Continuous pet food dispenser

Muffins the cat was fat. Like many cats, he liked to eat. Regardless of caloric intake, satiation never seemed to come. If food was available, it would be gone shortly. If none was to be found, he would yowl at the nearest available human until it appeared in his dish once again.

One day, a strange machine was sitting next to Muffins' food dish, which had a few tasty bites in it. This was soon devoured, but it was hardly a meal. Just as he was about to yowl in protest, he heard a soft plink. The machine had dispensed a single kibble of food. This was quickly consumed as well, but now all attention was on the machine: it must be the source of food.

The machine stood unyielding to Muffins' batting, but steadily released a food pellet every minute or two. Soon he resigned himself to perching by the bowl and pouncing on every new morsel as it appeared. He remained in this cycle all day, before eventually falling asleep.

Morning greeted Muffins with a fresh supply of sustenance, which didn't last long. He continued to sit by the food dish for the next couple of days, but eventually his curious kitty instincts drew his attention away. Upon returning, Muffins finally made the connection: an unwatched bowl fills itself.

Over time, Muffins learned to pace his eating habits and stopped yowling. The humans were no longer responsible for the appearance of food, and the machine did not respond to anguished cries, no matter how pitiful. He even started to lose weight. The mental reward cycle of food was broken!