While some dog owners feed their pooches raw food instead of kibble, others have recently switched to dehydrated dog food. The Spanish-designed Kibus device works with the latter, automatically rehydrating it with hot water and serving it up at meal times.
Once a week, users fill its lidded food tank with up to 2 kg (4.4 lb) of a dehydrated dog food of their choice (not kibble), plus they fill up its 4-liter (1-gal) water tank. Utilizing button controls and an electronic readout on top of the device, they then indicate the times of day that they wish their dog to be fed, along with the weight of each serving.
A control app is in the works, for hands-off types.
At the appointed times, Kibus proceeds to heat some of the water, mix it with some of the food, then dispense the mixture into the integrated food bowl. The preparation process takes six minutes, and the food is served at a temperature of 38 ºC (100 ºF). In order to make sure the dog doesn’t miss it, Kibus plays a musical alert when each meal is ready.
The device can also be operated manually, preparing food right way with the press of a button.
Its water tank is additionally used to automatically top up Kibus’ integrated water bowl, when a built-in sensor detects that it needs refilling. Both the food and water bowls can be removed for washing by hand or in a dishwasher.
In order to fund production of Kibus, its creators have turned to Kickstarter. If everything works out, a pledge of €199 (about US$233) will get you a unit. The planned retail price is €499 ($585).
Kibus automatically serves up hot meals … for dogs [New Atlas]