Choosing Kitchen Appliances You'll Actually Use

Part of choosing your pet door is choosing the right features and location to enhance your home's security. The right combination of strategic placement, security systems within the door itself and complementary security systems will make your pet door an integral part of your home's security. 

Choose the right location

Traditionally, pet doors have been installed in human ones, but choosing another location can help improve security. Many installers will choose to place a pet door in a wall or a garage door which can't be opened from within arm's reach of the flap. Putting the door in this type of location not only makes it difficult to access but also helps prevent it being noticed. 

Make your door as small as possible

The smaller your pet door, the more secure it will be; finding the right size for your pet means taking some preliminary measurements. Measure your animal and be sure that your pet door isn't any larger than it needs to be to admit it. Set it at your pet's shoulder height and no higher. Big animals will still need big doors, but there's no sense in making the entry any larger than it has to be. 

Use an electronic lock

One high-tech solution to the pet security problem is to use a pet door with an electronic lock. These locks are paired with a chip in the pet's collar; when the pet approaches the door, the system senses the chip and unlocks. Not only does this help deter burglars, it can also help keep out pests and neighbours' pets. 

Install other security systems

Pet doors work best when they're part of an integrated home security system that includes a wide range of different devices. For instance, motion-sensing lights placed in the area around a pet door will snap on and give potential intruders pause. Alternatively, make sure the room the pet door leads to has a timer on its lights so that it seems occupied during vulnerable hours. Additionally, many alarm systems can be set so that a small animal won't trigger them, while a human-sized intruder will. 

A pet door is an easy way to help your favourite animal get in and out of your home. Choosing the door's location carefully and adding some key security features such as electronic locks, lights or timers will help make this entrance part of a safe and secure home.