
The Microchip Pet Feeder Connect joins a suite of connected products that make up the Sure Petcare Connected Product Ecosystem. When used together, products within the ecosystem can give a pet owner a more complete picture of their pet’s overall health and wellbeing, whether they’re monitoring feeding habits, cat flap use, activity or problem behaviours in dogs.