Dog Doors & Pet Safety: 4 Factors To Consider

Here at Eco-Advantage, we get asked about pet safety and pet access a lot. You want to keep your family’s dogs and cats safe and in your yard and home, but you also want them to be able to be comfortable, have fun and have access to your yard.

Maybe you’re concerned about home security issues and dog doors. Here in Phoenix, AZ, in the heat, you might not want your pets going outside for long periods of time or in and out, letting expensive air conditioning escape.

With so many things to consider, what are the most important factors when deciding on the right type of pet access for you and your pets that also addresses some of the issues unique to the greater Phoenix, AZ area? Whether you’re considering adding additional pet safety features to a screen door or gate, or you’re also considering installing a doggie door somewhere in your home, the following 4 factors will help you get started.

1. Appearance:

When you have pets, especially smaller animals like cats and little dogs such as
chihuahuas or Yorkie terriers, you’re probably concerned about every little space they
might be able to squeeze through. Adding elements like chicken wire to security doors,
gates and steel fencing, keep your small dog in your yard or house but look terrible.

Furthermore, if your pet is constantly scratching at your screen door to get out, he can wind up damaging a typical screen, causing it to look ugly and creating another opening he can escape through. Depending on how secure your yard is, you might consider installing a doggie door for him as a solution. But where?

You actually have more options than you might think when considering how to keep your pets safe while also keeping your home looking great and in some cases even improving its curb appeal.

• Doggie Pickets: These can be integrated into security door, gate and steel fence designs that mean your pet can’t get out and your home still looks fantastic.
• Pet Screens: Special screens designed to be pet resistant, replace less expensive options so your pet can’t chew or rip open the door in an unsightly attempt to get out when you don’t want her to.
• Camouflage Pet Doors: Built in pet doors can be created in a custom door so they’re disguised from intruders and don’t require you to cut an unattractive hole in one of your walls or existing doors.

2. Safety:

You love your pets and want to ensure their safety. You don’t want them to get out of
your home or yard and get into trouble or worse. Here in Phoenix, AZ, besides being at
risk for getting run over by a vehicle, or in a fight with another dog, your pets can also be
attacked or even eaten by native predators such as coyotes.

When you’re considering options for increasing your dogs’ and cats’ safety at home,
both inside and outside, you want to look for items that are both escape proof for your
pets and also intruder proof when it comes to critters like coyotes and other animals who can fit through a dog doors and security doors with widely spaced bars, or who can rip through non-pet screens on screen doors.

3. Security:

The security of your home is always important. A dog can help deter some criminals, but
others come prepared with treats and meat to befriend your dog and see things like
uncamouflaged dog doors as an invitation for them to enter and steal your stuff.

Anytime you’re examining whether or not to give your pets more freedom to go in and out of your house, you also want to deal with any extra home security issues that this could cause. Ask yourself if the added convenience of a pet door is worth the emotional and financial expenses of a break-in.

However, investing in a security door with special pickets and a pet screen to keep your pets inside until you let them out, can also help keep intruders out of your home.

4. Control:

Every option you have for increasing pet safety or pet access to the outdoors comes with
trade-offs in control for either you or your pets. Doggie doors usually mean your pets
have more control unless you close off their access to the pet door. Pet doors also
mean losing some of the seals to your home that keep air conditioning inside during the
hot southern Arizona summers.

Doggie pickets and pet screens are the pet safety items that give you all of the control over when your pets can go outside. Your dog or cat won’t be able to bite or claw through the screen, and they won’t be able to squeeze through any gaps either. Plus you control who can come inside, including keep burglars and wild animals out of your house.

No matter what you wind up deciding on when it comes to increasing the safety of your pets and whether or not to grant them more freedom and control over when they enter and exit your home, the 4 factors above will help you ensure your pets are happy and your home looks great.

Remember there’s really no right or wrong answer. It’s possible to incorporate dog doors and security features like pet screens and pickets. What are your concerns when it comes to pet safety or home security? Leave us your thoughts below and don’t forget to share this article with your friends.

Or if you prefer to talk to a live person, call us today at 602-710-2913.