The Lickimat from Sharples Pet won a New Product Award at PATS Telford this week, and already there is talk of this innovative item becoming the next bestseller in pet stores.

Lickimat Boredom Busters are designed to enhance a pet’s environment as well as benefiting its health. 

Lickimats are designed as tasty boredom busters for a cat or dog. By spreading a pet's favourite soft treat over the surface, an owner can create a tasty fun game with them having to seek out every morsel with their tongue.

Owners can freeze treats in the summer for a refreshing, longer lasting entertainment. They also work well as a slow feeder for cats.

Here are some of the benefits of the Lickimat:

• Repetitive licking is soothing for your pet, releasing calming the hormone cortisol into the body
• Medical free way to promote calm behaviour in your pet while home alone or during stressful times, like storms or fireworks, also great for calming pets before a procedure/treatment at the vets or groomers
• No over feeding because Lickimat makes a small tasty treat last longer
• Licking enhances the sense of taste, allowing pet to enjoy just a small amount of food
• Helps promote fresh breath by scraping off bacteria and undigested food particles from the tongue
• Stimulates saliva production and helps clean tongue, teeth and gums
• Saliva production can aid digestion as it contains enzymes like Amylase

For fun pet interaction three designs are available.

• Lickimat Buddy, (the most popular design), with its cross maze design, is perfect for trapping chunky treats like mushy meat or fish. 
• Lickimat Soother, with its raised bumpy design, is perfect for runny treats like yoghurt or gravy
• Lickimat Playdate, with its square pocket design, is perfect for trapping chunky treats like mushy meat or fish.

The New Product Award judges commented: “We liked the versatility of this product, and the fact there wasn’t any unnecessary packaging.”