Meowbox Review and Discount Code

Monthly subscription boxes have been popular for a while. Beauty products, snacks, even treats for dogs. So it’s only fair that there’s a subscription box just for cats, too, right?

When the Meowbox people reached out to us to ask how if we would like to review their monthly cat subscription box, it sounded like a great chance to check out something new. The idea of having a box full of goodies just for us show up was irresistible.

The experience was different from the start, with an email that arrived to let us know that our Meowbox had shipped. There was even a tracking number that allowed us to check on where the box was every day until it arrived in our mailbox.

The email with a tracking number also had a second, more special, tracking number. Meowbox gives back to shelter cats. For every Meowbox, they give a can of food to a shelter cat, and you can use a tracking code to see whee the status of the can deonated on behalf of your Meowbox.

Meowbox calls this One Box Can, but we just call it heartwarming.

Newton: Enough talk. Cn we open the Meowbox now? I don’t have thumbs, so I can’t do this myself.

Newton: Our box came personalized just for us! The Meowbox humans do this for every box, and it made me feel extra-special. They even drew a heart for us. I love you, too!

I really like the packaging, and I can’t wait to destroy that tissue paper and the feather so lovingly attached to it with a sticker. Can we get past the postcard that lists the good stuff inside and actually see the good stuff now?

Look at all of the fun stuff that came in the box!

Pierre: I get to make the first choice from the Meowbox because I’m the oldest.

Newton: You’re old all right!

Pierre: I’m not THAT old. And I know catnip when I smell it. This irresistible catnip mouse is my favorite. Check out the suede tail on it!

Newton: Well, while you play with that mouse, I’m taking this one.

Newton: This is a Fatty Mouse. Not only does it crinkle, but it’s full of catnip, and it has filling made of recycled water bottles. I think that the crinkly sound inside is made by little water bottles moving around in there.

Pierre: There aren’t just mice. There’s also a wooly caterpillar. There’s something irresistible about this. Maybe it’s the smell of the wool or something.

Newton: It’s not all toys and games. Then there are the grain-free jerky treats. You know what? If you sneak up on your human while she is trying to open them, she makes a loud, startled noise and jerky treats fly all over the floor.

Ashton: Way to go, Newton! We’ll have these cleaned up from the floor in no time.

Newton: The Meowbox people said that if we were picky or were on special diets, we could have ordered a special no-food version of the Meowbox for delivery instead and gotten all toys instead of having treats.

Ashton: Don’t you dare tell them not to send us treats!

Newton: The final item in the Meowbox is pet grass that you can grow yourself. This looks so easy to do that even the head peep could probably grow it, and she kills plants just by looking at them. I can’t wait to have fresh greens to graze on!

The Meowbox is a real hit, stuffed with fun things that we really loved. We give it twelve enthusiastic paws up!

Want more information? You can visit Meowbox on the web or keep up with their latest news on Facebook.

Meowbox Discount Code

Do you want to get your own Meowbox for a ready-made cat party in your mailbox, too? You can get 10% off your first Meowbox subscription at Meowbox.com with promo code CATSHERDYOU10.

FTC Disclosure: We received our Meowbox in exchange for our honest review. Receiving free product did not influence anything we say. All opinions expressed on this site are our own.

Adopt a Less-Adoptable Pet Week

Adopt a Less-Adoptable Pet Week is a cause close to our hearts because Ashton is a less-adoptable cat.

According to a survey, 99% of shelters and rescue organizations have pets they are having difficulty placing in good homes. These “less-adoptable” pets fall into several categories.

Less Adoptable Cat Types

Senior Cats

Many adopters decide against senior cats because they are adopting after losing a previous pet, and they don’t want to imagine that happening again for a very long time. The thought of losing a senior cat to old age in only a few years makes them choose to adopt younger cats. Adopters may also be afraid of senior cats developing expensive medical conditions with their advanced age.

With the aging of the baby boom generation, a growing number of senior pets who lived their entire lives with a single human find themselves homeless when their human who becomes unable to take care of them due to their own age-related issues or even because of their human’s death. When the remaining family members are unable to care for the cat, frightened, disoriented senior pets don’t appear to be good potential companions and are harder to adopt.

Given time to settle into a new home, seniors can make wonderful, loving companions, great for adopters who want a cat to cuddle with but don’t want to have to wear a young cat out with a lot of exercise and play every day.

