Cat Mate Elite I.D. Disc Cat Door with Timer Control and 2 Collar Worn ID Discs

I've purchased 2 of these for different places and they've worked entirely as described so far. Both took a beating too as they were installed in RVs that traveled several thousand miles each. I've used it with multiple cats and have used the training mode (when one loses their ID disc) and the timer mode (which most folks use to set a in-only/nighttime curfew). The process to change the settings or setup the ID discs is quick and painless but I keep a copy of the manual (with bookmarks) handy because it's not the easiest to remember and isn't immediately intuitive unless you alter the settings frequently; however, since the door (and the cat that uses it) regularly move from place to place, changing some settings becomes second nature.After nearly 3 years of being used at least once or twice a day (sometimes a lot more), our cat figured out a little trick to the in-only mode we've used so regularly. The same 'trick' could work for out-only but basically if the door is pushed in the allowed direction while a programmed ID disc is detected in the near vicinity, the door unlocks which means if the door is in in-only mode and it's pulled by a ID disc wearing cat sitting inside, it'll unlock the door which gives the subject a chance to push the door open and pass through.While I've really enjoyed having the timer mode set the in-only access so reliably over the years without me having to do anything daily, a more mechanical solution was necessary (unless there's a electronic cat flap that wouldn't fail this test - maybe there are).

I love this door. I have 4 cats and this keeps the ones that don't belong to me out. However if your cat loses a collar (as mine have done several times) you will have to buy extra discs. I would recommend that the collar be very secure with little gap against the neck. The replacement discs are expensive. But I will keep on buying them. Door works perfectly.

After our dog passed and we acquired two kittens, we wanted our indoor/outdoor cat to keep his freedom, while keeping the kittens in safe. The littlest one has tried many times to get out with the older cat, with no luck. Our older cat already knew how to use a dog door. He did need to get use to a firm door that he couldn't open with his paw first and having his head get close enough for the tag to read.After our dog passed a huge, mean stray cat started hanging out in our yard, even coming in through the old dog door (chasing our cat and eating his food). The other day this big cat came back. Our cat got in the house safe and the big stray just banged into the door. The timer is great. I have set it so my cat can always get in (in case he gets out another way), but can only go out during certain hours. Once the kittens are big enough for collars, I will give them tags and program them to prevent them from going out, but set it that they can always get in. That way if they accidently get out, they can still get in.The door was pricey, but works well. I wish they made it in a dog door size, as we are hoping to get another dog after some time. We would love to be able to have the same product with a 40-50 dog, but I never found one with all the same features. It is also less drafty than the old flap version dog door we had before. Ours goes from the laundry room into the garage, so it is not directly outside, but I don't feel the same draft this winter that I did with the old door.

So far so good! I put this in a window at my cabin so my cat could go in and out. At first she would have to push on the door 3-4 times to get it to open, and then reading through the manual, I learned there is an Enhanced Security mode enabled, which means the RFID tag must be very close to activate the lock mechanism. Turning this off gives the rag about 2" more range, which now means the cat can open the door on the first, maybe second try.

The cat flap does what it says and works well. We just wanted one with a timer - other cats coming in the house is not an issue. A word of caution - from the description we didn't realise there is one model of cat flap that works with a tag attached to the cat's collar, and another one that works on the microchip - we bought the tag one by mistake. I thought the microchip idea is genius! I personally don't trust a tag on the cat, I think it would come off in no time. It was the microchip idea that sold the cat-flap to us in the first place. But for our purposes, we just stick a tag to the inside of the cat-flap and it just lets him in and out according to the time perfectly. I like the little indicator that says if the cat is in or out, and it can be programmed for several cats if needed. Just to explain, the kitten was following me to work, bringing him into close contact with the main road and all attempts to chase him back were seen as a game. I needed to shut him in until 10 minutes after I leave the house, just to protect him. It works.

Excellent, simple to set up and works great bar a couple of very minor irritations. It responds quickly to scanning and opening and locks when I've programmed it. The noise scared my little cat for the first few days but once I basically pushed her through it she realised it wasn't going to hurt her and now she's a regular cat flap pro. Sometimes it doesn't re-lock after the cat leaves for several minutes. It has a magnet that obviously tells the flap when it's shut and to re-lock but this just doesn't happen. So, in theory, another cat could get in during this time. I'd say it does this about half of the time but it's only about 5 minutes. If you had 2 cats with different going in and out rules then this could be a big issue but I don't so it's fine. I do really like coming home after work and a simple look at the flap and I can see if she's in or out. All in all it's great and with a little programming tweak it would be perfect.

works for the most part i did not use the timer function until later and found out it did not work, i actualy wanted to get the micro chip one but wnen i clicked check other offers they put this one up and i thought i bought the microchip one kinda like bate and switch

This item is defective. It doesn't work consistently as stated. I would not recommend and would give it 0/5 stars if I could.

I am extremely bummed that this cat flap does not work properly. Will not read my cats microchip when he wants to enter my home. Therefore, I need to keep it fully unlocked in "trainer mode", and either go thru the tedious steps to lock and unlock it overnight, or manually block the opening with something during the night. It's more worthless than a cheap no frills cat flap, which would be far easier to lock %26 unlock with a simple slider, and no batteries or programming required. It seems the flap does detect my cats 15-character, 134.2KHz, ISO 11784/11785 International Standard microchip ID, when programming it. Though, there's no way to verify if it's read the correct numbers. The flashing zeros disappear when programming, and there's then a "P" indicating success, which I correctly save by pressing the PROG button. But when the flap is set to let only my cat in (not in training mode), it never detects his microchip. My cat will bang on the cat flap with his head for maybe 15 seconds before giving up. It has never worked even once, and we'd tried many times. The indicator that should show if he went outside, never toggles to the outside indicator. My flap is mounted in a plywood baffle without much metal nearby except for a medal window frame about 5 or 6 inches away. I had a veterinarian verify my cats microchip is functioning. And besides it seemed to have been read during the flaps programming procedure. Though we couldn't locate the microchip by touch (very fluffy cat), and the scanner used worked fine near his head. Can't really pinpoint the microchip location with a RFID scanner. I wanted to ask the vet if they could implant a 2nd microchip, hoping it'd work better, but vets see no sense in that when the current microchip functions fine for identifying my cat. All the trial and error research / debugging and the work and expense to creating a nice looking and insulated window insert to mount the flap into, has taken weeks, so likely the item can't be returned now. So I spent $140 on something that isn't as good as a $20 flap. I'm not happy! I purchased the recommended ID tags for a collar, compatible with the flap. That solution does work, except cat safety collars are made to come off fairly easily, and my cat lost the first pricy ID tag outside in just one day. Sure he could wear a non safety collar that'd stay on, but that also might get him killed while hooked on something outside, who knows where. I don't see the collar method as a workable solution since collars get lost, or snagged, and he'd be stuck outside. So no guaranteed freedom to come and go as was the intention. If this product worked as advertised, I would have given it a glowing review. Instead it was a huge let down.

Didn't work, screen showed a faded error-type message. Waited to long to try to install it, missed the return/exchange date. Can't even use it as a regular cat door. Dissatisfied, disappointed, out over $100 bucks 😑