Microchip Cat Flaps - how reliable are they? Do they ever fail to work?

[Maximo2]

Hi, there is a big Tom who we have discovered is coming in several times a night and eating our cats’ food. Our two are wimps and don’t know what to do! It looks very well cared for and if it eats much more won’t be fitting through said cat flap, so that might solve the issue on its own 🤣

Dh is worried that a microchip cat flap might be unreliable and lock ours out when we are away. Or he has heard of a cat just tag teaming and getting in anyway. Does anyone have anything good or bad to add about them? Thanks.

We have had one at our old house for about 12 years and one at this house for 3, has never gone wrong and a different cat has never tailgated in. To be honest ours aren’t that friendly to other cats so they wouldn’t ever get anywhere near.
only time it won’t work is if the batteries go so as long as you check them before a holiday or leave some spares for the cat sitter to change it wouldn’t be a problem.

We had a big ginger tom who was a bit of a character. When his mates came calling he'd go and stand right by the cat flap so his friends could come in to party. I do miss him.

The batteries last for ages so if you change them before you go away you’ll know for sure they’ll last until you get back.

I’ve not found another cat sneaking in behind, no. The only issue is when I’ve set it so my cat can’t get out (pre vet visit) and forgotten to put it back to normal.

We've got two, they've been almost perfectly reliable and only let our cats through. We use the Sure Petsafe ones; one died and got replaced well outside warranty by Sure when we called them about it. They are expensive though. Batteries are variable; depends how much time your cat(s) spend looking out the clear door making the unlock activate! Three weeks on rechargeables is minimum lifespan, usually more like three months. Three weeks was a time where one of the local toms was strutting around in the garden, and our girls would be staring at him...

You can get ones that plug in too. We’ve had both and they’ve been very reliable.

The local Tom likes to chase my girl cat in, it’s hilarious when she shoots through the cat flap and he faceplants the (now locked) clear door right behind her!

had ours for about 5 years, no issues at all, would recommend to anyone

We've had ours for about 15 months, changed the batteries after about a year. A small light shows when the batteries are in need of changing. Not had any problems at all. We have the SureFlap microchip cat flap

Mine worked fine, but the batteries (4 x Cs) runs down quick so I just haven’t bothered replacing them. My cats are Maine Coons (so big) and I also have a dog so I don’t get other cats trying to come in. A red light flashes when the battery is running low but actually lasts for days after that.

Mine have been brilliant and pretty much trouble free, although one of my cats took a while to learn how to use it.

We couldn’t use ours in the end because one of our cats microchips was too far down his back so he would have to stand sideways to get it to work but he couldn’t learn to do it himself. Which is fair, it was a bit ridiculous!

Just make sure the batteries are up to date and there shouldn’t be an issue.

I’ve had them for years and never had a problem or any unwanted guests.

My neighbours aren’t so lucky, as one of my boys has worked out how to tailgate their girl and occasionally appears in their living room. Thankfully they’re very fond of him!

I had the same thing with a local tom cat coming in stealing my cats’ food. The chip cat flap has been great. I also like being able to see which of my two cats are in the house on the app, and setting it to indoor only mode if one of the cats needs to stay in to go to the vets for example.

We’ve had ours for 6 years, but it failed a month or so ago. Ended up taking the batteries out, and just let it work as an ordinary cat flap.

Had one 12 years. Batteries last ages got in mine - a Sureflap. Not other cat has ever got in through it.

Only problem I've encountered I've one who figured out how to get out when it's on "in only', making it very difficult to get him under house arrest, keep him in for flea/worm treatments or take vet visits for boosters. (He is a rescue and remains very dedicated outdoor cat - home visits are brief.)

Ours has a twisty dial that we set for in/out , in only , out only , lock

Our lovely female can dislodge this dial , we've had to replace it twice
If the boy is in ( and he cannot go out ) he will sit there activating the door (click click click) so we put something in front of it .
the shredder usually

We have a smart cat flap which automatically lets her out at 6am. It locks at 4 as we keep her in at night. We’ve had it for 5 years and it’s never failed. Expensive but made our lives so much easier-no more getting up to let her out!

I’ve had three at different properties - all worked well. The problem I had was, just one of my two couldn’t get in once, her microchip had disappeared! Vet hadn’t seen this before but inserted a new one which I then registered. It was lucky I had the microchip flap or the problem wouldn’t have been spotted until her annual check.

our old stray did tailgate our boy cat quite often but he comes in very gently and often uses the door where the wind blows a hoolie and holds it open. Female cat slams it behind her no problems. Sureflap here too.

there is now a version (different brand) which detects if the cat has prey in its mouth - https://www.onlycat.com/ = its incredibly expensive but considering the havoc wreaked last year by three rodents who got into everything when out current ones eventually fail we may go for them

Had mine for 8 years, not a single issue other than battery replacement every couple of years. Game changer.

We had one that was faulty as it drained batteries, got sent a replacement for free.

@mondaytosunday check that you haven’t got a faulty one.

Bengal down the road did tailgate. Our cat sometimes comes in and out like a cannon ball. Other times very very slowly especially with his long tail and it doesn’t always click. He has also worked out how to sit outside and just put his head in to make it click. He does this when we are in the kitchen and of course the door gets magically opened. He did manage to catch his only bird and get it through the cat flap still alive bird survived.

Ours has been great for over ten years but now the batteries aren’t lasting well and we are replacing them every month or so.

Urgh, new bane of my life!

Sureflap pet door - got one in the summer to keep a couple of strays out, allow my boy in and out, but to keep my kittens inside.
DH got the wrong type - he has form for this - but put it in anyway. Fail!

First major issue - it’s big, like my boy, but also therefore big enough to permit a kitten to exit while boy is coming in! That’s caused a few heart failures.

Second major issue - it’s attached to a ‘hub’, which in turn, is connected to the wifi router. For some reason, my router reboots often. Which unlocks the catflap and cancels any locking.

Third issue - the batteries ran out in 5 weeks. Which also unlocked the door. By which point, the kittens had learned the sound of the unlocking and, yep, get out.

I’ve aged too much these past months!

it has kept out the strays, though.