Shy Cats

Like the frightened senior pets mentioned above, shy cats don’t warm up to potential adopters when they come to a shelter or rescue organization to look for a new companion. Shy cats don’t “show well,” and their shyness can look like aggression when they are especially afraid at adoption events. The same cat that hisses at a potential adopter when being pulled out of the safety of his cage at an adoption event will come out of his shell after being given more time to warm up to strange humans, but it’s hard for the shy cat to get the chance to let his personality shine.

Shy cats can blossom in foster homes, but it can be hard for a potential adopter to take a shelter’s word that the cat cowering in their litterbox will be friendly and outgoing in their home environment once they have time to adjust to new surroundings.

Special Needs Cats

There are many types of special needs cats, such as diabetic cats or cats that need special diets for ongoing conditions. Each of these may worry potential adopters because they aren’t sure if they understand what care the cat will need, even though the extra care is often minimal. Education is key to understanding how much or little care a special need cat will require.

One of the most common conditions that causes cats to be considered special needs is Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV), found commonly among stray cats. While there is a lot of lingering fear and misunderstanding about the transmission of this virus, studies have shown that friendly FIV-positive and negative cats live together without transmitting the disease. While FIV-positive cats should see their vet more promptly at any sign of illness, they can also live long, happy lives with their human and feline families. Still, lingering fear and misunderstanding make these cats harder to adopt.

Imperfect Cats

Many cats are simply imperfect. Even though they need no extra care, they may be missing an eye like our Ashton or a leg like our Cousin Earl. Others might have tattered ears or visible scars. These imperfections are usually from a previous mishap, and the cats simply aren’t as appealing to potential adopters on sight.

These different-looking cats are just as wonderful companions as their two-eyed or four-legged companions, but they are often overlooked because they don’t look as appealing.

Bonded Pairs

Cats who are relinquished to a shelter or rescue together sometimes turn to each other for comfort. It’s no wonder that the rescue organization decides that they must go to a home together so that they can continue to rely on each other for solace during stressful transitions and play together during joyful times. Not everyone wants to adopt two cats, or if they do, they may not want the particular combination of personalities, colors, or other characteristics that the bonded pair represents.

Bonded pairs of cats, with each other to help their confidence, may adapt more quickly to new situations then they would alone, but some adopters still hesitate.

Cats Who Must be “Onlies”

At the other end of the spectrum, cats who must go to homes with no other cats can take longer to adopt because the most likely adopters already have one or more cats. Some only cats also need to be the only pet in the home so they can’t join a household with dogs or other pets, either. This limits their potential pool of adopters and keeps them at the shelter or rescue group longer.

These “only” cats bond closely to their human family members, especially since they have no other feline companions.

Black Cats

People who work in shelters and rescues continue to report that black cats with wonderful personalities take longer to adopt than their more colorful counterparts. Black cats may not show well in the muted light of cages in shelters or may be victims of superstitions about their being unlucky. Anyone who has lived with a black cat can report that they are anything but unlucky, but are great companions with winning personalities.

What Shelters Are Doing to Help

Most shelters work to get their less-adoptable pets extra attention, knowing that they are going to take more families considering them than average before one decides that they have found the perfect companion.

Some shelters and rescues offer programs that help defray the potential costs of medical care that might put people off of adopting seniors or special needs cats. Others offer foster-to-adopt arrangements so that shy cats have time to come out of their shell in a home environment and show their potential adopter what loving companions they can be.

A number of shelters are also working hard to find innovative ways to help seniors keep their less-adoptable pets, serve as long-term foster homes, and adopt senior pets of their own.

Shelter outreach and programs alone won’t help place all of their less-adoptable pets. The next time you’re looking for a new family member, think beyond a kitten to a less-adoptable cat who could be a perfect fit for your family!

References and further reading:

Petfinder, Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week
The Veterinary Journal, Transmission of feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) among cohabiting cats in two cat rescue shelters

Photo credit:

depositphotos/cynoclub

Wordless Wednesday: It Came from the Toy Aisle

The Slow Eater, the Food Thief, and the Surefeed Microchip Pet Feeder

Ever since Pierre decided he didn’t want to eat in the bathroom where he had eaten most of his life, we’ve had a problem: Ashton wants her food and his, too. She will hurriedly eat her own food, and then nudge Pierre out of the way to eat his meal. Once Ashton had pushed Pierre off of his food, he was reluctant to start eating again for fear that she was going to ambush him again. So every meal meant someone had to stand over Pierre to protect his food from Ashton. The idea of having a cat bowl that only let Pierre eat from it and refused Ashton’s advances was very appealing!

The SureFeed microchip feeder looks like something out of Star Trek, with angled plastic side pieces that support a bar that goes over the top of the cat, reading the cat’s microchip to see if he is permitted to eat there. The feeder ships with a tag you can put on your cat’s collar to serve as their personal identifier to the SureFeed if your cat isn’t microchipped.

