Feeding outside is where ceramic bowls go to die. A dish that lives on a patio gets knocked off a step, trodden on, and left out in a frost, and glazed stoneware only takes so much of that before it goes in three pieces across the paving. This one is melamine, which bounces where ceramic breaks, and that alone makes it the better choice for a garden or a utility room with a hard floor.

The Rio medallion print is the brightest in the range, which turns out to be useful outdoors, because a vivid dish on grey paving is one you can see from the back door and are less likely to tread on. The material is food-grade and BPA-free, resists chips, cracks and scratches through years of everyday use, and at 90 g it is light enough to carry out with a tin in your other hand. The base is finished non-slip.

• Vibrant Rio medallion design
• 13.2 cm diameter, 90 g
• Shatterproof, food-grade melamine
• Chip, crack and scratch resistant
• BPA-free
• Non-slip base
• Fully dishwasher safe; works indoors and outdoors

On leaving it outside. The saucer will take the weather, but the food will not. Wet food outdoors draws flies within the hour and attracts everything from wasps to rats overnight, so put the dish down for the meal and bring it in afterwards. A saucer this size also suits a cat or a small dog: the retrievers named on the maker's own listing would need a proper bowl, not this.

Who it's for: Cats, small dogs and outdoor feeding spots, and anyone who has already swept up one broken ceramic bowl.