Guest BiancasMom Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I recently got a new job and am not going to be able to take Bianca to work with me every day. I was wondering what experiences people have using Doggie Doors with their hounds. I have a sliding glass door that opens into my fenced back yard. Right now I just let Bianca out when she has to go and she is always supervised. I have been researching some doggie doors online and have found automatic ones. I am interested in these becuase I have 2 indoor only cats and am afraid they would get out. Does anyone use a doggie door while they are at work and do the dogs know to come inside if it is rainy or too hot? I am afraid Bianca would get stuck outside somehow. Do you allow your dogs to be in the yard alone when you are not home? Also, some of the doors have options on the height of the rise (distance from floor to bottom of doorway). I was wondering what a good height was for a Greyhound. Bianca is 66 #. Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! P.S. I am also interested in anyone who has a Greyhound in the Granite Falls, WA area. Bianca would love to have a friend or a playgroup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinM Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I know there are some people on this board who use doggy doors and are OK with it. For me, I couldn't do it for all the reasons you express concern about in addition to many other concerns I would have. Can you get someone you trust to come in once a day to give her a walkie or just let her out in back? If money is an issue paying someone, maybe someon you can barter with? Good luck. How about some pics? Quote ROBIN ~ Mom to: Beau Think It Aint, Chloe JC Allthewayhome, Teddy ICU Drunk Sailor, Elsie N Fracine , Ollie RG's Travertine, Ponch A's Jupiter~ Yoshi, Zoobie & Belle, the kitties. Waiting at the bridge Angel Polli Bohemian Ocean , Rocky, Blue,Sasha & Zoobie & Bobbi Greyhound Angels Adoption (GAA) The Lexus Project Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BellesDad Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 My Angel Belle used doggie doors for 7 years, in different places, moved 3 times. They went to my backyard, and now in my condo on to a large balcony. Never had any problems with her staying out too long or getting stuck. I would just get the simple manual flap door. Cats will be aproblem, as they will figure the door out quickly. In fact I went to the kitchen in the middle of the night and my cat had brought home another cat friend of his. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest houndlover Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I do not have a doggie door but will be having one installed in the very near future. I have not looked into the automatic ones so I'm not really sure how well they would work and if there is any way that Bianca may get "stuck" outside. If her being outside and not coming in is a concern could you put some type of dog house outside for her just in case that happen? I know that other people had posted in other threads about indoor cats getting outside by sneaking out with the dog when the doggie door opens. Once the door is open how long would it stay open after the dog goes out? Would it stay open long enough for the cats to get out? Could you put the cats in a spare room when you aren't home and Bianca would be using the doggie door (that is what I will be doing with my indoor only kitties)? At first I wasn't crazy about the thought of getting a doggie door but the more people I talked to the more I was sold on the idea. There are a couple of threads in Everything Else Greyhound about doggie doors. If you do a search for them you should be able to get quite a bit of info. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trudy Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I'd be insane without our dog door. The current set up is a patio pacific door with adjustable rise for our sliding door. I blocked it off about 1.5 hours ago. I've gotten up to let Ryan out 3 times since then... This is why we have a dog door - I'm not a door man/lady! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neighsayer Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 Couldn't live without mine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammystroops Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 we have several couldnt live without them Quote In loving Memory of: Chip, Wendell, Tessa, Moose, Moody, Noble Storm, Thunder, Gracie, Duke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JenZ Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I love my dog door! I got the Saint Bernard-sized "Ruff Weather" 2-flap door for northern climates and I would be lost without it!!! I got it about 2 years ago, when I noticed Lucy was having problems holding it all day. It took a few weeks of training that kind of went like this: First stage: training them to use the door WITHOUT any of the flaps up- just going through the hole. Second stage: hanging a lightweight cloth that covers half the door, and teaching them to "push through" it to go through (you can use a light dish towel or something- I think I used a piece of muslim from my fabric stash) Third stage: hanging a lightweight cloth that covers the whole door, and teaching them to "push through" it. Fourth stage: Putting up one of the real flaps. These were heavier and so teaching the dogs to "push through" them took a bit longer, but lots of treats helped! Fifth stage: Both flaps up. In total, it took me about a month of every-day training, if I remember correctly! I got a Saint Bernard sized door so that I could position it pretty low to the bottom of the door. It was important to me that neither one of my dogs would really have to "struggle" to step up through a smaller door as they got older and creakier. My dogs do use the door while I am not home, but I cover it at night with the plastic cover. Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I think dog doors are great--but not for homes with indoor-only cats. Unless you're prepared to lock your cats up, you run the risk of them getting out. If you can confine your cats, then the door is a great idea, as long as you live in a relatively safe area where the door doesn't put you at too much risk. We had four dogs for many years, in a lovely suburban area, and we had two doors next to each other to avoid congestion! Also because two of the dogs liked to lay in waiting for critters (chipmunks, squirrels, etc.) and then burst out of the house with evil intentions! As they were NOT Greyhounds, they never caught anything, but the sure did enjoy the game. We also had a burglar alarm in that house; the dogs were separated from the majority of the house in a mud room area that we were able to close a dutch door to. If you ahve a dog door, and you have a muddy yard--you may not like what you find when you get home if your dog has free access to the house--but because of your cats, that wouldn't be wise anyway! Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LBass Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I reluctantly got a dog door (mostly I had security concerns) when it became clear that my epileptic Piper just couldn't hold even for a few hours. He and my little Cavalier have adapted to the dog door beautifully. Both will go out and then come back in at sensible intervals. I think they both spend most of their time in the house. Neither was difficult to train. They were using the door in a couple of days. My new boy, Spirit, escaped the baby gate that was to keep him in the bedroom and taught himself to use the dog door on his own before I got home to check on him at lunch. With respect to the cats--I've had 2 Oriental Shorthair cats since installing the dog door and both are fully capable of getting out through the flaps. I keep the cats in a fairly large part of the house without access to the dog door just to be safe. I've got large doors with double flaps. I looked at the electric doors and just found myself too concerned about possible malfunctions and glitches to trust them. The set up I have involves a dog door leading into an enclosed section of the garage with another dog door leading from it into the fenced yard. Nothing except dogs has ever come in through the dog doors and having the double door setup means that any wind and rain that comes in (some, but not much) comes into the garage rather than into the house itself. Good luck with you choice. --Lucy Quote Lucy with Greyhound Nate and OSH Tinker. With loving memories of MoMo (FTH Chyna Moon), Spirit, Miles the slinky kitty (OSH), Piper "The Perfect" (Oneco Chaplin), Winston, Yoda, Hector, and Claire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spencers_Greyt Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I have used a dog door for years and years. In my current house (I've been in it 11 years now), I had a dog door installed through on of my block walls at the side of the house. I don't remember it's height and I'm not home to measure it. Anyway, since I'm single and work (thank goodness!) a dog door is a necessity. I have trained all my fosters on its use as well. It took Spencer a while to get it figured out and then one day the light came on and he just followed Emmy out the door and back in. Buzz came dog door trained which was a special treat for me! Because I always have more than one dog at my house I have never worried about them not coming back in or not figuring it out because they kind of follow each other around. I have had non-Greys in the past that were single dogs and they always figured it out. I always make sure there's a huge water bowl outside on the shaded patio just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest houndlover Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 In fact I went to the kitchen in the middle of the night and my cat had brought home another cat friend of his. You've gotta love it when that happens! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest attila Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 We tried a doggy door... our grey knew how to go outside but not back inside. We came home to find him getting soaked outside in the rain. It was pitiful. We could get him to come inside with treats, but he never did it on his own. We gave up the experiment after a week because he had cut himself running around the yard while we were at work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BlackandBrindle Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I have a dog door and I love it. It has given us the freedom to be away from the house for more than 6 hours at a time. We live in the desert and I was very afraid of the dogs getting overheated and not coming in, but that hasn't ever been an issue. They come and go as they please and if they are too hot or cold, they come inside. Even visitors have quickly learned to use the dog door. I do not have cats as mine are small animal intolerant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BiancasMom Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 Wow! Thank you all for your great responses! It is all such great information! I knew GreyTalk would not let me down! From the responses, I will definitely lock the cats in another part of the house. I have a lot to think about and am still looking into other options (doggie daycare, family members etc). Thanks again for all your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest avadogner Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Can anyone recommend which dog door brand and model they use. We want to install one and need in door type. Petsafe seems to be the most popular but most expensive too. Thanks so much, alicia Wow! Thank you all for your great responses! It is all such great information! I knew GreyTalk would not let me down! From the responses, I will definitely lock the cats in another part of the house. I have a lot to think about and am still looking into other options (doggie daycare, family members etc). Thanks again for all your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I have the Petsafe Large which is 15 X11. 