Trying to get Cat to use microchip cat flap - UPDATE

[Petal02]

I’ve been trying to persuade Cat to use her new microchip cat flap, after 4 years of successfully using a ‘normal’ cat flap.

It turns out the damn cat flap won’t actually open to let her in, when it’s in ‘selective mode’ !!!! It will register that it’s ‘learnt’ her chip, but when I picked her up in the garden, and literally tried to post her through the cat flap, there was no click, the flap didn’t open, even when her nose was right up to the flap, so poor Cat isn’t being a diva after all !!

So the batteries have been taken out, I’ve re-set it to manual, and then this evening I’ll have one more attempt before we call the manufacturer. It’s possible we’ve just got a faulty unit. Cat has a 15 digit Avid chip, which is definitely recognised by Sureflap.

Sueflap are supposed to have excellent customer service so I'd be contacting them quickly - once you've established there's a problem.

Poor puss - unjustly criticized and all! I hope she is to get a taste treat as recompense.

Yes, I've heard they're very good at helping if there is a problem. But I'm VERY pleased I tried to 'post' Cat, otherwise we'd never have realised there was a problem - although I was beginning to have my suspicions.

It is worth taking a damp cloth and wiping round the outside port of the flap where the cat has to put it's head for the chip to be recognised. This has always helped when mine hasn't recognised one of my cats chips.
Just to check the tube section is fitted outside and the flat section inside?

I confirm that sureflaps customer service is really good - I had a flap that after nearly 2 years use started to eat batteries by the cart load - I contacted them and it turned out that it was a fault in the motherboard so they completely replaced the unit.

As for the cat getting used to it, it does make quite a loud click which takes them a wee while to come to terms with.

Best of luck.

We had this problem and ended up having to get another microchip fitted in the cat. Her existing one wasn't in an area where the cat flap could 'see' it.

Lonecatwithkitten – when you say is the tube fitted outside, I assume you mean to check if we’ve fitted it the right way round? The battery flap and the controls are all on the inside of the back door, so I’m assuming it’s the right way round. Also, Cat can always get out with no problems, and as going out isn’t a selective function, I assume this also means we’re OK?

Yetanotherworry – how did you find out that your cat’s chip wasn’t being read? The cat flap seems to ‘find’ the chip when we put it into learn mode, so – fingers crossed – it makes me think Cat’s chip is visible.

My other real challenge is testing the flap. The cat flap is in the back door which leads onto the utility room, so it’s not a room where we spend much time, and therefore wouldn’t necessarily notice if Cat was at the flap trying unsuccessfully to get in. I need to catch her and attempt to ‘post’ her to see if it works! Poor puss, she’s been very tolerant !!!

Petal - yes ours is the same but we do seem to spend far too much time in the futility room

I just kept posting the cat through and refusing to let her in or out any other doors - when the food is on the inside it is a good incentive :o

I would go out, shake her food and then come in and wait by the flap, teasing her by flicking it open a bit so she could hear the bowl being rattled while she waited outside.

Our door is quite high so she had an ikea toddler toilet type step outside to stand on to come in.

Our door is also quite high, so Cat has plant pots to stand on, on both sides of the door!

ha ha Petal - our was the side door into the garage but we converted the back half of it so the floor is normal level on the inside but is a step down to the outside. We pretty much did the convesion so the cat could get a flap and I could get a Pulley for the laundry :)

The flap is fitted the right way round then I have encountered people who have fitted it with the reader inside.
Does the lock click when the cat goes out? It should do as the chip is being read when the cat is on the way out even though it doesn't need to.

Yes, I'm pretty sure it does click when Cat's going out.

Sounds like a dodgy flap then?

Maybe start composing that email for Sureflap.

So it is recognising the chip on the way out. Posh arrogant bit initially didn't like putting his head in and hearing the click so I put dreamies right by the latch so he would reach right in and then so on the floor in the house that he could see and so trained him to use it.

Yes, once Cat's quite a good way through the cat flap, on the way out, there's a definite click - which makes me think that it's reading the chip approx 15-20cm distance from the flap (as it should) although unfortunately when she's heading in, for some reason the catch doesn't activate.

I've just had one last attempt: when in 'learn mode' the unit appears to read Cat's chip, but once in selective operation mode, it won't open the catch when she tries to enter the house, we had a few more 'posting' attempts.

I'll be ringing Sureflap for advice in the morning.

Let us know how you get on. Many people here use that brand.

Sorry. only just noticed this. Our flap didn't beep at all when cat sat near it (but did for second cat). We ended up borrowing a microchip from the vet, programming it, then checking it and then paid for it to be injected into the cat.

How did your chat with customer service go?

yetanotherworry - thanks for coming back to me. It's hard to make private calls at work, so I've emailed Sureflap Customer Services. I'll let you know what they say.

I'm really hoping we don't need to have Cat re-chipped; but as the unit seems to recognise her chip when it's in 'learn mode' I'm assuming it's the cat flap that's faulty?

Sureflap customer services have been very helpful, and are posting me a 'range tester' to see whether the unit is working properly.

Surfeflap sent me a 'range detector' - which is basically a microchip on a long cardboard stick, calibrated in centimetres; you get the unit to 'learn' the chip on the range detector, then you can test the flap to see if it works and at what range it will detect a chip.

Interestingly, the flap works just fine with the range detector; the door opens consistently when the chip is 22cm away.

So I've reported this to Sureflap and I'll see what they advise next, because this proves the flap works OK, but it only seems to recognise our cat's chip when the unit is in 'learn mode.' Very frustrating. I'll have one last attempt at 'posting' Cat again this evening.