It is a common feature in the home of many dog owners to find their home installed with dog gates. Still, despite being experienced dog owners, you might still face some issues that have to do with your dog doors. It never hurts to learn something new about what you might already know — here’s a list of those issues, so you can plan ahead in case you’re shopping for a new dog door.
Forgetting to close the dog door. The point behind buying a dog gate is convenience, so you don’t have to constantly let the dog in and out, but this laxity that develops over time can bite you. He may have had to run some errands or some extra work and not get home on time, which means the dog can still come and go as he pleases. The opposite can also be a problem: when you close the dog door and forget to check if the dog is safely inside. You could lock your pet outside.
Even automatic dog doors can pose problems. With automatic dog doors, the same virtual worry-free feature is present: the door opens and closes, but only for your dog, who wears a special collar. In this way, only an animal with the special collar that detects the door can activate the opening and closing of the door. This is all well and good, but when the batteries in the collar die and the dog is outside, that’s a problem. Unless you have someone else at home who can let your dog in, he may get stuck outside. If your bedroom or work room is far from the door your locked dog is probably barking through, you may not be able to let your dog back inside. Poor dog. In addition, there are cases of automatic doors in which the dog with a collar brings home a friend-dog. The dog-friend comes through the door immediately after the collared dog, so they both go in.
Dog door height. If you have a toy dog or several medium-sized dogs, that already reduces the chances of other larger dogs (not yours) coming in. The thing is, dogs are a nifty bunch – they can squeeze their way through openings. That problem is extended when the dog grows in size. Suppose the dog door has been kept at the same height. The results can be an ill-fitting door or eventual injury to the dog who has no choice but to use the same door over and over again.
Lack of insulation: loss of heat or cold. If you have a few dogs, that means a lot of going back and forth, or multiple times a “window” is left open for a few seconds. If you live in an area with a cold climate most of the year, think about the heat loss the dog door can cost you. It is the same problem when you live in a house with air conditioning. Constant air leaks from the comings and goings of dogs add to your energy costs.
