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Reviews > Animal Companion Gear > Animal Feeding Bowls > Guyot Designs Squishy Dog Bowls > Test Report by David Wyman

Guyot Designs - Squishy Pet Bowls
Test Series by David Wyman

Picture of bowl



Test Phases:

Initial Report - October 12, 2009

Field Report - January 5, 2010

Long Term Report - February 22, 2010



Tester Information

NAME David Wyman
EMAIL wyman(AT)wymanhq(DOT)com
AGE 31
LOCATION Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
GENDER Male
HEIGHT 5' 10" (1.78 m)
WEIGHT 175 lb (79.40 kg)


While I've been camping for years, I've only been backpacking for a short time. I'm trying to find the right equipment, alternating between tent and hammock. My dog usually comes along on the longer hikes, and my wife and toddler join me on the shorter ones. I tend to carry more gear that I need resulting in a heavier pack, but I'm working on that. When I hike with my dog and/or my wife and son, we take it a bit slower, stopping frequently to enjoy the forest. I rarely hike fast unless I'm trying to make up time.



Initial Report - October 12, 2009

Product Information

Manufacturer Guyot Designs
Website http://www.guyotdesigns.com
Product Guyot Designs - Squishy Pet Bowls
Year of manufacture 2009
MSRP US$14.95
Material Food Grade Silicone
Measurements:
Size Tested: The Park (36 oz / 1.06 L)
  Listed Measured
Weight 4.3 oz (122 g) 4.2 oz (119 g)
Diameter 6.3 in (16 cm) 6.3 in (16 cm)
Height 2.7 in (6.8 cm) 2.7 in (6.8 cm)
Capacity 36 oz (1.06 L) 36 oz (1.06 L)
Other Sizes: The Base Camp (48 oz / 1.42 L)
The Trail (24 oz / 710 ml)
Color Tested: Lime
Other Colors: Tangerine and Tahoe Blue
Listed Temperature Range: -40 F to 446 F (40 C to 230 C)


Initial Impressions

Top view Side view

Out of the box, my first thought was that this is a very simple and basic item. It turns out that I was right and, after looking it over, that is one of its best characteristics. The lime green bowl is made of food grade silicone which they emphasize is BPA-free. The silicone is not very rigid, but the bowl does hold its shape fairly well when empty and very well when filled with water. The inside of the bowl has a very slick feel and the outside is more of a rubbery feel. The bowl has a wide bottom which curves in a bit as the sides rise. It's listed as being freezer, microwave, and dishwasher safe and, while I don't think I'll ever need it in the freezer or microwave, being dishwasher safe is nice for post-hike cleaning. It's listed as having a temperature range of -40 F to 446 F (40 C to 230 C) with both ends being much more extreme than any food or water I would feed my dog.

After removing the packaging, I ran it through the dishwasher once and then let my dog give it a test run. Emma didn't seem to mind it at all and finished all the water in the bowl. She also got her normal dinner of 1 cup (8 oz / .24 L) dry dog food and finished without complaint. The packaging claims that the bowl holds 36 oz (1.06 L) and this is correct if you fill the bowl to the very top. This wasn't very realistic as I would either spill it while placing it on the ground or Emma would spill water while drinking. I found filling it just to the top of the inward curve of the sides to be much more practical and this resulted in a usable volume of 24 oz (710 ml).

Squishing the bowl as small as I could manage yielded a packed size of approximately 4 in x 3 in x 2 in (10 cm x 7.6 cm x 5.1 cm) and after releasing it, it sprang back into shape with no noticeable problems. Since I usually have my dog carry her food and water dish in her small pack, one thing that I would have liked to see is a small pouch that could hold the bowl completely collapsed. When placed in the pack, the bowl would not stay collapsed and when it unfolded, it took up a good chunk of the side pouch on her pack which seemed awkward for her while walking around.



Field Report - January 5, 2010 Trips Taken

During the first two month test period, my dog, Emma, accompanied me on six day hikes in local parks. All but one of the day hikes were in typical fall weather and ranged from 1 to 5 miles (1.6 to 8 km) - plenty of time and distance to give Emma a good appetite and plenty of opportunities for water breaks. The last day hike was after our first snow with temperatures much lower - down around 20 F (-7 C).

Thoughts and Impressions



Emma enjoying a break to drink and play in the snow
Emma enjoying a break to drink and play in the snow


I have been very happy with how well this bowl has worked on long hikes. I've kept the bowl folded up and in one of the side pockets on the small pack that Emma carries. During breaks, the bowl unfolds without any problems and does double duty as a food and a water dish. I feed her first and then fill her bowl up with water for a drink. This also serves to clean out the food scraps from the bowl and then, after a quick shake, it's ready to pack back up.

My one complaint is that it doesn't have any way to stay folded. A small, attached strap or snap would have been nice so that it wouldn't have a tendency to open up inside the pack. I've used a heavy duty rubber band for this purpose, but that's definitely not the ideal solution.




Long Term Report - February 22, 2010 Trips Taken

During the last phase of the test, Emma accompanied me on one overnight trip and two day hikes, bringing the total trips for this test to eight hikes and one overnight trip. The overnight camping trip was just after we had gotten a decent snowfall and the temperature had climbed back up to overnight lows around 28 F (-2 C).

Emma eating dinner
Emma eating her dinner


Thoughts and Impressions

The bowl has continued to work very well and both my dog and I were quite happy with it. The silicone material that the bowl is constructed from has proven to be an ideal material for a dog dish. There are quite a few advantages it has over some of the other bowls I've used in the past:

* Easy to clean - putting Emma's dog food in first and then filling the bowl with water for her to drink also servers to keep the bowl clean in the field. Also, being dishwasher safe meant that there was one less item that needed to be hand-washed after coming home from a trip.

* Doesn't leak - this was a huge bonus while inside the tent. Previous bowls that I've used have almost always leaked after having water in them for an extended period of time. This bowl didn't leak at all which allowed me to keep some water available inside the tent for Emma to drink during the night. It also meant that, after shaking it out, it didn't hold extra water and this kept the inside of Emma's pack much drier.

Emma getting a drink in the morning
Emma getting a drink in the morning


* Flexible design - the bowl has a wide base and this, along with the silicone material, made it much more difficult for Emma to knock the bowl over and spill all of her water.

* Tough - I was able to leave the bowl out without having to worry about Emma destroying it. It stands up to teeth very well and Emma started carrying the bowl over to me whenever she wanted me to put more water in it.

Emma brought the bowl over for seconds
Emma brought the bowl over for seconds


Summary

Likes:
  • Easy to clean
  • Doesn't leak!
  • Tough - teeth/claw resistant
  • Flexible
Dislikes:
  • Doesn't stay compressed


This concludes my test of the Guyot Designs Squishy Pet Bowl. Thanks to BackpackGearTest.org and Guyot Designs for this opportunity.


Read more reviews of Guyot Designs gear
Read more gear reviews by David Wyman

Reviews > Animal Companion Gear > Animal Feeding Bowls > Guyot Designs Squishy Dog Bowls > Test Report by David Wyman



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