Answering Some Commonly Asked Questions About Pet Doors
Pet doors can be a great choice for anyone who owns a pet that needs to frequently go in and out of the home, as this means not having to get up and open the door every time they want in or out, and not having to potentially stand there for several minutes while waiting for them to decide what they're going to do! If you're thinking about getting a pet door for your home, note a few commonly asked questions about these doors, and this might help you determine if they would be a good choice for your pet, and for your own comfort and convenience as well.
Do the doors let in heat and cold?
If you're worried about a pet door letting in too much heat during summertime or cold air during wintertime, note that a high-quality pet door will be very thick and insulated, and should fit the frame of the door very snugly. This means little risk of warm air or cold wind getting through the door when it's not in use.
Also, note that you might easily let in far more heat and cold when you open the entryway door to let your pet in and out of the home! A pet door, being so much smaller than the entryway door itself, may actually reduce the amount of outside hot and cold air that gets into your home while the pet goes in and out.
What if a pet hesitates to use the door?
Training a pet to use the door is just like training them to do anything else; you need to be patient and use rewards and treats as they do what they should. Never just push a pet through the door or yell at them when they hesitate, as they may then associate the door with something unpleasant, or think they're doing something wrong when they approach the door. If you help a pet get accustomed to going through the door, and reward them when they do, your pet should have no problem eventually using the door without worry.
What are doors that "control both ways"?
Some pet doors will work together with a microchip that you put on a pet's collar, so the door doesn't open unless your pet approaches. When a door offers control both ways, this means that the door won't open from either direction with this microchip installed; this can allow you to keep out racoons and other such animals from coming into the home, and also ensure children don't use the pet door to go out.