PRIVACY FOR CATS
Ricky appreciates his privacy!
#SPONSORED – Disclaimer: Her and her dogs are being compensated to review The Door Buddy® and share feedback with our followers. The opinions shared in this post are ours, expressed in our words. It is our choice, and our pleasure to share information about this product with you.
In the previous post, I shared our experience moving into the new house. Although it was relatively easy to keep the same routines, there were a few challenges. Finding a dog-free zone for (feline) Ricky was one of them. In our last house, my husband closed in the area under the stairs in the basement creating a large, private cat bathroom! A door for people was framed in on one side of the stairs, and a wall with a cat door installed, and elevated feeding station was set up, under the stairs. There was a light in the closed off area and plenty of space for both litter boxes. Yes, he has two. My husband and I could not figure out a plan for our new, multi-species dwelling. I could not bear the thought of having to cut a hole for a cat-flap in an old farmhouse door.
Thankfully, during the process of selling the old house and packing, we were introduced to The Door Buddy. This stylish little door strap was designed to keep dogs, babies, and toddlers out of the room that contains cat food and litter boxes. The Door Buddy is available in two, stylish prints: grey chevron and caramel lattice.
Caramel Lattice (please excuse the door in need of paint)
After reviewing the installation instructions, I used treats to bribe Ricky and Reese (my smallest pup) into helping me determine the length of the strap, and by adjusting accordingly, I was able to open the door wide enough for Ricky to get through but narrow enough that none of the dogs could.
NO DOGS ALLOWED!
The Door Buddy was easy to install. I just peeled the backing from the strong 3M adhesive and stuck the anchor to the door frame and the latch to the door (based on the direction of door opening). Two extra adhesive pads are included in each package, and further replacements are available for purchase. The Door Buddy works on inward and outward opening doors, bi-fold doors, pocket doors and double doors. It’s EVERY door(s), buddy!
…even pocket doors…
Our basement door is close to the door that accesses the garden; the occasional wind tunnel would cause the basement door to slam shut. Not so great for fearful animals. Heck, it made me jump, too! This was easily remedied using the Finger Pinch Guard (also available from Door Buddy). Even if the wind tries to blow the door closed, this Foam Door Stopper causes the door to gently (and quietly) bounce back open enough that Ricky can work his way back through the door, opening it back to strap width. If for reasons other than wind tunnels, the door was at risk of closing (say Henry was ticked off at Ricky and simply felt like being a bratty brother and shutting him downstairs), the pinch guard ensures this will not happen, and that Ricky will not be stuck in the basement all day.
Another example of why the pinch guard is a good idea…
One day, after work, I came home (to the old house), excited for my greeting from Henry and Reese (we didn’t have Jack yet). As I walked through the door, Henry barked at me and ran off to the bedroom. No Reese.
I PANICKED!
These dogs are creatures of habit – what would cause Henry to snub me, and where the heck was Reese? She would rarely leave the rug at the front door when one (or both) of her people were out.
I followed Henry to the bedroom, and there, through the frosted glass of the ensuite door, I saw the form of my little princess. As soon as Reese saw me, her tail wagged, and she demanded I open the door to let her out. Reese had a habit of going into the bathroom and rolling around on the bath mat. That day, she must have rolled into the door and shut herself in. I know she could not have been in there more than four hours at most: the dog walker had been there earlier in the day. It was warm, and she had the comfort of the bath mat to lie on. Still, I felt like a bad mom!
I wish I had known about the pinch guard, sooner
No worry of tails or whiskers being caught in the door or pets shutting themselves in a room!
Pinch guard fits even the thickest of doors.
The lock and unlock latch secures the door from either side making it easy for me to open the door to place Ricky’s dinner on the stairs for him, secure the door behind me when I go downstairs to clean his box, and effortlessly open the door again when I’ve finished scooping. No need to juggle dishes or straddle baby gates!
Ricky, also known as (silly) Goose, and Rooster got the latter nickname because of the incessant (VERY) early morning meowing, comparable to the crow of a rooster. If we shut him out of the bedroom, he would meow to be let in. If we shut him in with us, he would meow to be let out! If we left the door open, the dogs would not settle completely and would bark at every little noise they thought they heard and would run out to the main area of the house. In the new house, we installed a second strap on our bedroom door. It keeps the door closed enough that the dogs settle, and allows Ricky the freedom to come and go as he pleases.
No more crowing!
We’re excited to announce that The Door Buddy is generously giving away two straps to two subscribers of Her and Her Dogs! Open to residents of Canada and the U.S. Also, a 25% discount code – SADIE&CO is in effect until the end of the year – for everyone!
