Food Dispensing Ball for Cats and Dogs

thingiverse

I've got a cat who's completely obsessed with food. All cats are like that, but mine takes it to a whole new level - he'll tap dance on my forehead at 4am if he even thinks there might not be enough food for him in the next week or so. Obviously, I'd love to use his motivation for something good while cutting down on those late-night visits from Mr. Cowjangles. Enter the feeder ball. This model prints out in two pieces. I've included each piece separately along with a plate for your convenience. Both halves snap together with friction and hold up well. The finished product is roughly the size of a softball, with fairly large holes that allow food to come out easily. You might need to shrink the ball down a bit if you're using tiny bits of food or want to increase your cat's frustration to hobo-stabbing levels. Print Settings Printer Brand: MakerBot Printer: MakerBot Replicator 1 Rafts: No Supports: Yes Resolution: .3mm Infill: 10% Notes: .3mm resolution works just fine here, and I prefer it for parts with friction fits because of the chunkier texture. 10% infill produces a super sturdy exterior. You absolutely have to use supports - I never use rafts, but in this case they're essential. I printed mine in Pet-G because of its excellent dimensional stability and strength. With typical Pet-G printing speeds, you're looking at around 4 hours of print time per half, mainly due to the huge amount of support needed.