Cat Mate C500 Automatic Feeder Review
The Cat Mate C500 is an automatic feeder that dispenses up to 5 meals, one to be served at the present time and 4 programmable. You can feed your cat dry, semi moist, or wet food thanks to the twin ice packs that keep the food fresh longer. In this review you will see the unit’s features, how it works, pros and cons and final conclusion about this device. Cat Mate C500 also has a version with 5 stainless steel inserts to place on the plastic tray. We talk about this version at the end of this review in case you are interested in that option.
Features of Cat Mate C500
- Capacity: 3.75 lb dry food
- Capacity Each Compartment: 11.5 Oz (326g)
- Meals: Up to 5 meals, one served at present time and four are programmable.
- Keep Food Fresh: Twin ice packs help to keep the food fresh longer.
- LCD Panel: With digital timer for an easy and accurate programming.
- Dual Time Format: 12 hours am/pm (default). 24 hours optional.
- Secured Lid: Locking mechanism with two release tabs on the sides.
- Pet Suitability: Cats and small pets
- Power Source: Operates on 3 AA alkaline batteries, not included.
- Dimensions: 11.5″ wide x 11.38″ deep x 3.63″ height
- Dimension Food Compartment: Width: 5.25″ front; 1.75″ back x 3.75″ length from back to front.
- Weight: 2.4 pounds
- Warranty: 3 years limited.
Key Features
- Cat-Proof: The design is tamper resistant to cats, created considering all the tricks cats do when trying to defeat the feeder, for example trying to rotate the tray to access the next meal.
- Attachable to a Wooden Board: If you have a food-driven cat you can attach this unit to a wooden board for extra stability.
- Battery Duration: The batteries can last up to 12 months if using good quality alkaline ones, and with normal use.
- Dishwasher safe: Lid and feeding tray.
What Comes with the Cat Mate C500
- Cat Mate C500 Base unit
- Food tray
- Top lid
- Twin ice packs
- Battery cover
- User Manual
How it Works
The Cat Mate C500 dispenses 5 meals in 24 hours, the first meal is served at the present moment since, it’s uncovered. To dispense the next meals, the feeding tray rotates in counter-clockwise direction, exposing the next food compartment at the scheduled time.
How to Set Up the Cat Mate C500
The first step is to install the batteries. To remove the lid you need to press on the lid’s sides to release the tabs on both sides. Then you remove the food tray and the battery cover by releasing the holding clip. Place the 3 AA batteries in the compartment. Then you place the twin ice packs on each side of the base, put the tray on top, fill the compartments with dry, wet food or both, put the top lid back on. Then you are ready to program the feeder.
Exploring the Cat Mate C500 LCD panel
The LCD screen displays the following: Low battery indicator, Clock display (with current time), Am/pm indicators, Meal 1 to Meal 4 indicators with their respective feeding times. The buttons are the following: ADJ/SET button, UP arrow button, DOWN arrow button.
Programming of Cat Mate C500
The meals can be programmed with 10-minute intervals between each. You can program all four meals to be dispense in less than an hour. On the other extreme, you can program the feeder to dispense one meal per day for four days. The Cat Mate C500 provides you with flexibility to program a feeding schedule according to your cat’s needs. Note that the minimum intervals of 10 minutes can’t be shortened.
How to Program 4-Meals per Day
You need to set the number of meals and times of each serving. This schedule will be repeated every day so you only need to program the feeding schedule once. The first meal doesn’t need to be programmed as it is exposed to be served at present time. Before any programming you need to set the clock in the feeder.
Setting the Clock: Push the button ADJ/SET for 5 seconds until the LCD screen starts flushing and then push the UP or DOWN arrow to set the time. When setting the clock make sure the AM/PM is correct according to the time you are setting.
Programming 1st Meal: To program the 1st meal you need to press UP or DOWN arrow buttons to move the highlight to Meal 1. Then you press and hold the ADJ/SET button for 3 seconds until the Meal 1 starts to flash. Then set the time for Meal 1 by pushing the UP or DOWN arrow buttons until the time you choose and then press ADJ/SET to save the setting.
Programming 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Meals: Follow the same steps as Meal 1. You can program each meal with 10 minutes apart as the closest. Once you have programmed all the 4 meals, they will visible on the LCD display.
How to Program One, Two or Three Meals per Day
If you want to feed your cat one meal per day for 4 days you only need to program the Meal #1. This programmed mealtime will be repeated every day for four days. If you want to feed your cat two times per day, you need to program Meal #1 and Meal #2 and these two mealtimes will repeat every day for two days. If you want to feed your cat three times per day you need to program Meal #1, Meal #2 and Meal #3 only, leaving Meal #4 blank.
How to Clean the Cat Mate C500
The Cat Mate C500 is very easy to clean. The lid and bowl are dishwasher safe, the base can be wiped clean with a damp cloth. The base should not be submerged in water.
