Doggy door ideas

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Doggy door ideas

Posted : 6/30/2006 3:26:39 AM

We got a doogy door installed yesterday. I have heard some people have awful trouble getting their dogs to use one. My dogs have me up and down all the time wanting to go out and then after 30seconds they want to come back in...it drives me mad [sm=crazy.gif]. So we sent the door away and now it has a dooy door installed. So that was the easy part, now how to get the dogs to use it? I've tried standing the other side with treats and calling them through and this works but after a while and i need to swing the door and hold it before they will come through and i have tried hooking the door up so there is no flap. The dogs use it better this way but obviously its defeating the purpose. Any ideas? We have had the door about 24hrs now, it was put in yesterday afternoon. Any help is very appriciated

dogslyfe

Posted : 6/30/2006 6:51:27 AM

Be patient. It takes some dogs longer than others to figure it out. We got our doggie door when Bree was about 6 months old. It took her approximately 2 minutes to figure it out, and she's been using it smashingly every since. It took Ginger 2 days.

I would stand on one side (pocket full of treats) and hold the flap open, and call the dog through using a treat. After a few times, after they're committed, start letting the flap slide down their backs. Then as you progress, start holding it open smaller and smaller, until they're finally going through it alone. Then I'll try to get them through it going out from the same side I'm on. Same process, push the flap open, and I say "go".

Once one of them figures it out, it will be easier for the others to follow suit. One thing, though. They may or may not ever really take the initiative to use it independent of you. I have one dog that goes in and out at will... one that will occasionally... one that uses it arbitrarily only in an emergency, and two that only use it when I go too. In other words, I would still plan to take them out at their regular intervals, and then you can figure out if they'll use it without you or not. Mine mostly don't - they hang out and wait for me to suggest we go out. It hasn't lessened my going outside with them in the least.

fuzzy_dogs_mom

Posted : 6/30/2006 11:50:41 AM

I have a doggy door, too. It's the kind that's a plexi-glass panel that locks to a sliding glass door. We've had it for about 11 years and I had a dog and cat using it in the course of a weekend. All I did was gently push them through it, so they could get used to the feel of the flap on their backs as they went in and out. As soon as the dog was out, I went outside with him so I could ease him back in again. During the time they were learning to use it, I just made sure I didn't let them sneak in or out through any other door - that way they came to understand that this particular door was "their door". Once they had the routine down, I didn't care if they followed someone in or out a different door.

Joyce