Few things ruin a cat’s mealtime like ants. But while these critters might be small, getting them away from your cat’s food can present a big challenge.
Since there are so many products out there that promise to work but don’t help at all, we decided to track down and create reviews of five of the best ant-proof cat bowls out there.
We also developed a comprehensive buyer’s guide that will walk you through everything that you need to know to tackle your ant problem in no time!
A Quick Comparison of Our Favorites in 2024
| Image | Product | Details | ||
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Best Overall
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Hepper NomNom Cat Bowl |
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Budget Buy
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Frisco Fish Shaped Cat Dish |
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People Automatic Cat Feeder |
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Pet Life Removable Cat Bowl |
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Cat Mate C3000 Automatic Cat Feeder |
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The 5 Best Ant-Proof Cat Bowls
1. Hepper NomNom Cat Bowl – Best Overall
| Bowl Size: | 1.4 cups per bowl (two bowls) |
| Dimensions: | 16” x 9” x 2” |
| Construction Material: | Stainless steel and plastic tray |
If you have been battling ants in your cat’s food bowl, we encourage you to give the Hepper NomNom Cat Bowl a try. It’s proven to be the best ant-proof cat bowl, as stated by many satisfied cat owners. This bowl has a functional and stylish design that keeps pesky ants away from your feline companions’ food. The raised, wrap-around tray surrounding the bowls acts as a barrier on its own, but if you want to take it to the next level, you can add some water to create a moat, ensuring that ants cannot crawl into the dishes and disrupt mealtime. With the NomNom Cat Bowl, pet parents can finally enjoy some peace of mind knowing that their cats can dine undisturbed and without any unwanted intrusions.
Aside from its remarkable ant-proof feature, the NomNom Bowl’s sleek and modern design adds an element of elegance to any home decor. Crafted with stainless steel, the bowls are easy to clean and dishwasher-safe, providing convenience and simplicity in maintenance. The generous size of the bowl allows for ample space for both food and water, catering to even the heartiest eaters. Its also slightly raised for maximum meal time comfort and the shallow bowls offer whisker relief. For cat owners seeking a solution to ant infestations and messy spills, the NomNom Bowl proves to be the ideal choice.
For all of these reasons, we believe this is the best ant-proof cat bowl on the market.
At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years, and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!
2. Frisco Fish-Shaped Cat Dish — Budget Buy
| Bowl Size: | Not included |
| Dimensions: | 4” x 4” x 0.6” |
| Construction Material: | Melamine |
If you’re on a tight budget but have an ant problem frustrating you to no end, the Frisco Fish Shaped Cat Dish might be precisely what you need to fix your worries. While you’re technically supposed to put the cat food straight into the dish, if you’re having a problem with ants, you can put a bowl in there and create a small moat around it.
This helps deter ants from going after your cat’s food, and it does it at a fraction of the price of other ant-proof cat bowls. Not only is this cat bowl affordable, but there are also two different color options to choose from, and it has a non-skid bottom that helps keep everything in place.
However, it doesn’t include a bowl, and its smaller size means you’ll need to hunt to find a smaller cat bowl out there if you want to put a moat around it. But when you look at how affordable this cat dish is, it is no surprise that it easily earned our nod as the best ant-proof cat bowl for the money!
3. People Automatic Cat Feeder
| Bowl Size: | 20 cups |
| Dimensions: | 9.9” x 13.8” x 15.4” |
| Construction Material: | Plastic |
The People Automatic Cat Feeder is a surefire way to get your ant problem under control. It works by sealing off uneaten cat food. Since you can set the interval schedule and the amount that it dispenses, you can ensure that there’s never any extra food sitting in the bowl and waiting for ants.
Not only does it seal the extra food and automatically feed your cat, but it also uses a programmable voice speaker that lets your cat know when dinner is ready. The LCD screen is easy to use to set things up, and the entire feeder runs on either USB power or batteries.
While this cat feeder can get your ant problem under control and make mealtime a breeze, the trade-off is the price. This cat feeder is significantly more expensive than most other ant-proof cat bowls.
4. Pet Life Surface Removable Cat Bowl — Best for Kittens
| Bowl Size: | 1.25 cups |
| Dimensions: | 8.8” x 8.5” x 3.54” |
| Construction Material: | ABS and PC plastic |
While there’s not a ton of differences between a cat bowl for an adult cat and one for a kitten, if you’re looking to feed a kitten, a smaller size bowl can’t hurt. That’s exactly what you get with the Pet Life Surface Removable Cat Bowl.
