- Written by: Sarah
- Last Update: March 1, 2023
The Best Slow Feed Bowls for Dogs and Cats in 2023
If your dog or cat likes to gobble their feed then you need a slow feeding bowl. Gobbling the food is not necessarily a sign of healthy habits. Excessive fast feeding can jeopardize the health of your pet and can cause mental stress for you too. You need to buy the best slow feed dog and cat bowls that can slow down the feeding process of your furball and take care of any indigestion issues.
The market has a long list of options available for you to try. Making the right decisions might become difficult with so many options available. For this reason, we have developed this brief guide for your assistance in finding the best slow feed dog and cat bowl for your little one.
So let’s get going then!
| Editor's Picks | Brand | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Outward Hound Feeder Bowl | 4.9 | |
| Siensync Feeder Bowl | 4.7 | |
| DotPet Feeder Bowl | 4.6 | |
| PINJUM Feeder Bowls | 4.4 | |
| DuraPet Feeder Bowls | 4.1 |
Our Top Pick
Fun Feeder by Outward Hound
After carefully reviewing hundreds of products as high-quality, we came to the conclusion that the choice you can’t miss is the Fun Feeder from Outward Hound. This bowl makes eating fun for your pet and ten times slower than usual.
That’s not all. . . It can significantly improve the digestion issues of your pet. Recommended by most vets due to the use of food-grade ABS plastic in the making.
The large bowl can hold up to four cups of kibble, the small one can hold two cups while the extra small can hold a quarter cup. It works equally well for both dry and wet diets. With a variety of colors and designs available, your pet will find it very difficult to eat quickly.
The plastic used in the construction of this bowl is of good quality. This means that you don’t have to worry about any leaching at all. This Fun Feeder will not only extend the mealtime for your pet but it will also make their meal a lot more fun.
Table of Contents
Best 5 Slow Feed Dog and Cat Bowls
Outward Hound Feeder Bowl
At a glance:
- Dimensions: 11.8-inch x 11.8-inch x 2.7-inch
- Weight: 1.15 pounds
- Capacity: 2-4 cups
- Slip-resistant base: Yes
- Dishwasher Safe: Yes (Top rack)
- Colors: 05
- Size: 02
Features:
Outward Hound built high quality and trendy products where Outward Hound Feeder Bowl is the most popular. The Company uses food-safe materials to construct it. These materials are PVC, BPA, and Phthalate free bowl for your pets.
The best thing? Outward Hound bowl will not slide or slip on the floor.
Additionally, many veterinarians recommend the Outward Hound dog bowl because it helps to improve the digestion system of pets naturally. This feeder bowl comes with a maze and fun pattern that restricts dogs to eat their food slowly.
Using this bowl, the dog eats food more than 10 times slower as compared to traditional bowls. 
Furthermore, Outward Hound presents this fun dog bowl in two sizes such as small and large. You can purchase according to your pets in your home. They come with proper portions that are healthier for the pets. In addition, the small can hold only two cups of dry kibble and the large-sized slow-bowl can hold more than four cups of dry kibble.
It is not compulsory to use it only for dry foods; you can also use it for wet diets and raw food. It is available in five colors on the market. These include teal, blue, orange, purple, and mint. You can buy according to your and the preferences of your pet.
Additionally, the top rack of the fun feeder bowl is dishwasher safe. The base of the bowl is slip-resistant that safe the bowl from slide or slip.
Our Opinion:
Outward Hound manufactured the ideal fun feeder bowl for the fast eater. It comes with a fun pattern and challenging maze that slows down the food consumption of the dogs. You can use this best slow feed dog and cat bowl to improve your pet’s digestion and prevent bloats in a natural way.
- The large-sized bowl can hold more than four cups of dry kibble.
- The company uses superior quality material to construct it that presents BPA free, Phthalate-free, and PVC free bowl for pets.
- You can also use it for both wet diet and raw food.
- It helps to improve digestion and helps to prevent bloat in your pets.
