Sure Petcare SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap, RFID Collar Tags and Microchip Compatible, One-Button Control, Install in Doors, Windows and Walls, White, 4 x AA Batteries Required, Not Included

We have 3 cats and my son has 2 cats and visits frequently. INFRA RED COLLAR TAG TYPE: We had used a different manufacturers infra red type cat flap for 2 years, until four months ago, when we finally decided the cost of buying the replacement infra red transmitters was prohibitive at between £10 to £15 each time. Either the plastic collar tag terminals corroded or the plastic collar tag cases split - with monotonous frequency. To be fair to the manufacturer, the tags are guaranteed for 2 years and they say they will issue a replacement free of charge - but you try finding the receipt for the respective INFRA RED collar tag after several weeks - we were never able to take advantage of the maker's 2-year guarantee We abandoned the INFRA RED collar tags and left the cat flap unlooked so that our cats could come and go as they pleased. This worked well for 4 months until last week – 27th January 2013 – when a neighbourhood un-neutered tom cat decided to visit on two consecutive nights and spray urine on the furniture downstairs. Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap: We bought the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap on the basis of the highest number of 5 Star reviews we have seen of a product. I was concerned that the hole in our new PVC back door would not be the right size to fit the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap. There was no need to worry as the sizes were almost identical and did not need any modifications – other than the screw holes were in slightly different positions and I had to drill 2 x new 6mm holes to fit the new cat door. The build quality of the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap is excellent – the housing components fit together seamlessly, the plastic is thicker, the door features a draught excluder, which works (it doesn’t stop draughts completely but is more effective at minimising draughts compared to our previous cat flap). The Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap door is marginally narrower than our previous cat flap by about 10mm but this has not proved to be a problem with our 3 cats, two of which are quite large in size. Aesthetically, the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap is very good. In operation, the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap has been flawless and so far as we are able to determine, has allowed our cats unimpeded access, whilst denying the neighbourhood tom cat access to spray in our house. I like many people, do not usually write reviews for the many products, which I buy. I am so impressed with the Sureflap Microchip Cat Flap that I felt compelled to review it. It deserves its 5 Star reputation. It is an excellent product.

So, the usual cat owner problem, our cat soft as grease (as are the neighbours cats in fairness, though it's fair to say one of them is soft as dough... like a dough ball... that eat all the other dou.... you know what I'll say it, SHE'S FAT. That kitty consumes worlds for breakfast, she should have the silver surfer going ahead of her to warn people of their impending planetary doom), as I was saying...... just sits back and watches the neighbours cats eat his food. When we're at work we have no idea if he's actually managed to get a look in (as we work different times sometimes he's not in when food goes down). Well that has all changed thanks to this cat flat! *Robust construction - Definitely the most sturdy cat flap we have used. *Easy installation - if in a glass door you will need a new glass panel that has a hole in it (less than £30 for a patterned, toughened, double glazed panel with the required cut out for the flap, from my local glazer) you will need the additional surround (frankly this finishes it off much nicer anyway) and bare in mind, you may need to trim the bottom of the said surround, but unless you are infirm this is a simple task with a good sharp stanley knife (other brands of knife are available), or I guess hacksaw and file.... *VERY EASY TO REGISTER YOUR CAT(S) and for the cats to use - Even our cat that is scared of anything different had no problem wandering up to it and soon (less than a few hours) was happily hopping in and out. *Batteries last around 6 months and there is a low battery indicator. *IT IS NOT TRIGGERED by your cat simply being in the vicinity, this is the cleaver part, it reads the chip as your cat pokes it's head in (and it is instant), so no chance of interlopers popping in just because your cat is sat on the back step, or sat next to the flap. *The most compact scanning cat flap I have seen, it is barely bigger than a normal cat flap. *Our cat is much happier and seems a lot more settled now. Sir Isaac Newton would be proud of Sureflap for improving upon his invention! UPDATE: ONE YEAR ON *Changed the batteries for the first time late last month. *Still working fantastically well. *The flap has now paid for itself due to the money we have saved in food. *Our cat is a hell of a lot more confident and happy than he was, to the point where when he is outside he no longer let's other cat's bully him. *As an added bonus we have noticed that we no longer get gusts of wind blowing through on stormy days!

Replacing a simple cat flap which had a comparatively large aperture, I needed to use a couple of pieces of plywood in which I had sawed a hole of the size required by Sureflap Cat Flap. (No great precision needed here, the surround hides any rough work) Assembling the two pieces of the cat flap either side of the door with my plywood pieces sandwiched between secured everything in place simply, without me having to glue or screw the plywood to the door. So that was fine and much simpler to do than I envisaged, and it all looks very nice and neat. But the result has meant that the flap sits a little high. The bottom rim of the one it replaces was an inch or so lower. Add to that. that the cat needs to negotiate what is effectively a short tunnel rather than the mere thickness of a plywood door, then a degree of athleticism is required. Our cat is quite a rotund creature: halfway through both her fore- and back-legs are off the ground. It's a hilarious sight, but she always makes it in the end, and is getting better at it. Two things would improve the situation: if I could re-fit the flap an inch or two lower I'm sure it would be easier for her, but it would involve serious work eating into the solid frame which holds the plywood central section of the door. Secondly, the 'coming soon' larger flap that Sureflap promise would be far more appropriate to her generous dimensions. Meanwhile, we're carefully weighing out her food in the hope that she'll avoid the embarrassing day when she might get wedged in the tunnel, unable to go forward or back. But - the flap is simple to mount, simple to set up, and works wonderfully. The tortoiseshell intruder who made the flap necessary is now confounded and our kitchen restored as a secure refuge for our cat alone.

