# Prevent kitty from using doggie door?



## skallal (Aug 25, 2013)

Okay, the title says it all. Let the dogs use the pet door, but keep the cat inside. Yeah right! Dream on!

If you've read my intro, you'll know I recently lost the second of two cats who were very senior. I now have a new Ragdoll kitten, and would like to keep him indoors. Yet I need to let the dogs (two Pug dogs) use the pet door at will do they can do their business. The two previous cats used the pet door also. One of them couldn't jump very high and was content to stay in the back yard. The other cat was a roamer, and somehow managed to never get hurt.

But I want to honor the contract with the breeder that says indoors only. I've considered trying a pet door that uses a device on dog collars to activate the door. I suspect a cunning kitty could slip through when the dog goes through the door. And if the pet door ever fails, one of the dogs could get trapped outside. Pugs need air conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter.

I have one idea to try a catio. There is a 10 x 20 foot section of my back yard separated by an internal fence. This area is already fenced in. So I need to find a way create a 10 x 20 foot cage with chicken wire including the top. And the dogs can still do their business in the catio.

Later I am thinking of adding cat fencing to the rest of the back yard. But for now, I need a something in a hurry before I let the new kitty have the run of the house. I have this week off from work on vacation.

I welcome any ideas. I can't be alone trying to keep the kitty safe.


----------



## librarychick (May 25, 2008)

I'd go with the dog collar pet flap...I think the risk is fairly small. A catio is a great idea though, my kitties love theirs


----------



## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

I have a magnetic cat door, Blacky wears a magnet on a collar that allows her outside and no one else can use it, when coming inside anyone can come inside, no magnet required... but we aren't worried about stray cats or anything and I'd much rather it work that way, since in case the magnet gets lost or breaks or something I don't want her stuck outside. 

We have the door built into the wall, so that makes it awkward for Jasper to play around with the door to force it open, as there's only enough room for one cat at a time to walk up to the door, it doesn't leave any room for door dashing behind Blacky. Jasper doesn't even understand the concept of a cat door and I want to keep it that way! 

It works really well for us, took Blacky about a week to get used to it, I'd recommend using something like it. Shop around though, since I visited three different pet stores and the prices between the least and most expensive that carried the same door was 30 dollars!

Amazon.com: Cat Mate Electromagnetic Cat Flap -- that's the one I have... for a small dog you would want this one, however as the one I have wouldn't be any good for anything but a Chihuahua: Amazon.com: Dog Mate Medium Dog Door


----------



## skallal (Aug 25, 2013)

Thanks for the replies!

I looked at magnetic type doors a few years ago, when I first got the Pugs as puppies and had two then 10 year old kitties. A local pet store had a PetSafe model. As I recall, it cautioned against putting the door too close to a large metal object. My current door is next to a dryer. Not sure if that is still a problem with today's models.

I currently have a medium PetSafe door which needs replacing, with or without a magnetic device. (In fact the whole wooden door with the pet door needs replaced. I might do it this week.) That means it will be large enough, in my case, for more than one cat. The flap opening is 8" x 11". Not sure how that converts to metric sizes you are more accustomed too? Also my kitten is a whopping 4 1/2 pounds or roughly 2 kg. He will be 13 weeks old this Thursday! Taking him to my first vet appointment, hopefully today.

My idea of a catio is less a likely option at this time, unless the kitty is likely to foil the magnetic door device. A catio is a lot of work, but something I'd like to try in the future. I also depends on how curious the kittens becomes.

Right now the kitten is in a spare bedroom with multiple plastic gates stacked to the top. My Pugs dogs are friendly to a fault, not a mean bone in them, but they can be very hyper even at 9 years old. So far the kitten hasn't shown any fear when I held him a few inches above the Pugs. But the doggies did bark and act very happy. That is what happens when I spoiled them and never bothered to teach them manners. Now I'll pay the price.

My hope is the two middled aged Pugs and the new kitten will become the best of friends. But this is all new territory for me. I've done puppies with older established cats. But I've never done kittens with older established dogs. The next few days will be interesting!


----------



## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

My cats can run full bore thru a tiny cat door. this might happen. A cateo / dogeo might be your best solution if your kitty decides to find a way thru the door.


----------



## Kelly524 (Aug 9, 2013)

Luckily, so far at least (knock on wood, fingers crossed!) my kittens are scared of the dog door. We looked into getting one of the magnetic dog doors when we first got the kittens, but some of them are crazy expensive. At this point we've put that on the back burner, and leave the utility room door closed during the day so the kitties won't get any ideas and the dog stays out while we're gone. I guess we will reevaluate once the cats decide to test out that swinging window. But for the time being, if they are anywhere close to it when the dog comes in or goes out, they run and hide. Although I guess if I were a 5 pound cat and a 40 pound beagle came barreling full speed ahead through a tiny opening, I'd run too!

I may have to look into the catio idea. That sounds pretty cool!


----------