- The top rack of the fun feeder bowl is dishwasher safe so you can easily clean it in a better way.
- Not suitable for a dog with a short nose.
- It is a lightweight fun feeder bowl that smart dogs can lift off the floor.
Siensync Feeder Bowl
At a glance:
- Weight: 0.45 pounds
- Dishwasher Safe: Yes (Top rack)
- Slip-resistant base: Yes
- Warranty: 1-year
- Color: 02
- Size: 01
Features:
Siensync has made this dog food bowl maze with ABS high strength and food-safe materials. It is equally suitable for dogs and cats. These materials deliver PVC, Phthalate, and BPA free dog food maze.
What’s the best thing about this product? It will not frustrate your pet and converts it into a fun mealtime. One size fits for large, medium, and small-sized dogs.
The non-toxic Bamboo fiber bowl helps to control canine obesity as well as control diet according to the required calories. In addition to that, you can use this unique design of the puzzle bowl for raw food, dry food as well as wet food. The top rack of this slow feeder is dishwasher safe that makes it easy to clean.
The capacity of the maze bowl is 2 cups, which is perfect to feed your pets.
Furthermore, the dimension and lightweight construction make it portable. You can also use it while traveling and keep your pets happy and healthy with fun.
The base of the slow-bowl is slip-resistant that keeps the bowl static on the floor. Furthermore, this kind of bowl helps to restore your pet’s natural habit of eating, which also makes mealtime a fun time.
Our Opinion:
According to a research study, those cats and dogs that eat food too rapidly can develop discomfort, bloating, and many other digestive issues. Siensync presents an ideal designed slow feeder bowl for your pets that supports healthy slow eating habit, regurgitation; prevent bloats, choke, canine obesity, and overeating as well.
- This non-toxic and eco-friendly maze bowl is made by using food-safe and ABS high strength materials.
- The interactive and unique designed slow feeder bowl allows you to keep dry, wet, and raw food in it.
- Siensync makes it dishwasher safe as well as safe to go in the freezer if your pet likes to eat cold food.
- This durable and lightweight bowl relieves multiple health issues like bloat, overeating, regurgitation, and other digestive issues.
- It is only accessible in one size.
- Siensync puzzle bowl is not suitable for flat-faced breeds.
DotPet Feeder Bowl
At a glance:
- Dimensions: 1.6-inch x 2-inch x 1.6-inch
- Weight: 1.76 pounds
- Material: Ceramic
- Color: White
- Dishwasher Safe: No
Features:
DotPet manufactured the superior quality slow feed bowl for your pets like cats and dogs. They use ceramic material to construct a reliable puzzle bowl. This slow feeder for cats is odor-free, non-toxic, and completely for the pets to use. This puzzle maze helps to slow down the feeding speed of the pets who like to eat fast.
The design of this feeder bowl comes with multiple ridges. These ridges help to develop the habit of eating slowly. Nevertheless, slow eating habits gives many health benefits like avoid bloating, obesity, indigestion, and much more.
Furthermore, it comes with a smooth surface that provides an easy and more convenient way to wash the bowl for further use.
Slow pet bowls added more fun while catching food from the maze-shape feeder bowl, which enhances their agility. The size of this cat slow feeder is about 8.7-inch diameter and 1.6-inch height.
Our Opinion:
If your cat is having some indigestion or bloating issues then you need to purchase this DotPet bowl. The maze-shape design helps to improve the pet’s agility and improve digestion issues like bloating. Due to its interactive design, your cat will develop a healthier and slower eating habit in a natural way.
- This quality ceramic feeder bowl for cats enhances their agility.
- Odor-free and non-toxic feeder bowl is completely safe for pets.
- The puzzle-designed bowl develops a healthier and slow eating habit that prevents bloating and indigestion issues.
- It comes with a smooth surface that gives you extra convenience to clean the feeder bowl for further use.
- Cleanliness is much more difficult because it is not dishwasher safe.
- There is no color option available for you.