The feeder also comes with a pair of bowls. One bowl has a divider in it, and the other is a single compartment. The bowl is nearly 5 x 7″ so it is plenty wide to avoid whisker stress. There is a rubber lip around the top edge of each bowl that meets the top of the feeder when it is closed to help keep food fresh. The bowls are plastic, and I was a little disappointed that they aren’t ceramic. I’m looking for a ceramic or stainless bowl in a similar size now to use until the company manufactures them for the feeder. UPDATE Februrary 2016: There is a stoneware oval bowl from Petrageous that fits well as a replacement for the original plastic bowl. A bonus is that it’s microwave-safe, so I can heat Pierre’s food a few seconds in the microwave to stimulate him to eat on his finicky days without having to dirty an extra bowl.

If want to color coordinate your cat feeder with your decor, you can get additional colors of bowls and matching mats to go in the area where your cat puts his front paws. I can see the colors helpful if you have two feeders and want to be able to tell which is for which cat.

Setting up the feeder was really easy. You start by putting in four C batteries, which the company says will last six months. The batteries in my feeder are at about six weeks and going strong.

To teach the feeder your cat’s microchip, press the learning button on the back and toss some treats into the bowl. The feeder locks in the open position, and the cat who puts his head into the bowl to take the treats has his microchip read and is recorded as an authorized cat. It’s that easy. The sensor is fairly strong. Pierre’s microchip has migrated so the chip is actually over his shoulder blade instead of being between his shoulder blades, but the SureFeed had no problem reading it.

Once the cat is authorized, the feeder has a series of training settings designed to allow your cat to get used to the idea of a moving door over their food. On the beginner setting, the feeder is essentially locked in an open position, but the door twitches a little bit when the cat puts his head in to eat. In the medium and advanced training settings, the door closes partially over the food. In this photo, Pierre is approaching the SureFeed on one of its training settings, so the bowl is partially opened even before his chip triggers it.

Pierre graduated surprisingly quickly through the training levels, and soon he was confidently approaching a completely closed feeder, knowing that putting his head under the bar would cause it to open. Within a week, he could eat unsupervised without someone having to stand over him and make sure Ashton didn’t steal his food.

It’s so much easier to manage my hectic mornings when I don’t have to stand over Pierre for however long it takes him to finish eating. I know that his food is safe from Ashton’s intrusion. Just watch:

(If the video doesn’t display here for you, you can visit it directly on YouTube)

That video was recorded the second or third week we were testing the SureFeed. After six weeks, Ashton doesn’t even bother to crowd Pierre while he eats any more. She has learned that it isn’t going to get her any food even if she bullies him into walking away. As far as I know, she only got a bite of food from it once, when I had the feeder set to the longest delay before closing. Pierre had walked away, and lightning-quick, Ashton grabbed one mouthful before it closed on her. I turned down the delay, which is set with a three-position switch on the bottom of the unit, and that hasn’t happened since.

One thing I noticed was that even though my cats are fed only at mealtimes, I would hear Pierre triggering the SureFeed door at various times during the day. The arm mechanism makes a quiet, mechanical noise when it opens that is audible from my desk in the next room. It reminded me of my own habit of opening the refrigerator to look inside for a snack when I know there aren’t any in there. I knew he was finding it empty, and I worried that it might discourage him from using the feeder at mealtimes. So I leave the feeder in the open position unless there is actually food in it.

Overall, I love the SureFeed. It leaves Pierre less stressed out about having Ashton standing over him through most of his meal, and he finishes his whole meal every time without abandoning it. The SureFeed also frees me up from playing referee between Pierre and Ashton during mealtime. Anything that gives me time back in my day while helping my cats feel less stressed out is a big win for me.

FTC Disclosure: We received our SureFeed feeder at no charge from SureFlap in exchange for our honest review. Receiving free product did not influence anything we say. All opinions expressed on this site are our own.

This post contains affiliate links, which means we receive a small percentage if you make a purchase using the link on this page.

Meowbox Review and Discount Code

Meowbox Discount Code

Adopt a Less-Adoptable Pet Week

Less Adoptable Cat Types

Senior Cats

Shy Cats

Special Needs Cats

Imperfect Cats

Bonded Pairs

Cats Who Must be “Onlies”

Black Cats

What Shelters Are Doing to Help

Wordless Wednesday: It Came from the Toy Aisle

The Slow Eater, the Food Thief, and the Surefeed Microchip Pet Feeder

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