Technical toys have long ceased to be aimed only at people, and at their beloved four-legged friends. Whether the electronic food bowl for the cat or the fitness trainer for the dog – we present the most fun new technology for your pet.
Does my dog move enough, does the cat eat too much? All questions that can now be answered even better with the help of smart devices.What cat loves to play .
Photo: Tractive GmbH
Smart home with all of its digital and chip-controlled sensations has long been familiar to many people with an affinity for technology. The latest gadgets on the market were showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show CES in Las Vegas from January 8-11. Some of the techno toys that are fondly called gadgets are getting crazier and crazier. In the meantime, the target audience for these products has not only discovered people themselves, but their pets. The gadgets described below are also for cats. You have to decide for yourself whether this also applies figuratively.
Pets also have a pyramid of needs
In the 1950s, the American social psychologist Maslow developed his so-called pyramid of needs. It shows us humans in which order human needs are met. Anyone who had a look at the CES in Las Vegas this year could also discover this pyramid of needs for the beloved pet. The lowest level serves elementary physiological needs – including the need for food.
Just because the bipeds, which the cats also like to call can openers, have an occasional exit, should the floor panthers not suffer from hunger. Sureflap has tackled this problem and offers technical solutions for one or more pets at the same time. Using the chip in the collar, the animals only open the lock at the feed point at the programmed time for their own prepared feeding. Food theft is therefore excluded. In this way, individual portions of diet food or medication can be safely allocated. Such a microchip-controlled solution costs around 125 $.
An animal does not live from the treat alone
When an elementary need, such as satisfying hunger, is satisfied, Maslow goes to the next higher level: the need for security. A lot can be done for the four-legged friends with smart technology. Once again, it is the British company Sureflap, which is presenting a safety system for the free cats. Chip-controlled cat flaps take care of the cat in two ways: it can open the flap with its chip at any time and return to freedom and the smart home. On the other hand, no strange and possibly dangerous animal can open the automatic cat flap – neither from the inside nor from the outside.
When an animal is out on tour, it doesn’t have to do without security: tracking is the magic word. With this technology, concerned parents have been able to determine the whereabouts of their children on their cell phones for a long time. With GPS trackers from the Austrian company Tractive, mistresses and owners can now follow the activities of their four-legged friends live on their smartphones. This works very simply via the collar with an integrated safety lock at a price of 50 $. A virtual fence can also be set up: If the animal leaves a defined area, the cell phone owners are alerted. In order for all this to work, a subscription for $ 3.75 per month is required in addition to the free app and the collar equipment. The exciting question is
The well-being of the pet is always on the screen
But tracking technology offers even more. Behind the product name Animo there is a complete behavior and activity monitoring, with which Sureflap especially has the owner of barking four-legged friends in view. All dog activities are registered, saved and transferred to a smartphone using a collar chip. Whether the dog eats his breakfast, then goes for a walk with a dog walker, possibly barks at the postman, takes a little lunch tour through the garden – nothing escapes the dog owner’s gaze. This should help to better understand the health and well-being of your dog. Even the calorie consumption can be displayed. This can make it easier to notice changes in behavior. Incidentally, of course, you can also see
The device is surprisingly light at 22 grams and unobtrusively small at 37 millimeters in diameter, waterproof and has battery power for 6 months. Desired people can be granted access to the program. This all-round carefree care package costs around 70 $. With this behavior monitoring and the sharing of data, we have also climbed a step up on the Maslow pyramid and have reached the level of social needs – again above all that of animal owners.
The electric mouse comes into play
Unfortunately, mistresses and masters are often busy with themselves or with their smartphones. Sometimes playing with the four-legged friends is neglected. So that the social needs of the animals are sufficiently satisfied, an electronic mouse comes to visit to entertain the cats. This innovation launched by Petronics is intelligently programmed. So she independently lures the cats and tempts them to run, catch and run around. Cat owners can also control the mouse via smartphone from the sofa. The smart fun called Mousr costs around 130 $.
Analogously, there is a digital self-steering ball for dogs that they can hunt for. The Pebby company offers ball and collar for more or less fun $ 240.
The fitness program for overweight pets
Since we humans like to combine pleasure with the useful, there is also a wheel for overweight for the pet. TheLittleCat, for example, offers a product for the overweight cat so that she can lose a few pounds with fun. The whole thing looks like an oversized hamster wheel. The cat is lured onto the tread by moving light points – and off you go. The device with a diameter of 110 centimeters and a weight of 19 kilograms on the website promises a quick weight loss from a chubby 9.6 to a smart 6.5 kg cat weight. The device from South Korea, however, costs a whopping 1,600 $.Xiaomi furrytail pet smart feeder is one best option
Homdox Automatic Cat Feeder Pet Food Dispenser for Cat Dog, Auto Cat Feeder with Timer Programmable, Portion Control & Voice Recording – 4 Meals for Medium Large Cats
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.