The Cats are Happy! The Fun Kitty Egg-Cersizer by Premier

     We have been waiting patiently for this toy to arrive.  Our anticipation was very keen because it is a new product from Premier Pet and we like Premier.  Additionally, this particular toy has the added advantage of being highly recommended by the U.C. Davis Behavior Service, a fact which I discovered while doing an internship with them in April.  Could it really be far superior to Premier's own Fun Kitty Twist N' Treat?  I was itching to find out.




     Well, the Egg-Cersizer is more than just a plaything.  As well as being an interactive treat-dispensing toy you can use it to feed your cat his meals.  I found that my rabbit likes it, too.
     In a previous blog (February 2010) we reviewed Premier's Fun Kitty Twist 'N Treat.  The idea was simple- load the toy with kibble or treats, set the opening to easy or more difficult, show your cat that the toy contains food and away you go.  The Twist 'N Treat is able to contain about 1/8 cup of kibble or treats.  It's spaceship shape and relatively small size makes it easy for your cat to swat it across the floor.  Definite fun as a treat dispenser but what if your cat's meal is say, 1/4 cup?  Two Twist 'N Treats?  You can do that or you can get the Egg-Cersizer.
     The Egg-Cersizer is, well, egg-shaped and has some generous and adjustable holes around the top.  It also has a tabbed exit for kibble at the bottom (think Squirrel Dude).  It can easily hold a meal's worth of kibble which makes it ideal for feeding your cat.  This can be great for the very food-driven cat.  If you have a food-driven cat you already know that free-feeding is a disaster if you want the cat to remain a healthy weight.  Even if you feed a reduced calorie food your cat will still overeat.  The Egg-Cersizer can be a great way to make your chubby cat work a little for his meal.  While he is burning some calories batting the toy around he is also exercising his brain and this makes for a happier cat.
     Our guest reviewer, Sluggo, took on the Egg-Cersizer recently.  Amy, his owner, set the toy to the easiest setting (all holes open) initially until Sluggo got the hang of what to do to enable the kibble to escape.  When Sluggo was consistently getting an easy payoff Amy gradually closed the holes to make the toy more challenging.  Well, Sluggo was already hooked so he didn't notice that he had been working a little harder to get the kibble.  Now Sluggo gets his meals via the Egg-Cersizer.  We don't know whether he has lost any weight but he is, at least, entertained at mealtimes now.
     The Egg-Cersizer comes with complete instructions on how to stuff it and how to best introduce it to your cat.  They stress that you first observe how your cat reacts to the toy before you stuff it and walk away.  You don't want your cat to become frustrated and lose interest.
     We give the Egg-Cersizer an Excellent as to playability.  I think it is easily workable as a toy or a meal dispenser.  Durability is also Excellent as long as it is used correctly and it's use is supervised initially.  Safety is also Excellent as there doesn't seem to be any way in which a cat could become entangled in the toy or bite parts off.  The only question with this toy is- How many you will need?