Ancol Small Animal Food Ball

Food that arrives in a bowl gets eaten and forgotten in minutes; food that has to be worked for takes longer and gives a small pet something to do with its day, which is the entire idea behind turning a feeder into a toy.

Ancol's Food Ball, part of the Just 4 Pets range, is designed to be stuffed with hay or chopped vegetables. A small pet rolls the ball around to dislodge and nibble at the food inside, and a hook on the ball lets it be hung from the top of a cage or hutch rather than left loose on the floor. Ancol also suggest filling it with their own training treats for a change from hay or veg.

• Stuffed with hay or chopped vegetables
• Rolls to dispense food as your pet plays
• Hook for hanging from a cage or hutch top
• Doubles as an enrichment toy and a feeder
• Part of the Just 4 Pets range

On the missing measurements. Ancol do not give a size or weight for this ball, so there is nothing here to say how it will look hung inside a smaller cage before it arrives — measure available headroom if the enclosure is on the small side.

Who it's for: owners of small pets who want to slow down or add interest to feeding time, rather than putting hay or vegetables straight into a bowl.