Automatic feeder for large dogs: Newfoundland

A Newfoundland is basically the stress test that exposes every weakness in a standard automatic feeder — the hoppers are laughably small, the dispensing mechanisms jam on large kibble, and the portion settings don't go nearly high enough. The most important things to get right with any feeder are portion accuracy, mechanical reliability, and ease of cleaning — cheap ones fail on all three, and that's before you even factor in giant-breed volumes. To point you to the right option: how many meals a day does your Newfoundland eat, roughly how much kibble per meal, and is the main driver here work schedule, travel, or portion discipline?

That makes complete sense — a 10-to-12-hour gap between meals is too long for a dog his size and age, and 400g per meal rules out most consumer feeders immediately. What kibble size does he eat? Large-breed kibble can be chunky, and some dispensers choke on anything bigger than standard pellets.

That kibble size is exactly where budget feeders fall apart — the auger or paddle mechanism isn't built for it. Given your situation — 400g meals, large chunky kibble, reliability being non-negotiable — I'd point you to the PetSafe Healthy Pet Simply Feed 12-Meal Automatic Feeder. It's a conveyor-style tray system rather than an auger, which is a major advantage for larger kibble because there's no mechanism to jam. Each of the 12 compartments holds up to 240ml, so for your portions you'd fill two adjacent compartments per meal and programme them to dispense consecutively — a workaround that's well-documented in the owner community. The hopper isn't the issue here; the trays are the limiting factor, but for a two-meal-a-day dog on a fixed schedule it handles that cleanly. The trays lift out individually and are dishwasher safe, which matters for an 800g-a-day dog. It's around £90–£110 on Amazon UK and has a strong track record with large-breed owners specifically for the jamming reason you've already experienced twice.

Fair pushback. If you want a single large hopper and are prepared to spend more, the Cat Mate C500 is worth a look — it has a 5-compartment tray with larger individual wells. But honestly, for genuinely large kibble and high-volume dispensing, there isn't a perfect off-the-shelf solution in the UK consumer market under £150. The PetSafe Simply Feed is the most reliable mechanism for your kibble size; the two-compartment approach takes about 30 seconds to programme and owners with large breeds use it routinely without complaints. The alternative is a feeder with a big hopper that jams — which you've already lived through. I'd rather give you the honest answer than sell you on something that'll fail again.

Good choice for your situation. One practical tip: when you first set it up, do a few test cycles while you're home to confirm the dispensing timing works as expected with your specific kibble. Large pieces occasionally need a slight adjustment to how full you pack the compartments. Once it's dialled in it's very consistent — and your Newfoundland will have a proper midday or lunchtime meal on your work days rather than waiting until 6pm.