You would think that I’d have enough travel pet bowls by now — but I cannot resist gear of any kind, and pet stores load the area around the cash register with tempting products, and…well, you can imagine the rest. My latest purchase is the Petmate Travel Bowl Duo (size Small), and it’s a useful addition to the collection.

Left bowl collapsed; right bowl popped up, and half removed, so you can see the felt bottom (and the Velcro pad it attaches to)

As you can see, the Duo consists of two of those ubiquitous silicone bowls that collapse into a pancake, held in a black twill container. Each bowl is backed with a circle of felt; each half of the container is lined with a Velcro patch. Unzip the container, pop the bowls up, and you quickly have a food & drink station for your pet. The Velcro backing corrals the bowls, which are light and would otherwise stray (loading them with food and water adds to the system’s overall stability), but you can easily pull one or both bowls out and use them without their base. On their own, the felt-backed bowls will scoot on a smooth surface, but do well on a carpet.

I like the small Duo because the bowls are small. Each holds 1.5 cups, and that’s all the water or food a dog Chloe’s size needs at any given time (please note that the Duo also comes in a size Large, with 3-cup capacity bowls). Smaller dogs need even less bowl acreage, and for those pups, you can choose to pop only one of a Duo bowl’s creases upwards (they flatten with two folds). I like the stability that the container-turned-base provides, and I like being able to put the bowls in the dishwasher (which you can, even with those felt pads on the bottom).

There is a twill loop on the rim of the container; add a carabiner and you can clip the Duo to your purse or backpack.

Downsides? In my dishwasher at least, the felt didn’t dry (nor did the silicone) — after the cycle was finished, bowl and base were still damp, and required air-drying. The product is made in China, and it’s not clear whether the silicone is food-grade. To be safe, I wouldn’t use this bowl set for Chloe day in, day out. I use it happily on day trips, and it’d be a good choice for a car kit — light, compact, and easy to clean.

Amazon link: Petmate Travel Bowl Duo (small)