Microchip feeder for overweight Scottish Fold

A seven-year-old Scottish Fold going head-to-head with a slim Burmese over the same bowl is a really common problem — and it usually ends with the Fold getting heavier and the Burmese getting stressed. Microchip feeders are one of the most genuinely useful things you can buy for a multi-cat home, because they make it physically impossible for the wrong cat to eat the wrong food. Before I point you at the right setup, tell me: are both cats microchipped, and is the Scottish Fold currently on any kind of diet food, or are you still working out how to manage his weight?

Perfect — both microchipped makes this straightforward. What I'd recommend is two SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeders, one for each cat. Each feeder reads the cat's microchip and only opens the lid when that specific cat approaches. So Noodle eats undisturbed, and Hamish physically can't get into her bowl. The bigger win for you right now is that you can start putting Hamish on a measured low-calorie portion in his feeder immediately — even before you move to prescription diet food — because he can no longer top up on Noodle's meals. One question: do you free-feed at the moment, or do you do set mealtimes?

That's the root of the problem right there. Constant grazing is very hard on a cat prone to weight gain, and the SureFeed alone won't fix the over-eating — it'll just make sure Hamish only over-eats his own food. What I'd actually suggest alongside the two standard SureFeed feeders is the SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeder Connect for Hamish's station. The Connect version links to an app and lets you set a daily portion limit — it tracks how much he's eaten and stops opening once he hits his allowance. Noodle can keep her standard SureFeed and free-feed as much as she likes. That combination directly addresses what the vet wants without any stressful food-guarding from Hamish.

It works on standard 15-digit ISO microchips, which is what all UK-registered cats have, so Hamish is already set. You just hold him near the feeder once during setup and it registers him — takes about ten seconds. The app (Sure Petcare) is free and genuinely useful; it'll show you a feeding history so you can see exactly when and how much he's eating, which is handy to show the vet at his next weigh-in. The SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeder Connect is on Amazon UK — search for 'SureFeed Connect' and it's the white one with the hub. You'll need the hub too, but it's usually sold as a bundle.

That's exactly the right setup. Honestly you'll notice the difference within a few days — Noodle will relax around mealtimes almost immediately once she realises her bowl is hers. And with Hamish on a measured allowance, you'll likely see weight movement within three to four weeks, which should please the vet. Good luck to both of them.