We sell automatic dog feeders, so the obvious thing would be to say that with one fitted you can go away for the weekend with an easy mind. That's not true, and we'd rather say so.
What the law says
Law 7/2023 on the protection of animal rights and welfare, in Article 27, bans leaving a dog without human supervision for more than 24 hours in a row. Other pets are allowed up to three days; dogs, no. Fines range from 500 to 10,000 euros depending on severity.
So a whole weekend away, with no one checking on the dog, isn't a legal option no matter how full the feeder is.
What the feeder does solve
- The time. The dog eats at the same time every day, whether you're there or whoever's checking on it is.
- The serving. Not more because «poor thing», not less because someone forgot.
- That it doesn't run out. With 15 kilos inside there's no need to keep refilling every day.
- That it doesn't spoil. The dry food stays enclosed and dry, not in a bowl outdoors.
- Taking turns. In a kennel with several hoppers, each with its own schedule, hand-feeding twice a day is over.
What it doesn't solve
The water, which needs checking and topping up. Whether the dog is OK: an animal can fall ill, get tangled up or escape, and only someone there in person will see that. And company, which for a dog isn't a luxury.
Our advice, and what we do ourselves: the feeder takes care of the food, and someone checks on the dog every day. Both things.
If the place where you're going to put it has no socket nearby — a smallholding, an enclosure, a shed off on its own — the model P3 with battery lasts around three months with four feeds a day.