What are the Pros and Cons of the Cat Mate C500?
The insights provided by this breakdown of the Cat Mate C500’s strengths and weaknesses will offer you more clarity in making your decision.
Pros
- Easy to set up and program
- Nice design that doesn’t look intrusive
- It dispenses dry or wet food (or both).
- Easy to control your cat food intake
- Ice packs help to keep the food fresh
- Digital time for accurate meal times
- Each compartment holds enough food for 2 cats to eat
- Easy to clean, dishwasher safe
- Excellent to use as complement to a dry food feeder or for a mixed diet
- Design makes it hard for cats to defeat the feeder
- The base can be attached to a wooden board for maximum stability.
Cons
- You can only program four meals out of five.
- Ice packs may not last very long with warm temperature (see tip)
- The intervals between each meal can’t be programmed for less than 10 minutes.
- The width of the food compartment are for small faced cats. Cats with large faces could experience whisker stress.
- You will need to purchase a extra tray to have as a backup
- It only works with batteries.
Tips & Tricks to use the Cat Mate C500
- To ensure the good operation of the Cat Mate C500 make sure to use it indoors (or garage) and place it in a cool corner away from sunlight and moisture.
- When changing batteries, in order to keep the clock and all the programming, you need to remove and replace all the batteries within 30-60 seconds.
- You can use rechargeable batteries but the battery indicator will work only with alkaline batteries.
- To feed wet food, you can freeze the food in ziploc bags keeping the original shape of the can if that’s the case and place the food on each tray in the same shape without spreading it. This will make the wet food last longer.
Conclusion
The Cat Mate C500 provides cat-proof top lid and nice design to feed your cat 5 meals per day. With this unit you feed your cat a mixed diet of dry, semi moist or wet food, even treats! This rotating automatic feeder offers a good value for money, keeping the food fresh longer with the twin ice packs. A great investment to feed your cat the right portion, at the right times. Get it on Chewy with fast shipping here or, you can get it in Amazon here.
There’s a new version of the Cat Mate C500 with Stainless Steel!
Cat Mate C500 launched a new version of this great automatic feeder that works exactly like the original version we have reviewed here. The difference is that it comes with 5 stainless steel inserts to keep a better hygiene, to help you with the food refilling activity, and to prevent feline chin acne in your cat. The inserts can be placed easily on each plastic tray’s compartment.
With this new version the rotating plastic tray features a screened type surface to make it more lightweight since it holds a stainless steel insert. This unit has a higher price ($89.99) than the original Cat Mate C500 that costs $59.99. Get the Cat Mate C500 with stainless steel inserts in Amazon here. Fun fact, it seems like the Cat Mate brand is merging or changing its name to “Closer Pets”. Maybe in the future all their devices will have this brand instead, but it’s the same Company.
Feeding cats a mixed diet of both dry and wet food is crucial for their well-being. This combination ensures they receive the necessary moisture, which they might not get solely from kibble or drinking water. By investing in an automatic feeder that dispenses both wet and dry food, such as the Cat Mate C500, you are taking a proactive step toward ensuring your cat’s health and happiness. Best of luck!
Can u program the feeder to feed at the same time each day and erase the other 3 times?
Thank you,
Michelle
Hello Michele, if you want to feed your cat only one meal per day you need to program the meal #1 and that’s it. This meal will be repeated everyday.
I can’t get my feeder to start. I set the clock and feeding times, press set once but the numbers continue to blink. Is there another step I’m missing. After a few minutes the clock resets to 12:00
Hello Eileen, to enter the 1st meal you need to press the arrow (UP or DOWN) button to move the highlight to Meal #1, press AND HOLD the ADJ/SET button for 3 SECONDS until the Meal #1 starts flashing. Then set the time for Meal #1 by pushing the arrow (UP or DOWN) button to select the time, then press ADJ/SET to save the settings. When you press the ADJ/SET button to select the time maybe you are holding the button instead of just pressing it. If this doesn’t work call the customer service for further assistance.
Hi my inner tray is out of sync with the hols in the lid, how can I put this right.
Hello Alistair, if you followed the instructions and the lid doesn’t fit right you must contact customer service for a replacement. The tray should sync with the lid.
Hold the adj/set button and the up arrow down simultaneously and the feeder will adjust back into the correct position.
Hi,
What are the measures of a single tray??
My cat is big (siberian) and I am trying to understand if this model would be comfortable for him. With the one we have, I see him having some difficulties because the tray is too small for his big face!!
If you might give the width (front and back) and length of the edges would be great.
Thanks!
Hello Silvia, the food section measures 5-1/4″ wide at the bottom and 1-3/4 ” at the top, and 3-3/4″ length.
What Neal said works, I just did it because the lid was off just 1/4 inch and it adjusted perfectly.