PINJUM Feeder Bowls
At a glance:
- Dimensions: 9.5-inch x 8-inch x 2-inch
- Weight: 0.5 pounds
- Slip-resistant base: Yes
- Color: 03
Features:
PINJUM designed this slow feeder bowl by using premium quality material that provides multiple health benefits to the pets. The best part? It allows pets to eat their food slowly. Slow feeder bowl promotes eating in a healthy way, solve indigestion issues, adjust the weight of pets, and prolong mealtime as well.
Moreover, your pets can enjoy a balanced meal in a healthier way while eating in this maze-shaped bowl. You can use it for wet food, dry food, and raw food. There is a reasonable distance between the valley and ridges, which decreases the speed of feeding.
The construction of this bowl won’t hurt your dog’s or cat’s tongue and mouth. In addition to that, the base of the PINJUM fun feeder is non-slippery and solid. Your pet cannot slide the bowl while eating.
What’s more? The four sides of the base come with anti-skid pads that provide stability to the fun bowl. The manufacturer has used ABS, non-toxic and food-safe materials that make it more durable and stable. It is also very easy to clean. This interactively designed bowl can hold almost 1.5 cups to 2 cups of dry food.
Our Opinion:
PINJUM feeder bowl is best for your pets because it protects them from multiple diseases by developing slow eating habits. It prevents the pets from bloating, indigestions, cardiovascular, obesity, flatulence as well as many gastrointestinal issues.
- The proper distance between the valley and ridges allow the pet to eat slowly.
- The bottom of the bowl has anti-skid pads that provide stability and prevents slip off.
- It is accessible in three colors on the market such as sky blue, green tea, and rose red.
- The manufacturer uses high-quality ABS, non-toxic, and food-safe materials to construct it that enhances its durability and reliability.
- The maximum food capacity of the PINJUM bowl is only 2 cup that is not suitable for large-sized dogs.
- It is not ideal for cats because it is too deep and your cat’s tongue cannot reach the food easily.
DuraPet Feeder Bowls
At a glance:
- Dimensions: 7.6-inch x 7.6-inch x 2-inch
- Weight: 0.55 pounds
- Bowl capacity: 3 cups
- Dishwasher safe: yes
- Color: 01
- Size: 03
Features:
DuraPet presents this premium quality stainless steel slow feeder bowl for your pets. This heavyweight bowl comes with a top-of-the-line design that is accessible at an affordable price on the market. The bottom of the bowl has a permanent ring that provides stability to the bowl and stops it from skidding.
The stainless steel material provides reliability and durability as well as made it dishwasher safe for convenient cleaning.
Furthermore, the design of the bowl prevents a mess while feeding as well as tipping at the time of feeding. By using this bowl, you can develop slow eating habits in your pets. The best thing about the DuraPet bowl is that multiple veterinarians also recommended it for your dogs.
In addition to that, slow feeding can decrease choking, bloating, and discomfort related to gastrointestinal. Whenever dogs eat from the DuraPet bowl, they ate slowly because the center of the bowl is solid and dogs eat the food from the side. This decreases the speed of feeding in your pet and keeps them happy and healthier.
It is accessible in three sizes so you are able to purchase the right size acceding to your pets. The sizes are large, medium, and small. Additionally, small size bowl can hold 3 cups; medium can hold 4 cups and large can hold 8 cups of dry food. You can say that this stainless steel feeder bowl is an improved solution to keep your pets happier and healthier.
Our Opinion:
DuraPet manufactured slow feeder bowl for pets by using stainless steel material. This material increases the durability, reliability and it is dishwasher safe. Additionally, you can use the small-sized bowl to hold cups of dry food and raw food.
- The bottom of the bowl has a ring that provides stability and prevents tipping and dipping while eating.
- Easy to clean because it is dishwasher safe.
- It has a simple top-of-the-line design that develops slow eating in your pets and keeps your pet happy and healthy.
- The small size bowl can hold more than 3 cups of dry or raw food.
- You can choose the right size according to your pet size because it is accessible in three sizes like small, medium, and large.
