I recently completed a test to find out how much I spoil my dog. The result was that I ‘spoil my dog, but he loves it and I do, too’. Yep, and I proved that when road-testing the Furbo Dog Camera, which is built specifically to let you check in on your pets when you’re gone. And by ‘check in’ I mean speak to your fur-child, watch a live feed and/or toss him treats!
Setting up the Furbo Dog Camera was easy enough. I plugged in the machine and put a handful of round kibble treats in through the top. I installed the Furbo app on my phone, followed the prompts and was sharing the love in no time!
It took me a few minutes to figure out how to talk to Cruz through the app (press mic button) and release it to hear Cruz (I expect him to bark back, of course). I press a button on the app and a treat pops out. How cool is that?! The app also notifies me when Cruz barks. (Oh, my poor baby!)
The most challenging part of using the Furbo Dog Camera was training Cruz to come to the Furbo when I called his name through the phone app. He normally ignores me unless I’ve got food. So, you can imagine how long it took for him to respond to the Furbo.
Once Cruz finally agreed to play along, I put the Furbo to the test from the neighbour’s yard up the street. I saw through the app that Cruz just stared at me from the security door. I returned home, went into my office and closed the door. I called for him through the app and he ignored the Furbo again – stared at the closed door instead. Argh! This wasn’t going to work. He knew I was there.
I got a better chance to test the Furbo at my daughter’s dance concert – too far for him to follow and hear. It was a hot day, so Cruz wanted to stay indoors and made himself comfortable on the couch. Throughout the afternoon, we checked in on him every 30 to 45 minutes and each time found him napping in a different location around the living room.
At concert intermission, we huddled around the phone and called out to Cruz. “Cruuuuz, Cruuuuzzy, hello boooy Cruuuuz.! To our great delight he walked over to the Furbo and stared into the lens …. “Oooooh good booooy Cruuuuz!!!” Here’s a treat … and another just because we love you! Check out the video here.
We looked up to discover a group of parents were staring at us. Yes, we’re the crazy family who speaks to their dog on the phone.
What can I say, we spoil our dog. But he loves it and we do, too!
