Arf Pets Automatic Pet Feeder Food Dispenser Review

Arf Pets Automatic Pet Feeder allows you to feed your pet up to 4 times a day. You can customize how many portions you want your cat to eat per serving. The unit features blue light LCD clock and display, making it easy to program. lid has a magnetic lock to keep the cat’s paws away from the food. This unit has a Wi-Fi smart version that you can program on your phone. At the end of this review we will describe the Arf Pets Smart device in case you want to know more about the Wi-Fi powered version of this automatic feeder.

Features of Arf Pets Automatic Feeder

• Capacity: 18 cups
• Meals: Up to 4 meals per day
• Portion Size: 2 Tablespoons or 24 ml
• Portions in LCD Panel: From 1-10, each unit equal to 2 Tbsps
• Suitable kibble: Round shaped ensures better performance
• Manual Feeding: You can push an extra meal manually to feed your cat anytime.
• Clock Format: 24-hour Military time
• Audio Message: Record a personal message calling your cat to eat, up to 10 seconds.
• Dual Power: Runs with DC 5V1A standard power or 3-D alkaline batteries as a backup.
• Cord Length: 5-foot
• Material: ABS
• Dimensions Assembled: 9.5” wide X 11.8” deep (w/food tray) w 15” high
• Weight: 4.63 lbs.
• Suitability: Dry food and to use indoor only
• Dishwasher Safe: Feeding tray and food hopper.

Key Features of Arf Pets Automatic Feeder

• Lock-in Lid: With magnetic locking lid to keep those paws away from the food. To open and close the lid you need to press the front button. This way the food is protected at all times.
• Transparent lid: The clear lid shields the LCD panel, preventing accidental button presses.
• Blue light LCD: Allows easy time programming and visibility in low-light environments, enhancing overall usability.
• Motor Life: Crucial information about the motor’s life, which is 2,000 hours; rotate speed – 8RPM; rated voltage – 4V.
• Portion Guideline: Includes a portion chart for easy programming.

How Arf Pets Feeder Works

Arf Pets dispensing system consists of a rotating paddle impeller at the bottom of the food hopper that moves the food into an opening to fall into the feeding tray. The food is contained at the base of the hopper and is distributed into small slots. Each slot represents one unit of food. Consequently, when programming a portion for a meal, each unit added corresponds to one slot of food dispensed into the meal as the bottom tray rotates.

Video of Arf Pets Automatic Feeder

How to Program Arf Pets Automatic Feeder

The control panel features the buttons: REC, PLAY, SET, and UP/DOWN arrows. You will use the buttons SET, UP/DOWN to set up the clock, the number of meals per day and the size of the meals.

The first step is setting the clock which uses the military time where 1 pm = 13 hrs, 2 pm = 14 hrs, and so on. Once you have setup the clock you need to select how many meals your cat will eat per day, up to 4 times per day. If you want to jump one meal, just set it to zero.

When setting the number of meals you need to set the time for each. The feeder allows you to choose the hour and minutes for each meal, but the minutes only in 5-min intervals. Also, you have to program the meal size by choosing how many units the meal will consist of. The units are from 1 to 10 where 1 unit = 2 tablespoons (approx. 1/8 cup).

The feeder features manual feedings if you want to feed your cat an extra meal at any time by pushing and holding the UP arrow button. The button REC allows you to record a message for your pet to eat. The recorded message will play 3 times in a row while the food is being dispensed.

What are the Pros and Cons of Arf Pet Automatic Feeder?

Highlighting the following pros and cons of the Arf Pets Automatic Feeder provides valuable insight into its functionality and potential limitations.

Pros

• Food hopper has a good capacity of 18 cups, feeding two cats up to weeks on average.
• The unit comes assembled
• Feeder is made of solid ABS plastic
• Customizable feeding schedule and portions, up to 4 meals per day
• Easy to program with included feeding guid
• Strong magnet on lid for a safety locking system that protects food and control panel
• Magnetized lid keeps food fresh
• Control panel automatically locks after a period
• Transparent thick acrylic lid allows you to see the food level at a glance.
• It has a microphone to record a personal message calling your pet to eat
• It works with AC adapter or batteries as a backup option to ensure continuous operation.
• Removable food bowl and food hopper are dishwasher safe.
• Blue light LCD clock and display to see numbers at a glance
• Option of manual feedings.
• Easy to program with included portion guidelines.

Cons

• Power button located at the bottom of the unit (you need to lift it up to turn the feeder off).
• Clock operates in 24-hour military time, potentially challenging for those unfamiliar with the format.
• With some kibble, the tray might get build up with food close to the chute.
• The individual portion is not very accurate, but close enough.
• It could jam with some odd shaped kibble.
• Some food may get pushed in close to the chute as your cat eats since the tray is not tilted.
• You need to use both hand to open or close the lid.

Conclusion About Arf Pets Feeder

The Arf Pets Automatic Cat Feeder performs as advertised, despite some minor issues mentioned in the “Cons” section. Generally, dispensing mechanisms featuring a paddle impeller are more accurate and efficient, especially with regularly shaped kibble, which holds true for this unit.

Overall, this automatic feeder is reliable with compatible kibble. In the rare event that a cat accesses kibble from the chute sticking its paws inside, it will receive only a few pieces, preventing overeating if this behavior persists.

Bottom Line

Arf Pet Automatic Feeder works well to take care of your cat meals. If you feed your cat with round shape, medium-size kibble this unit will ensure a smooth operation. As with any automatic feeding device, this unit is meant to be used with cats that behave normally with food, not for food-obsessed mischievous felines. Get this unit on Amazon with free shipping here, or on Chewy with fast free shipping here.

There’s a Wi-Fi powered version of the Arf Pets, it’s the Smart Arf Pets Automatic Feeder, check its features below.

Arf Pets Smart Automatic Feeder with Camera

This unit works with the Arf Pets App that you download for free for your Android or iPhone. The feeder ensures a reliable connection with a distance of 3-10 feet from the router, and it connects at 2.4 GHz only. You can program as many meals as you need per day using your phone, with customizable portion and feeding schedule. The capacity of the Arf Pet Smart Wi-Fi feeder is 29 cups so this unit is suitable for medium size pets as well as cats.

The feeder dimensions are 15” L x 9.3” W x 16” H, large enough to hold food to feed pets for weeks. The unit features a built-in camera with night light vision so you can monitor your cat when you are away from home.

The performance of this Smart Wi-Fi feeder is not as good as the original Arf Pet unit, the rating online for the smart version is 3.8 stars, versus 4.1 stars for the original Arf Pet. The prices are different too, the Smart device costs $84.99 versus $69.99 of the classic unit.

Whichever unit you choose, make sure it’s suitable for your cat food and your cat needs. Make sure to provide a healthy recommended food intake included in the guidelines to prevent your cat from overeating. Best of luck!