- The stainless steel material makes it a heavyweight option for you.
- Choosing the right size according to your pet is a difficult task.
Buyer’s Guide - What to Look for in a Slow Feed Dog and Cat Bowl?
There are many important factors that you must consider before buying a slow feed bowl for your dog and cat. These will enable you to find a suitable bowl that will keep your pet from gobbling.
Let’s find out what are these:
Manufacturing materials
The critical thing that you must consider before buying dog bowls for fast eaters is the manufacturing material. You can either go for metallic or non-metallic.
In the metallic category, the stainless steel slow feed dog bowls are very common.
The non-metallic bowls are either made of resin or plastic. Some manufacturers also use bamboo or silicone. The slow feeding bowls made of plastic are highly popular.
If you’re going to consider a plastic bowl then you must look for food-grade plastic. Additionally, they are also dishwasher safe.
Silicone models are foldable and you can take them out whenever you want.
Moreover, some of the manufacturers have also introduced slow feeding bowls made of ceramic. The ceramic slow feed dog bowl is durable and it is highly safe too. In addition to that such a bowl is very stable too due to its heavyweight. These bowls also look very elegant and will keep the contents cool. Last but not least, these bowls are dishwasher safe too.
Bowl design
The design of the bowl is equally imperative when you are to choose it for your pet. The metallic designs come with dome right in the center or there can be pillars to create hurdles in the dog bowls for fast eaters.
On the other hand, the non-metallic bowls don’t have a dome in the center but they do have a lot more puzzling designs including dog food bowl maze. These dog food maze can significantly reduce the eating speed of your pet but due to the lightweight construction, these bows are very easy to topple.
Another frequently used design is matt shaped and made of silicone. This bowl is mat filled and there are grass type obstacles in it. Your dog will have to work through these obstacles using its nose. Such a design takes inspiration from how a dog will feed in the outdoors.
Capacity and size
Based on the breed of your dog and age you have to choose the right size of the bowl. Most of them range between sizes of a quarter cup to eight cups of dry kibble. For the dogs that weigh between 15 lbs and 30 lbs, you can go for a bowl of two cups for a single round of feeding.
The size of the bowl is also closely linked to slow feeding. The slow feeding bowls are large in size because they have obstacles in them. The matt-designed bowls are the largest in size.
Additional elements to consider
Apart from the factor that we have mentioned above, there are some additional factors too. One of these two factors is color. You need to make your decisions according to the personality of your dog or cat. You need to have a variety of options available when it comes to colors.
Besides the colors, the after-sale service and customer support is another important factor that you need to consider before finalizing your purchase decisions. Your slow feed dog bowl must come with a return policy so that you can send it back to the manufacturers if not satisfied with the performance of the bowl.
Apart from that, you must also look for the warranty and replacements period of your bowls.
Frequently Asked Questions
How frequently should I use the dog and cat slow feeder?
You can use it twice a day in the beginning and gradually decrease it one slow meal per day. The reason is that it serves to be a mental challenge for your pet because it needs to eat slowly. The only time when your pet doesn’t benefit from eating slowly is that when it is unwell or sick.
Are there any disadvantages of using a slow feed bowl?
Some people have reported the incidents where their dogs have ingested plastic when they chew on the feeder. However, these cases are rare. Some dogs might also chip their teeth when feeding on a ceramic slow feed dog bowl. Apart from that these slow feeding bowls are a lot more challenging when it comes to cleaning as compared to the regular bowls.
Is there any recommended way to clean the slow feeding bowl?
Not like the standard bowls, the best dog bowl to slow down eating features a lot of gaps and crevices and these are the places where food can get stuck. Due to this, they require a lot more thorough cleaning.
We recommend a part of vinegar with three parts of water if you want the best results. It will not only extend the life of the feeder but also boost your dog’s health.
Is a slow feed bowl helpful in weight loss?
As you reduce the speed of eating, your pet will eat less and will also feel full for a longer period of time. They also do a lot of effort when they are feeding on the anti gulp dog bowl and this can be their extra activity as well. So taking fewer calories while burning more will naturally reduce their weight.
