If you are a pet owner, you know how important it is to keep furry companions fed and happy – even when life gets busy! With the Arduino Plug and Make Kit, you can now build a customizable smart pet feeder that dispenses food on schedule and can be controlled remotely. It’s the perfect blend of functionality and creativity, designed to simplify your life and delight your cat, dog, rabbit, hamster, or cute creature of choice.

Here’s everything you need to automate feeding your pet

This intermediate project is packed with advanced features, made easy by the intuitive Plug and Make Kit. With its modular components, creating your own smart pet feeder is straightforward, fun, and easy to customize.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Arduino Plug and Make Kit, which already includes UNO R4 WiFi, Modulino Distance, Modulino Buttons, Modulino Pixels, and Qwiic cables
• A continuous servo motor (such as this one, for example)
• Some jumper wires and screws for assembly
• A 3D printer (to create the case either with the files we provide, or with your own designs!)

Simply follow our step-by-step tutorial on Project Hub to put everything together, customize your code, and print the 3D encasings. 

Once the setup is complete, you can remotely control the feeder via a ready-to-use Arduino Cloud dashboard, where you’ll set dispensing schedules, adjust portion sizes, and even customize LED lights to match your pet’s mood. 

The Modulino Distance sensor ensures food comes out only when needed, while the Modulino Buzzer adds some audio feedback for a playful touch.

Make it the cat’s meow!

As you know, the Plug and Make Kit’s versatility allows for endless possibilities. Feel free to expand this pet feeder project with additional features! For example, you can add a motion-activated camera to capture your pet’s activities, or a real-time weight monitor to track how much food is consumed. You can even activate voice commands for an interactive feeding experience (maybe skip this one if you have a parrot!). 

Now you have all the info you need to build your own smart pet feeder: time to grab your Arduino Plug and Make Kit and get started. The template we’ve created simplifies the process, letting you focus on the fun parts of building and experimenting. 

Be sure to share your creations with us – upload them to Project Hub or email creators@arduino.cc to get in touch. We can’t wait to see how you make the small daily routine of feeding your pet smarter, and a lot more fun, with Arduino!

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