How To Choose The Best Cat Food Mat For Your Cat – CatTime
Is your little sweetie a messy eater? Cats can learn a lot of new things, but table manners are not something they usually pick up quickly. It's perfectly fine with us if you want to sweep up around the dish three or four times a day. But if you like low-maintenance deals, as we do, try getting a cat food mat. Sorry, a placemat or area rug will not do the trick, but you already know that, or you probably would not be reading this page. Shall we proceed?
Best Choice
Waterproof Silicon Mat For Dogs & Cats
Pros:
This mat is made from an FDA-grade silicone material. It means that the material used is appropriate to be utilized in areas where dogs and cats are found. The material is superior hygiene and also free of any type of toxins. This is also a hypoallergenic material. The dog or cat’s food bowl can go directly on top of the mat to provide more stability to them while the pet is eating or drinking.
Cons:
Only three sizes to choose from. Some people may have preferences for larger dogs or perhaps a house where there are multiple pets that need to be fed. There are also only three different color options available. Considering the price per single option, this product is also somewhat expensive to certain shoppers.
Easy To Clean
Flexible silicone mat
Pros:
At 18.5 x 11.5 inches, dog owners find the Reopet Silicone Dog Cat Food Mat too small, but it is perfect for feline mealtime. It comes in a variety of colors so that you won’t have a problem matching it to the feeding bowls. It is one hundred percent waterproof, which makes it great for protecting rugs and hardwood floors. Once you put it down, it lies completely flat and won’t slide around. Bowls stay put on it. Best of all, there is an adorable paw print in the corner.
Cons:
The edge is high enough to collect spills, but not those from overturned water bowls. If water spills over the side of the mat, it can get trapped underneath it. The flexibility of the mat means the initial cleanup of spills is better done on-site. Dirt and cat hair tend to stick to the surface of the silicone.
Best Water-resistant Mat
The biggest cat food mat
Pros:
If you can’t tell by the name, the Stellaire Chern Pet Feeding Mat is a step above, especially for the price. First, it comes in two sizes, small (25 x 16 inches) and huge. The smaller version is bigger than standard-sized cat food mats. The upper surface looks like a doormat, and it traps particles to keep them away from your floor. It has a lovely color and design. It is non-slip but picks up easily from the floor when you are ready to give it a clean.
Cons:
Removing kibble is tricky. Because the Stellaire traps it inside, you’ll need to give the mat a vigorous shake to get everything out – or you can use a handheld vacuum cleaner. After everything is out, it hoses down easily. Because of the hair-like surface, it can be difficult to see water trapped inside the mat, and condensation can start forming on the bottom if it stays there too long.
Best Edgy Look
Water stays inside it
Pros:
The mDesign Premium Quality Pet Feeding Mat is a beautiful bowl holder that has a very practical but stylish design in four modern colors – one option being clear. Feeding bowls stay put on it. At a quarter inch, the ridge is low enough to prevent anyone from tripping over it. Combined with the ridges inside the mat, the outer edge is more than tall enough to keep messes inside. The size is 8 x 16 inches, and it is dishwasher safe.
Cons:
The size is a bit smaller than what most cat parents need to hold both food and water bowls. It’s a dish-drying mat, in actuality, as conveniently stated on the packaging. We say multitask products never hurt anyone.
Best Price
Looks great, works well
Pros:
These (mostly) pastel-colored, cloud-shaped, cat food mats have to be the cutest ones available. DesignSter Lucky Pet Food Tray measures 18.8 x 10.6 inches, which is a great size for the price. It is also slip-resistant on the upper surface. It has a raised lip to catch leakage and is fully waterproof. It cleans up easily. If you don’t put it into the dishwasher, just wipe it down. It can go into a microwave oven.
Cons:
Some users wish it were bigger. Because of the cloud shape, the upper narrow part doesn’t catch cat droppings as well as the wider end. The lower surface of the mat tends to slip. Sometimes the seller ships the wrong color, but replacements are sent quickly.
What Really Matters
Easy cleanup matters the most with a cat food mat
What matters is the ease of cleaning. A mat that’s suitable to use with your dishwasher makes things easier at the end of the day, literally. It is nice to think that having a cat food mat completely solves the problem of tidying up the mess your cat leaves behind. Realistically speaking, you’ll probably still have to wipe down the cat mat now and again. Most cats are finicky about looking at their messes and don’t want to step in a spill every time they go to eat.
If you’ve already bought a mat and are looking for a replacement, maybe your first choice was probably too floppy. A cat food mat that has you dropping all kinds of wet and dry stuff on your way to the sink can almost defeat the purpose of having one.
