It's one of those 4 way ones with the red and the green sliding catch. We usually set it to either in & out or just in. We've been locking it on in in the evening but one of our cats has worked out how to slide the catch over and let himself out. The trouble with this is that he then leavs it free for my other cat to escape.

If I block it off in the evenings and one of my cats is already out then they won't be able to get back in. Any ideas?

I've got a similar cat door and problem, except that the silly sods usually lock themselves out! I'd lure them both in at night with a treat, then block off the cat door when they're both in. It works very well with my two, and they used to stay out all night.

Selotape the switch so it cant be moved??

Kind of defeats the object of having one if you have to lure them in manually. Ours started off by locking himself out by pushing the green one first then the red one. It had us puzzled for days cos we thought someone had been comming round messing with it.

My cat sussed it out too. He realised that the red thing turned and that determined whether he could be free or not and he experimented with it! He gets it right most of the time!
I don't know what to suggest really, I guess if it really becomes a problem you might have to consider getting a different style flap?

I agree with you, but unless you use sellotape, as has been suggested, I don't see what other answer there is, and sellotape kind of defeats the object as well! Perhaps get another, more secure, type of cat door?

Clever things animals.

Yeah, you should see ours with the automatic garage door!

Just let them come and go as they please? That's what I always did with mine....cats like to get out and about at night

Not being funny, but awwwwww

Cute!!

Lol.

Hope you work out the problem though.

I did a really dumb thing a few months ago and put some oil on it cos it was really becomming quite stiff. Now the little sod can open it as easy as I can. Never thought he'd figure it out.

Ah, well that was your mistake! This conversation could take a very nasty direction if I'm not careful what I say here, but when the catches are stiff, a good push with a screwdriver usually does the trick, and without the opposable thumbs, the cats never get the hang of that one!

You'd have thought that the manufacturers would have made the system more difficult to defeat really -- cats are resourceful and clever little bleeders and quite cpable of working out a sequence of events to achieve what they want.

Are you suggesting the OP should take a screwdriver to his cats?!







Joke like.

It is human nature to underestimate our fellow animals.

Ermm...My mistake! You should never underestimate a cat. Especially one who thnks he's a dog.

Well, it was more along the lines of "When my catflap gets stiff, I take a screwdriver to it", but you can see why I was concerned!!

Ummmm, Ok...


...back to the catflap though

Lol My cat still thinks hes a tiny kitten but hes a big fat heavy sod (bloody neighbour giving him treats or something) and every morning he'll leap onto me aas if to say "get up, feed me then let me out and sod off" and I swear he weighs more then I do. Sod!

Love him to bits though

Back on topic, I was thinking of getting a cat flap fitted so he could come and go during the day but I could keep him in at night but after reading this thread I am having second thoughts cos he's a smart little git (done his A-Levels and degree and everything ) and he will figure out how to unlock it straight away.

You didn't waste time picking up on that. I'd literally posted in the wrong thread and deleted it right away within 5 seconds. You don't waste time do you?

I'm glad my cats are thick and haven't worked out our flap!

We don't have the same as the OP's, though - ours has got a sort of two-disc mechanism that you turn for in, out, in andd out or locked.

Could you change your catflap to one that locks differently, OP?

Could you tape a flap of plastic over it (cut up old marg tub, or even a bit of card), leaving the bottom untaped so you can flip it up and access the switch - or maybe a small box shape if the controls stick out? Strong gaffer tape should make a good hinge, you might need to rough up the surface a bit with sandpaper to get a good bond.

Why don't you just let it come and go as it pleases? Is there a local problem at night time - foxes for example?

Cats are cool, could you imagine a dog doing that, I cant.

I try not to when I find things amusing.