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i asked a similar question about 4 years ago but since then there has been a development.

 

Our Tomcat has figured out that if he attacks the red twisty thing under the flap it will, eventually give forth unto the outside world. This is not good!

 

We've two cats atm, mum threw such a wobbler when I put collars on her; legs through them, collars suddenly disappearing etc, that one of the magnetic ones with the collar tab doesn't strike me as a good idea; the Tom's never got on with collars either but not to such an extent as mum.

 

I'm wondering whether anyone has found a better solution than the ubiquitous Staywell.

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i asked a similar question about 4 years ago but since then there has been a development.

 

Our Tomcat has figured out that if he attacks the red twisty thing under the flap it will, eventually give forth unto the outside world. This is not good!

 

We've two cats atm, mum threw such a wobbler when I put collars on her; legs through them, collars suddenly disappearing etc, that one of the magnetic ones with the collar tab doesn't strike me as a good idea; the Tom's never got on with collars either but not to such an extent as mum.

 

I'm wondering whether anyone has found a better solution than the ubiquitous Staywell.

 

Ate the cats microchipped? Our cat flap can read the microchip so only our cats can get in (any cat can get out)

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I don't suppose you would like to fit a pressure sensitive pad outside your door, fitted with bell, so that when you heard it you could open the door friends?

 

Or - - - rig up a small movement detector at cat height that would then release the door for them?

 

(or not, as you determine)

Edited by Grace & Favour
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I don't suppose you would like to fit a pressure sensitive pad outside your door, fitted with bell, so that when you heard it you could open the door for your feline friends?

 

Or - - - - how about fitting a movement sensor at 'Tibbles height' - that would then release (or not - as you determine) the door for them

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'Tibbles'

 

If you hear meowling in the night you know he's coming for you...

 

Ate the cats microchipped? Our cat flap can read the microchip so only our cats can get in (any cat can get out)

 

Can you set them to work one way? How sturdy are they?

 

Bear in mind we're on our third Staywell; this one I disassembled and epoxied back together so he didn't rip it apart; he's gone techno and worked out how to use this one instead!

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(any cat can get out)

 

thats a shame, if only someone would invent something to keep cats in their own bloody garden!! dirty animals i hate them! the local squawk brigade think the carpark at home is their toilet! Grrrr.

 

Ate the cats

 

i can supply a few if your still hungry !! :cheers:

  • Greenie 1
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If you hear meowling in the night you know he's coming for you...

 

 

 

Can you set them to work one way? How sturdy are they?

 

Bear in mind we're on our third Staywell; this one I disassembled and epoxied back together so he didn't rip it apart; he's gone techno and worked out how to use this one instead!

 

Ours is built like a tank, although the clip setting it to "open/closed/in/out" has come off, but I just pop it back on. Curiously it only comes off when set to open, it's not a result of the cats forcing a closed flap. With Rosie coming home tomorrow with a newly pinned back leg, she's confined to barracks so I'll be setting it to "in only"

 

The chip reader only operates on the way in. This is so, if your cats invite their friends home (or another cat follows them through before the flap closes) an unrecognised cat can get out

 

made by Sure Flap, but it's not cheap and isn't suitable for porky cats

 

Chip reading cat flap

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Forgive me if I'm over-simplifying this, but your problem seems to be solely about the cat(s) being able to get out when you don't want them to. When they're allowed to come and go as they please, your present solution is fine? If that's so, can't you just build a box cover for the flap that's secured by slider bolts or somesuch? (I'm assuming houdini-cat can't operate a slider bolt)

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thats a shame, if only someone would invent something to keep cats in their own bloody garden!! dirty animals i hate them! the local squawk brigade think the carpark at home is their toilet! Grrrr.

 

 

As an aside on this note and I must confess somewhat :smiley_offtopic:

 

Yesterday evening we detected a fairly strong smell of gas around our front garden and side of house (where the gas supply comes into the house) and so I rang the emergency number, closed all windows and doors switched off the gas supply and was careful not to operate any electrical switches etc as advised. A nice chappie came out from The National Grid and firs of all tested inside our house and our meter before giving it the all clear then proceeded to test for gas around the front garden and pavement. At this point the heavens opened and his dooferator for testing decided to stop working so there he was with his hi vis jacket on and fire extinguiser in hand walking up and down the pavement outside our house and the pavement over the road punching holes at regular intervals in the tarmac to put his sniffer down. He still drew a blank and so his next check was to knock on the door of the 10 homes closest too us in order to check that they do not have any gas leaks.

Just before he visited the next door neighbour who's garden backs onto the side of our house (we are on a corner) when the chappy wandered down his garden to see what all the fuss was about - he wondered if it could have anything to do with the cat repellent product he had treated his newly sown lawn with earlier that evening!!!

 

Well maybe the fact that the packet says it has a smell of garlic and gas might have given a clue!!! :help:

never a dull moment in our street :lol:!

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our catflap in the back door is unlockable due to a sustained "let me in campaign" by Oggy the Moggy who wanted a home of his own. All the little plastic locks were pinged off and an anti Oggy barrier of the bin and the compost caddy and the recycling bin was catapulted accross the kitchen because Oggy was determined. It worked,we couldn't keep him but Cats protection found him a lovely new home.

So back to Tom and his escaping habits,I think that the current catflap reinforced with a slide in plywood reinforcement for when you need to keep him in. Fit it to the inside of the door and make it slide in from the top,he will learn to slide it out if it fits in sideways.

