Raised cat bowl: worth it or not? What it really changes, and for which cat

Raised cat bowl or not: for a young, healthy cat, a bowl on the floor is enough, and no study shows that a raised bowl does any better. It may well help an older or arthritic cat, a cat that struggles to chew or swallow, a flat-faced cat or a cat wearing a cone.

Raised cat bowl or not: what does it really change?

A raised bowl changes one thing for certain: posture. Your cat eats with its head less low and its neck less bent. The rest (less vomiting, a "protected" neck) has no study behind it.

According to vet Catherine Barnette, speaking to PetsRadar, no study has compared how comfortable cats are at a floor-level bowl versus a raised one, and nothing supports the "anti-vomit" claims made by manufacturers. A cat that vomits almost always has a medical cause to find, she adds: the bowl doesn't treat it.

Our raised tilted cat bowl makes no promise on that front: its bowl, tilted at 15° on a stand, brings the food towards your cat instead of keeping it at the bottom.

Which cats can a raised bowl actually help?

A raised bowl helps when bending down becomes hard, or swallowing laboured. For every other cat, it is simply a matter of preference.

For older cats, the PDSA, the UK veterinary charity, recommends raising the food and water bowls of an arthritic cat, because bending down can be painful; simply putting something under the bowl works too. It cites a study in which 90% of cats over 12 showed signs of arthritis on X-ray: if your cat is slowing down, see your vet. The same thinking applies to their bed and their cat tree.

For a cat that struggles to chew or swallow (severe dental disease, a neurological problem, megaoesophagus), a raised bowl lets gravity help the food down, according to the PetsRadar vet; with megaoesophagus, your vet will give you guidance on height. For a flat-faced cat such as the Persian, the case for a tilted bowl comes down to the shape of the muzzle, with no study to measure it. With a cone, a raised bowl may work better than a flat one; ask your vet whether your cat should eat with it on.

For the cat that no longer bends down happily
Raised and tilted at 15°, the Pelux bowl comes a little way to meet your cat: they eat with the head only slightly lowered, and the bowl lifts off the stand for washing. Discover the raised bowl →

Are elevated cat bowls bad for cats?

A raised bowl carries no known risk for a cat that prefers it: the PetsRadar vet writes that there is no harm in using one. The real risks lie elsewhere.

• The wrong height. A bowl set too high makes your cat stretch its neck: watch it eat for the first few days.
• A stand that moves. Put the bowl on a flat floor, never on a thick rug.
• Scratched plastic. Plastic scratches and is harder to disinfect, according to PetsRadar. The veterinary network VCA mentions a possible, unproven link between plastic bowls and chin acne, and suggests a smooth glass or stainless steel bowl, washed daily, for affected cats.

What the Pelux bowl doesn't promise

An "ergonomic" cat bowl has no set definition: everyone means something different by it. Here is what our product page says, and what it leaves out.

• What it says: bowl tilted at 15°, fixed angle; a stand that lifts the bowl off the floor; removable bowl; ABS and polycarbonate plastic, according to the supplier; single (one bowl) or double (two bowls side by side).
• What it doesn't say: the height of the stand, the capacity and diameter of the bowl, whether it is dishwasher-safe (if in doubt, wash the bowl by hand), whether the stand has non-slip feet.

If your vet has prescribed a specific height, choose an adjustable model instead: our product page doesn't give the stand's height or say that it adjusts. For water, this blog recommends ceramic, glass or stainless steel (ceramic or plastic), well away from food: the double version, with water in a plastic bowl right next to the biscuits, goes against both. The single version for food, with water somewhere else, follows them; that water station can be a water fountain from the food and water range.

How can you tell whether your cat prefers a raised bowl?

Let your cat choose: with no study to go on, that is the PetsRadar vet's method.

1. Put the raised bowl next to the old one, where your cat already eats.
2. Split their ration between the two for a few days.
3. Watch: which bowl do they empty first, in what posture, with how many pauses?
4. Keep the one they choose. Stiffness that persists is one to mention to your vet.

Frequently asked questions

How high should a cat's food bowl be?

There is no height proven right for every cat. According to PetsRadar, you find it by trial and error, and for some conditions, such as megaoesophagus, your vet gives you guidance. As a rule of thumb, your cat should reach the bowl without stretching up or craning its neck sharply down. The Pelux product page doesn't give the height of its stand.

Is a raised bowl suitable for a kitten?

A healthy kitten has no reason to eat from a raised bowl: it bends down with ease. If it has one, check that it can reach the bottom of the bowl without stretching up.

Should the water bowl be raised too?

For an arthritic cat, yes: the PDSA recommends raising water as well as food. For other cats, cleanliness and the bowl's material matter more. If your cat drinks too little, look elsewhere: water fountain or bowl.

Key takeaways

• For a young, healthy cat, a floor bowl is enough: no study shows that a raised bowl does any better.
• Older or arthritic cats are the strongest case: the PDSA recommends raising their food and water bowls.
• A raised bowl doesn't cure vomiting: a cat that vomits often should see a vet before you change its bowl.
• The Pelux raised bowl is tilted at 15° and made of plastic; with no stated height, it is no substitute for an adjustable model when a height has been prescribed.