The bowl size is small and perfect for kittens to reach, and it uses a classic moat design to help keep ants away. Paired with the anti-skid bottom and anti-spill design, it is a top-notch choice if you have ants tracking down your cat food every time you put it out.
Moreover, the removable bowl is extremely easy to clean, and it comes in three different color options to match your room’s décor. However, it is slightly expensive for what you’re getting, and it doesn’t grow too well with your cat due to its small size.
5. Cat Mate C3000 Automatic Cat Feeder
| Bowl Size: | 26 cups |
| Dimensions: | 14.25” x 8.5” x 8.5” |
| Construction Material: | Plastic |
While there’s little doubt that the Cat Mate C3000 Automatic Cat Feeder is one of the most expensive options out there, it’s also one of the most effective ones to protect against ants. It works so well because it seals undispensed food away from ants.
It is also completely programable, so you can set up multiple meals throughout the day. Additionally, it has an anti-ski and tip-resistant design, so even the most curious cats can’t knock it over to get to the food inside.
Keep in mind that each battery can last anywhere from 6 to 9 months for this automatic feeder, so you don’t need to worry about it running out of power any time soon. But while this automatic cat feeder does a great job at keeping ants out and being easy to clean, the price is high and the screen design is basic.
Still, you could do far worse than this cat feeder to tackle your ant problems.
Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose the Best Ant-Proof Cat Bowl
If you still have questions about how to keep ants away from your cat’s food after reading through the reviews, you’re not alone. That’s why we created this comprehensive guide, to walk you through everything that you need to know to give your cat an ant-free meal.
While getting a great anti-ant cat bowl can help, ants are notorious for finding their way into anything and everything. Keep reading, and you’ll be able to tackle your ant problem in no time!
Tips for Keeping Ants Away From Cat Food
Here are six different ways that you can keep ants from getting into your cat’s food. Remember, ants are clever and have an uncanny ability to find food, so it’s best to apply as many of these methods as possible to keep ants away.
1. Keep It Clean
Ants thrive off crumbs and other small messes, so one of the best things that you can do to keep ants out and away from the cat food is to keep everything clean, both near the cat bowl and around the rest of your home.
We know that it can be a great deal of work to clean up everything as soon as you’re done with it, but sometimes it’s the only solution to an ant problem. If they keep having a reason to enter your home, they’ll keep thinking of new ways to reach their prize!
2. Keep the Ants Outside
It might sound obvious, but if you can keep the ants outside and away from your cat’s food dish, you won’t have to worry about them crawling inside to begin with! Treat all the open areas in your house with an anti-ant deterrent of some sort. Keep your cats away from these areas until the product that you applied has enough time to dry.
Don’t be afraid to overdo it, though; even if you manage to keep the ants away from the cat food, once they’re in your home, they’ll simply find another food source
3. Only Feed Your Cats as Often as Necessary
While some cats don’t like to eat as soon as you feed them, if you can get your cats on a feeding schedule, it can help keep ants out of their food. Feed them consistently at the same time every day, and only feed them as much as they’ll eat in one sitting.
If there’s excess food after your cat finishes eating, remove it so it won’t attract ants. Keep in mind that ants can thrive off crumbs that your cat won’t eat, so you should also wash out the bowl right after they eat.
4. Build a Moat
While a moat isn’t a surefire solution to keep ants away from your cat’s food, it is one of the most effective options. Ants can’t swim, so a moat keeps singular ants from reaching the cat food.
However, ants can create bridges with their bodies to reach the food that they want, so a small moat might not be foolproof. Still, if you can keep most of the ants away from your cat’s food, a moat can be enough of a deterrent for scouts.
5. Seal Up Extra Food
When you’re feeding your cat, ensure that you have a way to completely seal the remainder of your cat’s food. You can move it to a different part of the house that doesn’t have ants, but we highly recommend finding a way to seal it completely, like in a food-safe container.
Otherwise, you risk the ants simply following the bag to another room in the house to get what they want.
Conclusion
If you’re still a little confused about which anti-ant cat bowl is best for you after reading through the reviews, don’t overthink it. There’s a reason that the Hepper NomNom Cat Bowl is our top choice. It works as a phenomenal ant deterrent without any unnecessary features.
However, if you’re on a tight budget, the Frisco Fish Shaped Cat Dish can help get the job done too — just keep in mind that you’ll need to purchase a small cat bowl to go with it!
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