Making sure the cat food mat is big enough
If you’re placing the grub and water dishes together, make sure your new cat food mat has enough space to hold them with an added perimeter of three to four inches. That’s just for the bowls. While our fuzzy fur-balls tend to keep their faces in the dish when eating wet meals, we know how many love munching and crunching dry foods outside of the dish. Hence, most cat lovers and up with lots of bits outside the bowl. If your cat likes to eat outside the dish, make sure to have an added 6 inches in front of the area where you place the bowl.
Another consideration is the number of cats you’ll be feeding. If you only have one, your mat need not be too large. If you have more than one pet, make sure to leave the appropriate crunch and munch space.
A cat food mat with non-slip, grippy surfaces
Picture this: your cat is eating, and the bowl is moving as he eats. There is no grip on your mat, so it is moving along with the dish and the cat. It sounds like the beginning of a nursery rhyme. Unless you prefer mealtime to be sort of a three-wheel circus, your mat needs a decent grip on both sides of the cat food mat.
It needs to hold on to the bowls so that they don’t tip over, splash water, or move around while your cat is eating. It needs to grab the surface of your floor so that it’s not gliding and sliding every time your cat is hungry. Now breathe a sigh of relief because it’s an excellent feeling to have everything stay in place.
What’s in right now
Cute, easy-to-clean, waterproof mats are what’s most popular right now. Most people buy cat food mats to protect flooring from constant spills in one area. However, we don’t want something more challenging to clean that just regular sweeping and mopping without a mat in place. Although mats for cat food are about functionality, the better designs sell more because they are cute.
Prices
Expensive
$20 – $25. In this category are the sturdy cat food mats and trays. You can also find beautifully designed mats with photographic quality graphic art and signage in this category. The sizes are usually large.
Mid-range
$15 – $20. Large and extra-large flexible mats are found in this category. These can be sized up to 35 x 25 inches, like the Stellaire Chern.
Cheap
$10 – $15. Smaller-sized, flexible mats that start at 8.5 x 12 inches – a bit bigger than a standard size sheet of paper – are in this category.
FAQs
Why do I need a cat food mat?
Buying a cat food mat might seem like another spurious pet purchase you won’t use, but they’ve proven to be very useful. For instance, if you purchase a sturdy mat, it will be easy to simply remove the dishes and carry the mat away for a quick clean. Most food mats for cats can be thrown in the dishwasher when they get grimy. A mat for your cat’s food dish is also designed to protect your floors from spilled water and wet cat leftovers. Expensive flooring can be quickly ruined when water is left on its surface. With a cat food mat, not only do you not have to worry about water destroying the surface of your floor but the cat mat can also help you avoid falling and injuring yourself on a puddle left by your loved one.
A cat mat for food will help keep edibles on the mat, lessening the chance of your cat stepping in her meal and tracking it around the house. With a cat food mat will, sweeping and mopping shouldn’t be constant chores. Probably the best feature of a mat for pets is the fact that a good one will keep the water and grub bowls in place. It’s so tedious to push the cat dish back in place every time your pet takes a bite.
What are the standard features of a cat food mat?
There are so many varieties that there is probably a cat food mat out there that says, “Meow,” every time your pet steps on it. Moving beyond extravagant accessories, there are a few features that your cat food mat should have to make your life easier. It should have slightly raised edges so that any spills are kept safely within the mat. The upper surface can either be absorbent or impermeable to water, depending on your preference. Either way, it should at least have a slight grip but preferably a strong one so that the bowls don’t slide around on it. It should be waterproof on the bottom so that water doesn’t leak through to the floor. The undersurface should slip-proof.
Some mats for cat food are highly flexible, which makes them great to store or to pack away for traveling. Most people prefer mats that are rigid and can be carried away to clean easily or even placed in the dishwasher. After you’ve found a pet mat with all of the characteristics you need, if it happens also to have some charming cat cartoons on it, you know you found your guy.
Is one cat food mat sufficient?
The number of cat food mats you need to purchase depends on the size of the bowls that will be resting on it. It also depends on the number of cats you have and whether or not they eat from the same dish at the same time. If you have cats that normally eat together, then you will probably need a sufficiently large mat to accommodate them. If your cats prefer to each have their own dish, you will certainly need to have more than one mat.
Why Trust Us
Since 2008, CatTime has provided millions of cat owners with all the information they need to keep their pets happy and healthy. Our experts know exactly what it takes to raise our furry friends and our goal is to help all owners, new or experienced, care for their cats with all the right food, toys, equipment, and accessories.