Works well Cat seemed a bit cautious at first due to the clicking noise. Easy to set up and register the cats chip. Keeps other cats out. Fitted in a glass door with an adapter.

Excellent cat flap, I have been using the same brand for 14 years and never had a problem, I think it just passed away from old age and a not so delicate cat charging through it! They have proved to be sturdy and totally weatherproof. So easy to replace, due to the consistent size of the product. Also sussed out, that by putting the tunnel over the cat's head prior to installation it registered the cat's micro chip, following the instructions.

It's 3am. You're in the depths of slumber. Your body gradually rejuvenating itself, preparing you for the busy day ahead. Nothing can bother you. In your dreams you are the master of your own destiny. Except those who have purchased a 'SureFlap Cat Flap with Microchip Identification, White, 21 x 21 cm'. Because for you, you will be awoken at hourly intervals to your cat trying to head-butt his way through the inoperable plastic gateway which serves not as a gateway, but a barrier to your feline overlord entering his dominion. You may as well have saved your £60 and endured the incessant miaows at the window, or the desperate squeak of paws at the glass, wax-on wax-off fashion, attracting your attention to his plight of being outside. "You've just been unlucky enough to receive a faulty product", I hear you say. And yes, that was my initial reaction too. On contacting the customer service desk, you will be politely provided with an assortment of top tips, to get the best out of your 'SureFlap Cat Flap with Microchip Identification, White, 21 x 21 cm’. Adjust the screws, for fixing them too tight can be the cause of this problem. Still seeing no improvement? Try cleaning the battery contacts - poor connections can impede operation. (On an item less than nine months old, this all seems unlikely, but you don’t want to cause undue hassle. You willingly oblige.) When this fails, you are asked what batteries you are using, because of course, you were informed that only premium batteries work with their product... No recollection of this requirement on purchase? No, me neither. But this is an irrelevance, as everyone knows the old adage, 'you buy it cheap, you buy it twice'. (SureFlap being the exception). You cat will suffer significant distress. Imagine the thoughts of your disapproving companion, when he fears he’s been locked out for good. For you, there will be months of domestic disharmony, as you succumb to middle of the night arguments as to whose turn it is to allow the blighter in, repeating the whole process an hour later, when it's clear he returned solely to stock up on Whisk-as Tasty Pockets, before making the arduous journey back to the neighbour's garden to evacuate his bowels. My main criticism of the 'SureFlap Cat Flap with Microchip Identification, White, 21 x 21 cm' is that it fails in its primary function of being a cat flap - allowing a cat in and out of your home, without involving you in the process. **** UPDATE: A replacement was finally offered which has been working without issue for almost 2 months now. ****

Initially a bit sceptical of this as a product but it's proved to be absolutely invaluable. I had an existing cat flap in a thin skin, metal garage door and found the Sureflap fitted in snugly after a little adjustment to the hole. I'd read the warnings and reviews about problems fitting through metal doors but thought I'd give it a go anyway. The worst that would happen is that I'd have had to widen the hole and use the spacer ring, which I'd bought anyway, or cut a hole in the garage wall. Anyway, after I adapted the hole in the garage door, I took the flap to the cat and put his head in it. He wasn't best pleased but the flap registered his chip first time. I fitted the flap in the door and the cat has been using it ever since. He can come and go when he wants, as before, but now we don't have the neighbours car getting it to spray our house. We've also used the manual locking facility to prevent him getting out before visits etc. Although the makers state that the product may not work in metal doors, ours worked first time with the flap fitting securely into the smallest possible hole, no need to cut a wider hole. I did use the spacer ring anyway because it looks better. The only downside to the product is that the tunnel sticks out quite a bit outside the garage door because the metal is only 1mm thick. Obviously, the tunnel can't be cut down so we have to live with that, it's not ugly , just a bit more noticeable than we'd thought. However, it's 100% worth it to keep other cats out and looks like a neat bit of kit. Our cat has used the flap no problem whatsoever. A neighbour has a nervous cat that wouldn't use a normal cat flap. He installed a sureflap and, sure enough, his cat wouldn't use it at first but, after a bit of perseverance over a few months, his cat is using the Sureflap all the time. We were lucky, our cat wasn't bothered by it and used it first time, but our neighbours cat is extremely nervous and has still taken to the flap. Excellent product.

Purchased this in Dec for the cat to be able to get in and out of the house while we were away for Christmas. Delivery was quick and the product was as described. Linking to the cat's microchip was easy and the retractable catch worked every time. Installation method was clear but it took quite a while as I was cutting through a 55mm solid wooden door which took a while - I would say from start to finish was probably 4 hours but a lot of that was slowly trimming the hole iteratively bigger. Everyone says cats are intelligent but our cat took about 3-4 weeks to get used to the flap before she would use it independently which was well after we returned home after Christmas - so basically I ruined our nice big wooden door for no reason! Two learning points, 1) it might take your cat a while to become comfortable using it so don't install it 2 days before you need it, 2) The mice and shrews the cat used to leave outside the door are now in the hallway, in the front room and sometimes in the kitchen...