Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine • Hacker News Board

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#31

Post by bartkappenburg » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:32 PM UTC

astral303 wrote: post #26

jevinskie wrote: post #4

I recently got a SureFeed RFID feeder. It can read your cat's microchip or an RFID collar tag. When an authorized kitty approaches, a flap raises and lets the cat eat. I got it to prevent other family pets from stealing my cat's food. It works well for that purpose and seems well designed. The feeder has clear side "walls" and the flap itself acts as a wall on the rear of the feeder, helping prevent food theft during…

Don't feed your cat until 7am no matter what. Ignore all foot rubs and meows. He'll eventually learn and give up. Operant conditioning. Watch out though for that extra-hard last ditch effort he will put out before giving up. Stay strong.

That last ditch effort is called an extinction burst [0]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction_(psychology)#Exti...

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#32

Post by djaychela » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:41 PM UTC

Rhapso wrote: post #2

Has he tried a increase in the cat's food intake? Seems low cost, low risk, and if it does not work you can resume armor plating the robot.

Quinn is a she, FTR. Also, some cats will eat themselves to obesity (and it tends to be those with this kind of appetite for food, no pun intended), so keeping a limit on their intake is important, particularly if they are house cats (not common in the UK, but I think they are more so in the US).

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#33

Post by run4yourlives2 » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:42 PM UTC

This seems like a classic case of over-engineering the wrong problem.

The problem isn't that the cat is getting into the machine, the problem is that the human is neglecting to feed the cat.

Solve the right problem.

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#34

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:45 PM UTC

dominotw wrote: post #27

do not feed cats from a machine. Even if you are super busy, give her food in the morning and after you get home from work, that's more than enough. Perhaps at the same time as your breakfast and your dinner. Despite the common perception of cats as 'loners' , they still want to be part of your 'gang' not a lonely creature feeding from a machine. Ideally you would want to play with the cat before feeding her so she a…

[deleted]

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#35

Post by ianai » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:45 PM UTC

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #3

The problem, as in most difficult hacking operations, is that the attacker has physical access. I would have put the machine in a base cabinet, run a chute out a small hole cut in the toe mould, and if necessary, put a child lock on the cabinet.

That's topologically equivalent to what OP did.

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#36

Post by vidarh » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:46 PM UTC

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #5

Rhapso wrote: post #2

Has he tried a increase in the cat's food intake? Seems low cost, low risk, and if it does not work you can resume armor plating the robot.

This causes weight gain. My dog gains weight if I walk her any less than I usually do, but still clammors endlessly for food.

It depends on the animal. The cats we had when I was growing up always had "unlimited" access to dry cat food and water, and it was only canned stuff we'd put out at specific meal times, and they never ate themselves fat.

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#37

Post by derekp7 » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:47 PM UTC

astral303 wrote: post #26

jevinskie wrote: post #4

I recently got a SureFeed RFID feeder. It can read your cat's microchip or an RFID collar tag. When an authorized kitty approaches, a flap raises and lets the cat eat. I got it to prevent other family pets from stealing my cat's food. It works well for that purpose and seems well designed. The feeder has clear side "walls" and the flap itself acts as a wall on the rear of the feeder, helping prevent food theft during…

Don't feed your cat until 7am no matter what. Ignore all foot rubs and meows. He'll eventually learn and give up. Operant conditioning. Watch out though for that extra-hard last ditch effort he will put out before giving up. Stay strong.

Cats have been known to modify their purring sounds, to include a sub-carrier that is remarkably similar to an infant crying. That in turn triggers an instinctive response in humans which cause them to subconsciously rise out of bed and apply food to the source of that sound. Source: a documentary on Netflix "The Lion in your Living room".

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#38

Post by oniMaker » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:48 PM UTC

dominotw wrote: post #27

do not feed cats from a machine. Even if you are super busy, give her food in the morning and after you get home from work, that's more than enough. Perhaps at the same time as your breakfast and your dinner. Despite the common perception of cats as 'loners' , they still want to be part of your 'gang' not a lonely creature feeding from a machine. Ideally you would want to play with the cat before feeding her so she a…

Unfortunately your common sense is in the minority of opinion here. HN is plagued by overeager engineers who endlessly discuss the how without addressing the much more important why.

Why bother having a pet at all if you're not going to personally care for it?

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#39

Post by dangrossman » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:49 PM UTC

JohnJamesRambo wrote: post #9

After about the second failure I would have gotten one of those auto feeders that let out as much as they want and some weight control cat food.

That's a good way to make cats fat and eventually diabetic. On top of free feeding alone causing obesity in a lot of cats, "weight control" cat food is the worst stuff, it's mostly grains (carbs) which a cat -- an obligate carnivore -- doesn't need in its diet at all.

Re: Cat-proofing a cat feeding machine

#40

Post by danparsonson » Wed, Dec 21, 2016, 6:49 PM UTC

JohnJamesRambo wrote: post #9

After about the second failure I would have gotten one of those auto feeders that let out as much as they want and some weight control cat food.

I can't speak for anyone else, but with the cat I used to have, that would've resulted in an empty cat feeder and a very sick cat within an evening. I had to hide absolutely anything even vaguely edible, especially (bizarrely) bread, which the cat adored and which caused it terrible diarrhoea... Not all cats are created equal!