80 pound greys have gone thru fine. The rise is 12" at the bottom. The dog door ranks very high among my life achivements -- it tottally changed my life for the better times 100. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTFSTHNDS Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I have a dog door and mine use it all the time. The door opens like a saloon door rather than the flap like most dog doors. If you are interested I could look up the information on it. They seem to know when to come in but do enjoy going outside. I do have to lock the dog door when I pull my car into the garage since my garage is in the back of my house. I have been known to forget to open the dog door after I pull the car out in the morning but I go home for lunch so they didn't have to hold it too long. I don't worry too much about stray animals since my pups would probably chase any stray cats. I also have 2 cats. Tippy learned how to use the dog door quickly and Tyler took about 6 months because she ddin't like to push against it. My cats have brought in birds & mice. It is amazing how quick 4 dogs can get out the door when there is something interesting outside. I don't worry about them too much during the day - I live in a pretty nice area. Quote Adrienne - with the kitties Tippy & Tyler Too Missing my bridge angels Boo Zsee, Java Bean (Nitro Kristen), Zeeba and Baer the not-so-miniature schnauzer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CampWhippet Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 (edited) This is my 4th house with a doggie door. Since it is the first house with a wife I had to make one change from all the others. The door leads to the outside the same but once inside the dogs no longer get run of the house. This door leads into a bedroom that we set up for the dogs with dog crates and dog beds only. This allows them to get inside to stay warm or cool depending on the weather while still enjoy the sunshine while we are at work. We bought the biggest doggie door they made but this human door is a smaller, custom sized door. It is 10" off the ground and 15"x22" opening. The company is Ideal Pet Products. ETA: They do not have access to the entire yeard while we are gone. They get a 25'x60' or so yard to use. Edited February 25, 2011 by CampWhippet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charla Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I have a Large PetSafe door that fits my patio slider, the opening is 10 X 15 with an adjustable rise set at 8 inches I think. Both hounds got the hang of it in less than a day with the aid of some chicken liver treats. Carl, at his heaviest of 100 lbs ( he's much slimmer now! ) and Gracie at 75 lbs both go in and out easily. I do keep my back gate locked and shut the doggie door when the yard guy comes. I've had it for 5 years and couldn't live without it! Quote Charla, Mom to Carl ( Bella Monsoon ) 5/2002 - 9/2016 and remembering Gracie Rose ( Cee Bar Xtreme ) 2/2002 - 1/2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sophiesmum Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Im also interested in a dog door, but Im worried about security. If a grey can fit through what would stop a person from crawling through it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winnie Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Im also interested in a dog door, but Im worried about security. If a grey can fit through what would stop a person from crawling through it? That has been my major concern too. Quote Laura with Celeste (ICU Celeste) and Galgos Beatrix and Encarna The Horse - Gracie (MD Grace E) Bridge Angels Faye Oops (Santa Fe Oops), Bonny (Bonny Drive), Darcy (D's Zipperfoot) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CampWhippet Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 (edited) Im also interested in a dog door, but Im worried about security. If a grey can fit through what would stop a person from crawling through it? That has been my major concern too. While I agree you don't want to make it EASY for someone to break in, the fact is if someone wants into your house they will get in. Simply having dogs makes 99% of the rookie burglers choose another house. ETA: Besides the "Beware of Dog" signs we have, this one help gets the point accross too. Edited February 25, 2011 by CampWhippet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 (edited) Im also interested in a dog door, but Im worried about security. If a grey can fit through what would stop a person from crawling through it? the 11' width of ours is less than an adults shoulders so while one could fit thu they'd have to turn sideways and inch thru. I gues really creative burglers with small kids could send them through. I honestly as stated above if they want in, they'll get in. breaking out a window in a bathroom on the side of the house is easy and was common in Lubbock. Edited February 25, 2011 by Hubcitypam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest K9Cookies Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 We have a dog door now, and we're very concerned about security at the moment. However, I agree that if someone really wants to get in, they'll find a way. The dog door is next to our glass sliding door, which someone could break if they really wanted to do it. We're still up in the air about the dog door though. We'll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.