| | |  | Feeders | Home » » » » Petmate LeBistro Portion Control Automatic Pet Feeder, Black, 10 Pounds | | | | | | | Description: | | Great for cats and dogs, this fully automatic pet feeder features a tough plastic base that holds a food reservoir for food "on demand." The electronic pet feeder's simple, programmable electronics prompt the feeder to dispense portions from 1/4 to 3 cups at three selected times per day. The unit can be set to meet scheduled feeding times and amounts when caretakers are away, but it is not meant to replace human care--please be sure someone still visits the pet daily. The unit's hopper holds 10 pounds of food and accommodates a full range of dry food sizes, shapes, and types. The feeding bowl is removable for easy cleaning. Required batteries, which are not included, sustain a long battery life of six months. One-year limited warranty. | | | Features: | |
• Automatic feeder can be programmed to dispense up to 3 meals per day
• Dispenses up to 3 cups of food per serving
• Use dry dog or cat food only
• Assembles quickly and easily with no tools necessary
• Requires 3 ¿D¿ batteries (sold separately)
| | | Product Details: | | | Package Length:
| 12.4 inches | | Package Width:
| 10.9 inches | | Package Height:
| 10.7 inches | | Package Weight:
| 4.4 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 708 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 708 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
432 of 435 found the following review helpful:
 Great product, with a few quirks.Aug 10, 2008
By E. Clarke
After looking around for an auto feeder it seemed like they all had some issue, but this had mostly positive reviews so I figured I'd give it a try. I bought two so each of my cats could have one. Unfortunately one of them did not work upon arrival so I sent it back and had a new one sent within a week. A few things to point out based on other reviewers problems.
1. Programming is quite easy if you just follow the instructions, it took me about 2 minutes to have it set up and ready to go.
2. If you attach the container and lid on properly your cat will not be able to get into it.
3. It will only take a day or two for your cat to realize if it sticks its arm up the food chute it can get a piece or two out but it's probably more of a hassle than your cat will want to deal with after a few tries.
4. If you are using normal dry cat food (which is smaller than the 1/2" recommended size on the instructions) the portion control isn't very accurate. I found I had to just set it 1/4 cup smaller than I actually wanted them to have.
Once you figure out a few of the quirks of this product it will work without problems. Both of mine have made my life much easier since the cats know I don't control their food anymore than just sit around until they hear the food being portioned out by the auto feeder.
83 of 84 found the following review helpful:
 Works as advertised, easy to programJun 14, 2008
By P-squared
We purchased this feeder for our small cat. Just received yesterday. It will dispense in 1/4 cup increments up to 2 cups, 3 times per day. It is VERY easy to program, unlike the horror stories in the reviews for the previous LeBistro models. We ran it through several test feedings and it completed this morning's feeding without a problem. The bowl/chute combo covers the hopper entrance very effectively to prevent a clever cat from accessing the food. A paddle wheel inside rotates to dispense the food, but the paddles are sectioned and made of soft flexible material to prevent jamming. So far so good!
178 of 187 found the following review helpful:
 Be sure to use pet food with greater than 1/2" diameter!!!Jun 26, 2008
By R. Mentink
"rlmentink, dvm"
The product description on amazon.com does not include the description on the box, which says pet food needs to be at least 1/2" in diameter... so when I tried the machine out, it fed WAY MORE food than required when using the classic, small pellet cat food (~1/4" diameter). The box photos are misleading... the feeder is filled with small cat food pellets! And you can only get down to 1/4 cup per meal... which means most average size cats could only get 2 meals per day, not more frequently like the box advertises.
If I had a dog, this feeder would be great. But I have a cat...
72 of 73 found the following review helpful:
Need smaller portions? Read on.Dec 04, 2008
By Work of Life
I read all the negative reviews on this feeder and I compared to all the other feeders on the market right now. Hands down, this is the best value for the money, even with its 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 in this price range, 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 picture)
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 pets, 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 each piece into a long strip (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 about 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 are dispensing the right amount and then tie your string with a strong knot (but don't cinch down or you will flatten your pillows and mess up the portions). 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 I uploaded to the product description for a detailed look at my "Le-Bistro paddle wheel pillow". :-) Good luck!
55 of 55 found the following review helpful:
 Died after 2 monthsMar 19, 2009
By Jaylady
(Updated 4/09, 2/10, & 1/11)
I was very happy with my earlier LeBistro feeder (although it took a while to interpret the instructions). That one lasted 18 months. I bought this newer model thinking they would have improved the programming interface. They did; it's easier! However, I purchased this newer unit on January 5th and it just died, on March 17. That's two months and one week that it worked.
The troubleshooting instructions identified the 'blinking Meal' problem as a jammed hopper. So I turned it off, carefully cleaned it all out, put new batteries in, and retested it. Nothing. When the feeding time came, the 'Dinner' light started blinking again, and no food came out.
The only way to regain control at that point is to turn the unit off and back on.
I do not have the original box, so I have no chance of exchanging or returning it. I won't buy another product from Petmate.
--> Update April 2009:
One more observation. I read extensive reviews on this product both here and on other web sites. One reviewer took his feeder apart. He discovered that the 'rubber band' that loops around the motor to turn the food turnstile had come off. I opened up my feeder, and half of the rubber band had come off of the mechanism on mine as well. Unfortunately, just slipping the band back into place did not fix my feeder.
I have exhausted all possibilities and am beyond my return date, so into the trash this one goes.
---> Update February 2010:
Final follow-up...I bought a Super-Feed feeder and am very happy with it. It is a bit tedious to set up (the instructions are VERY clear, and the web site even has a video of each step, to help you). This feeder is pretty bullet-proof. Not nearly as attractive as the LeBistro, but it will probably last me YEARS rather than months.
---> Update January 2011:
In case anyone is interested, the Super-Feed feeder is still working great a year later.
See all 708 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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