I just set up my Cat Mate C500 with 4 programmed mealtimes. I only put food in compartments 3 & 4 because now it is past the 1 & 2 feed times when I fed my cat by hand. Will the feeder go to the next programmed mealtime? (#3)
Thank you, Judy.
Hi
If my clock says 1:38pm and my first meal is set for 1:30pm, for the four meals. Does this mean the first meal will begin the following day?
Hello Sarah, if you programmed only Meal #1 with the purpose of feeding your cat during 4 days one meal daily and you put the time as 1:30 pm but your current time is 1:38 pm then the first meal will be dispensed at 1:30 pm next day.
I inherited an older cat, her hours were already set in her life. She would wake me up every morning at 5 ish. i bought the catmate C500 and life is good now. She waits to hear the little noise when it turns,
I had to call customer service on from the telephone number on the bowl and they were very helpful and walked
me through a few things on it.
Love, Love, this little feeder
Hello Sharon, I am so happy this feeder worked out well for your elderly cat.
Our cat doesn’t seem to hear the feeder rotate, to go for his meal. We’re trying to train him to the times, but little success so far. Have they considered adding a tone to notify when it rotated, or what tricks are people using to ensure their cats know when a meal is served? He used to hear the dry food dropping into the bowl in his other feeder, but he doesn’t hear this one (he’s an older cat and partially hard of hearing). Thanks.
Hello Bob, I made a review of this automatic feeder so I am not the manufacturer but that’s a very good idea to create an alarm when the feeder rotates. Cats, in general, hear when the tray rotates but if your cat has some partial hearing this feeder won’t work well. Sorry I couldn’t help you more.
Cats can usually tell food is nearby from their sense of smell. I’d try training him by using food with a strong smell (wet food or something fresh that he finds irresistible) and making sure the feeder isn’t too far from where he is around mealtime. Good luck!
I have 3 cats that have been grazers for 10 years. Now I have to feed them 2x a day due to one being diabetic.
Do I need to purchase 3 feeders and set the timer to go off 1x in the morning and 1x in the evening so each of them can eat at the same time?
Is the C500 my best option?
Hello Nancy before giving you an answer, do you feed them wet food?
It says in the “cons” to look at the tips for the ice pack (details I am guessing?) but nowhere in the whole article did I see mention telling you to insert the frozen ice pack during setup or did I miss something?
Hello Allison, the “con” about the ice pack is related to how long it lasts frozen. If the temperature is hot, the ice pack melts more quickly. A tip to help with this is placing the wet food directly from the refrigerator in summer and this way it lasts longer fresh, independently if the ice pack melts faster. Thanks for your comment.
Question: Do the numbers “etched” on each bowl coincide with the programmed times?
Asking because #1 dish/bowl doesn’t line up with the space marked #1.
Reason for question: Used (awesome!) product a few months ago with food in each tray, so the designation of numbers didn’t really matter. This time, however, I’ll need it to be more specific.
Dish one contains medicine — programmed an hour before feeding — dog Chihuahua! eats just fine.
Dish two contains food — programmed to open an hour later
Dish three contains medicine — programmed for later in the day
Dish four contains food — programmed an hour later
I tried lining up Dish numbered #1 with the number on the tray to no avail…any suggestions or should I call customer service? Many thanks! :-)
Hello Steph, I am not sure if I understand what you mean. The tray has 5 “slots” each one numbered from zero to 4. You need to line up the number zero “0” when placing the tray on top of the base with the zero underneath. That means the exposed food is the number #0 which is eaten in the present time. The next tray to the left of zero is #1 and it’s the next. You need to make sure to align the tray correctly and place the food in all 4 slots according to the feeding programming you want. Then you program each meal. The programming doesn’t follow the tray # but only the sequence of rotation considering the zero “0” as the starting point. For example, if your feeder already dispensed programmed meal #1 and for whatever reason, you remove the tray to put food in it, and program meal #2 and place the tray aligning with the zero, the next feeding won’t be the tray numbered 2 but tray numbered 1. I hope that helps!
How can I fed my cat for 2 days and two meals. Do I fill all the numbers 1-4 and just have 2 times on the set one for morning and other for night?
Hello Sarah, If you want your cat to eat twice a day you need to program Meal #1 and Meal #2 only.
I’m planning a day trip and leaving in the middle of the day. My cat will need a 5pm, 10pm day of and then the next day 7am. Will the feeder know to skip the morning time until the day after if the clock is 3pm? Ie. Will it know to do the 5pm that day? (I tried to make Meal 1 start at 5pm but the clock only goes earliest to latest).
Hi Linda, if you want your cat to eat at 5pm and 10pm that’s possible if programming meal #1 and Meal #2, but it’s not possible to program the next day in the morning to a different time. The meals you program will repeat every day on the same schedule. What you can do is program meal #1 at 7am, meal #2 at 5pm and meal #3 at 10pm. Your cat this way will eat an extra meal while you are still at home, but that would be the only solution that will solve your problem.