Stoov Woov

Verdict

A self-heating infrared pet bed, the Stoov Woov has three temperature settings to help keep your furry friend warm. It’s suitable for cats and dogs (aside from large breeds), warms efficiently and is cheap to run. My cat absolutely loves it, rolling his head back as soon as the warmth kicks in. That’s probably the only endorsement that’s important.

Introduction

The Stoov Woov is the answer to a problem in my house. Last year, I reviewed the Stoov Big Hug, a self-heating blanket you put over a chair to keep yourself warm. It works brilliantly, particularly in my cold and drafty house.

For a while, I was warm while I worked, but my cat, Munchkin, decided that every time I stood up, the Big Hug was his. It then got to the point where as soon as the Big Hug was picked up, Munchkin would stare expectantly at it, and I’d have to lay it down on ‘his’ sofa and turn it on for him.

Now, with the Stoov Woov, he has his own heated pet bed, and he absolutely loves it.

Design and Features

• Woolly finish
• Two battery options
• Three power settings

The Stoov Woov is effectively an oversized Stoov Ploov cushion. It ships with a battery-powered infrared heater that’s stuffed with a cushion filling and then put inside a soft, fluffy case.

There’s only one choice of case for this product, the dark grey woolly one that you can see in the pictures. It’s soft to the touch, and the cushion interior feels just right: not too soft and not too firm. Munchkin is quite content to sleep on this as is.

This cover can be removed and washed on a standard wash, so it’s easy to keep clean and hygienic.

At 90x60cm, the cushion is a good size for cats, and even my Maine Coon, Behemoth, fits on it (when Munchkin will let him). Small to mid-size dogs will also fit, but there’s no option for a larger cushion for big-breed dogs.

As with Stoov’s other products, the Woov’s trick is that it can heat up. Once the battery is attached, the device can be charged via the plug-in adaptor. The status light on the controls goes solid red when charged, and the LED on the adaptor turns green.

The latter is a touch annoying: in a dark room, the green light shines brightly and lights up everything, to the point where I’m tempted to cover it with some electrical tape.

To use the cushion, there’s a button to select between the three power levels, with the corresponding number of LEDs lighting up.

Power level one is 38°C, two is 45°C and three is 58°C. As the cushion uses infrared, the heat is passed straight from the cushion to your pet’s body, and there’s overheat protection via the built-in thermostat, and a timer that turns the cushion off after eight hours.

Which setting is right for your pet will depend on whether you have a dog or cat, or how cold it is. Munchkin normally likes level one, but if it’s particularly cold or he’s just been out, then a burst of two helps; level three is for when it’s very cold, and then I use it for a short period before turning it down.

A 2600mAh battery comes as standard, which provides three hours of power on level one, two hours on level two, and 1.5 hours on level three. Upgrade to the Plus 4500mAh battery (an extra £25), and battery life increases to five, 3.5 hours and 2.5 hours respectively. And, you can use the cushion while it’s plugged in and charging.

Performance

• Heats brilliantly
• My cat loves it

Infrared heating is efficient, as it doesn’t warm the air but objects directly. With the Stoov Woov, two infrared heating elements cover most of the top surface of the cushion. These output heat directly into your pet.

It only takes a few minutes to start warming up, so your pet will immediately feel it’s a warm spot. It didn’t take Munchkin long to understand that this new bed was the warm one.

As with the standard cushions for humans, the Woov goes between a gentle heat (setting one), to a very warm pad (setting three) that’s probably not that comfortable to sit on for a long period.

As mentioned earlier, I found that setting one or two was right for Munchkin, with three when he was very cold and needed a boost to get him warm; I then dropped the heat down to level one or two.

A charge of the standard battery uses about 300Wh of power, which works out to a cost of around 7p. That’s slightly more expensive than filling up a hot water bottle, but you couldn’t put a hot water bottle near a cat for fear of a puncture, and the bottle has no temperature control.

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