To keep one cat in for his 3 week settling in period we put a small drawing board over the flap held in place with a 56 pound weight, Jacky puss managed to slide the board but couldnt get it to slide far enough so set about trying to slide the weight and the doormat it sat on accross the lino.He got it to move when he realised that the board sticking out gave him a bit more leverage. A very big and very clever cat.

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There's a very clever cat coming into my house sometimes to nick Rusty's food.

Without twisting the red rotary lock on the "staywell" it manages to get the flap over locking device without breaking it thus gaining entry and exit. God knows how...

 

Once I disturbed it when I heard it come in a 3 am and it just dived through the locked flap leaving it in pieces outside the back door.

 

I've given up trying to keep it out and close the utility room door instead.

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Forgive me if I'm over-simplifying this, but your problem seems to be solely about the cat(s) being able to get out when you don't want them to. When they're allowed to come and go as they please, your present solution is fine? If that's so, can't you just build a box cover for the flap that's secured by slider bolts or somesuch? (I'm assuming houdini-cat can't operate a slider bolt)

 

I'm hoping to maintain the whole one way directionality so the "stick a bit of plywood in front of it" model and any slightly more complicated varieties are a no go; we'd have to keep them both locked in for a fortnight when we go travelling which is mean.

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I'm hoping to maintain the whole one way directionality so the "stick a bit of plywood in front of it" model and any slightly more complicated varieties are a no go; we'd have to keep them both locked in for a fortnight when we go travelling which is mean.

 

In that case, I defer to Mr Patrick with a "what he said".

 

Though I am mortally offended that you impugn any solution that I would suggest as "stick a bit of plywood in front of it". If I were going to do this it would be over engineered to the nth degree, have baroque detailing and take somewhere near a year to complete.

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I think there is an oportunity here. Design a GOOD catflap and sell it. All the ones I've seen on the market and used are utterly useless. They are either crap quality or to easy to open to keep an intelligent animal on the desired side of it.

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Though I am mortally offended that you impugn any solution that I would suggest as "stick a bit of plywood in front of it". If I were going to do this it would be over engineered to the nth degree, have baroque detailing and take somewhere near a year to complete.

 

Could try Doors4paws instead ...

 

products.jpg

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In that case, I defer to Mr Patrick with a "what he said".

 

Though I am mortally offended that you impugn any solution that I would suggest as "stick a bit of plywood in front of it". If I were going to do this it would be over engineered to the nth degree, have baroque detailing and take somewhere near a year to complete.

 

We've got two months; I wouldn't even have the drawings complete.

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Those who are not on my FB list will not know that the microchippy ones are available in either battery powered or 12V variants ideal to the boaty environment so I thought I'd mention it.

 

As an aside, the rain has convinced said cat to defer to the boat, for once. Me being clever came home and stuck a full jerry can in front of the cat flap and came in through the stern hatch to listen to a very shouty but disappointed tom cat in the bow...

 

Home time in the rain. Yay, I think...

 

I wonder whether Dr Bradley's still in Brum; it's the open mic in the Prince tonight...

 

I hope the microchippy ones fail closed rather than open!

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Those who are not on my FB list will not know that the microchippy ones are available in either battery powered or 12V variants ideal to the boaty environment so I thought I'd mention it.

 

As an aside, the rain has convinced said cat to defer to the boat, for once. Me being clever came home and stuck a full jerry can in front of the cat flap and came in through the stern hatch to listen to a very shouty but disappointed tom cat in the bow...

 

Home time in the rain. Yay, I think...

 

I wonder whether Dr Bradley's still in Brum; it's the open mic in the Prince tonight...

 

I hope the microchippy ones fail closed rather than open!

 

Our microhippy one still has a mechanical "in/out/shake it all about" setting, I've just cleaned the running track for it. Unlike the one you describe, the cats find it impossible to operate this.

 

What the microchip does is make sure only YOUR cat comes in.

 

Ours is now set to "in only" as not only will Rosie be confined to barracks when she gets home tomorrow but Chorley is now throwing up everywhere and I don't want him to go walkabout before I can get to the vets tomorrow

 

I wish I had shares in Bath Vets, this week I've spent more on Vets bills than my car cost six months ago...

 

Edited to add, if you fit it backwards, and DON'T programme the cats chips in, it will be a VERY effective "in only" cat flap!

Edited by magpie patrick
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If your problem centers around the rather pathetic red plastic 'lock' that these catflaps have, why not replace it with something else that can't be turned so easily?

 

A nut and bolt, each with one edge ground off (to permit the door to swing when aligned just so), would do exactly what the existing set up does, but could be wound up tight. You could even fit a locking nut if you so wish. Unless your tomcat can manage a set of Stilsons you should be all right then.

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If your problem centers around the rather pathetic red plastic 'lock' that these catflaps have, why not replace it with something else that can't be turned so easily?

 

A nut and bolt, each with one edge ground off (to permit the door to swing when aligned just so), would do exactly what the existing set up does, but could be wound up tight. You could even fit a locking nut if you so wish. Unless your tomcat can manage a set of Stilsons you should be all right then.

 

I thought about someting similar, but the plastic framing is that flimsy that I'd be worried, with a pinched up nut and bolt and a brawny tomcat leaning on it that the frame would crack; just like the first one did...

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I thought about someting similar, but the plastic framing is that flimsy that I'd be worried, with a pinched up nut and bolt and a brawny tomcat leaning on it that the frame would crack; just like the first one did...

Hmmmm...

 

Is it possible to sandwich the edges of the plastic doorframe with wood to reinforce it? And then run the bolt through the whole lot to minimise the risk of the plastic cracking around the hole when it's done up tight?

 

Any more mods than that and you might as well make a whole new door!

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