Are these bowls helpful in vomiting?
The best dog bowl to slow down eating is very helpful in vomiting too. Your pet won’t be able to inhale food while eating. We would recommend that you don’t feed your pet right away after an activity. This will significantly reduce the chances of vomiting.
Why are dogs so eager to eat their food like there is no tomorrow?
There is a significant amount of research available on this topic. In short, the dogs do so because of their wild dog instincts. The ancestors of dogs are driven by hunger and survival. Wild dogs tend to eat very quickly because they are afraid that someone else might come and steal the meal from them. They don’t have an idea when the next meal is going to come.
Which dogs and cats need a slow feed bowl?
Dogs and cats that are prone to vomiting, gastrointestinal discomfort and bloating will definitely benefit it from the slow feed bowl. These are pretty severe conditions and the pet owners must understand to take care of their pets.
How do these slow feeding bowls work?
The primary focus of a slow feed bowl is to prevent the tongue and teeth of your dog to directly access the food. Due to the design, your dog is forced to think and create an angle with its tongue and mouth that will enable it to have access to a small chunk of food at one time.
What is competitive feeding?
If you have more than one pup at your home then your pets might have to deal with competitive feeding. Extra competition during feeding can make your dog aggressive when eating.
Which types of dogs are prone to fast eating?
A number of pets love to devour a lot of food and this can be very unhealthy for them because it can cause indigestion. This problem of quick eating is very prominent among some dog breeds including Maltese, Labradors, Beagles, Terriers, and Pugs.
Challenges & Limitations of Slow Feeding Dog and Cat Bowls
There is not all good associated with these slow feeding bowls. They also come with some limitations and challenges. These are listed below:
- Because of their design, these bowls are very difficult to clean. If you just toss them into the dishwasher, it might not work out for you and for this reason you might have to put on some extra effort to prevent any development of bacteria.
- If your pet is smart enough then it might be able to learn and topple the bowl. Therefore, you will have to look at the level of stability that a particular bowl has to offer.
- If you have slow feeding bowls made of resin or plastic then your pet might end up gulping non-edible material that will lead to gastrointestinal discomfort.
- If your dog has a small snout then it might have a lot of trouble eating around the barriers that are present in the bowl. In fact, it can also lead to tooth chipping. Therefore, it is critical for you to get a slow feeding bowl that has an appropriate size and shape.
Important points to remember when using these slow feed bowls
The anti gulp or slow feed bowls for dogs and cats are extremely convenient and are also the standard mechanism to use for fast eating cats and dogs. Nevertheless, to ensure adequate usage you need to keep few points in mind.
- You must evaluate all your choices before picking. The traditional stainless steel slow feed dog bowls might not slow the feeding process but they are chemically a lot safer than the plastic feed bowls.
- Make sure that you always choose the size and design. Bear in mind that the dogs with small snout will find it difficult to feed through these bowls. Therefore, you can opt for matt-shaped feeding bowls.
- Always keep your feeding bowls clean and ensure that you use a separate sponge for cleaning for all your pet bowls. You can also use a discarded soft toothbrush for resin, plastic or silicone bowls to effectively clean the crannies and nooks.
- If you are cleaning the slow feeding bowls with dishwasher then place the bowl on the top shelf. Keep in mind to remove the rubber base before you use the dishwasher on the bowl.
- Make sure that the bowl is not damaged before you start using it. Ensure that all the obstacles that are there within the bowl are not leaching any plastic.
- You can always discuss the issues or signs of any bloating or discomfort with a doctor before feeding your pet on the slow bowl.
Great roundup, thanks. I’ve found the fan design of the PINJUM bowl you reviewed here to be the most effective with our pet beagle. It slowed him down by about 5 times.
Is there an elevated slow feed bowl for cats? I have 2 senior cats with scarf and barf problems. They’ve been thoroughly examined by their veterinarian. Thanks!