Door Buddy believes in giving back, supporting the community, and striving to create a better tomorrow. For every Door Buddy sold on TheDoorBuddy.com, $1.00 goes to Pet Partners. Pet Partners promotes positive human-animal therapy by providing animal-assisted interactions to a wide variety of clients including veterans with PTSD, seniors living with Alzheimer’s, patients in recovery, and children with disabilities to name but a few. To learn more about Pet Partners, click here.
NO POOP FOR YOU!
Thank you, Door Buddy, for making our transition to the Farmhouse much easier!
Mommy heard about these at BlogPaws and was wondering how they work. I think she’s getting an idea about using it to keep us out of the bedroom when we go to the vet so I can’t go under the bed. Ummm…. I better not let her read this post.
Lola The Rescued Cat recently posted…Blogging Cats Weekly Planner – Get The Discount Code!
I’ll keep it on the down low, Lola!
We need a door buddy! After I got locked in the closet under the stairs for days and days….well, actually a couple of hours I would have been happy to get out of there. And my brother Alberto was no help. The female human ran through the house, upstairs, downstairs calling for me and all Al did was sit in the middle of the TV room meowing. He could have at least stood next to the closed door where I was trapped. This sounds like a great gadget!
Purrs & Head Bonks,
Oliver & The Tribe of Five
Brothers can be such a pain! Glad you were found 🙂
Those look like a good idea for most multi-pet households. I like the prints. Mr. N is smaller than most cats so he’d still be able to squeeze through!
Tenacious Little Terrier recently posted…Naughty or Nice List?
True. I have not seen many cats (other than kittens) that would be smaller than Mr. N.
Stepson once smashed his cat’s tail in the door; it sure is quite an ordeal.
That last photo is hilarious! Chester loves the kitty roca! Ha, ha. I saw the Door Buddy before and thought it was pretty clever. Dachshunds are so relentless though I worry that they would push and wedge until they got in. I mean, actually, they are cat size. Some cats are bigger than them. So I’m not sure it would work for us anyway I guess 🙂
It is Really hard to balance a household when living with the cat and dog. I look forward to seeing what other people post about how they give their cabs privacy.
Your little black dog looks a lot like mine … and yes, I discovered mine likes to snack on cat poop too. (gross). I need a door buddy for this reason.
Very gross!!!
Our black doggies do look alike – I remember thinking that when I first saw your photos.
We will have to get together for a fun photo shoot 🙂
The Door Buddy – what a great idea! It would also give a cat a safe “getaway” when they needed to give themselves a break from visiting grandkids (I have nine of them, and my cat didn’t always like their over-enthusiastic attention. A safe exit plan is crucial to a cat.
Yes, GREAT for getaways – Goose often needs to escape Henry!
Oooh now that is clever. Would have been super useful when I still had my 4 cats! Sadly all passed on now. Clever!!
I’m sorry to hear you lost your feline family members xx
I am a HUGE fan of Door Buddy. I have several throughout my house because I have dogs that think cat poop is a great snack!
—Purrs and wags from Life with Dogs and Cats
Gotta love our dogs, right?!
Hmm what an interesting product. I could see this working really well for cats or small dogs. It’s a great idea too keep kids out of danger too and not getting access to things that shouldn’t touch.
It’s funny, now that I’ve been using them for a while, I’m recognizing more situations in which this strap would be useful.
These are great Pet Safety products! Very useful. Excellent job on your review, thanks for sharing about these products. I shared on Twitter, G+, Pinterest.
Love & Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
Thanks so much for sharing, Cathy. And thank you for the kind words about our review!
I remember these and appreciate that the developers have not stood still. They added the door stop which I think is a genius idea. Totally!!!
I still have one of these from BlogPaws but 1) we don’t have dogs and 2) our cats have garden access but I think it is – like most of the best ideas – very simple and very effective. No need to spend a fortune, one simple setup and voila a happy cat and no access for the silly dog (sorry 😉 )
Team Dash Kitten recently posted…What’s This Strange New Thing?
That’s okay – they ARE silly dogs 😉
Your riff on Seinfeld in the last photo is hilarious! Plus I had forgotten about pinch guards. I’ve seen those in the homes of friends of mine with small kids. We’re in a new home too and twice I’ve shut the bedroom door not realizing the pups were snoozing on the far side of the bed. What clever solutions all around for creating harmony in your multi-species home.
I’m sure your pups were quite comfy but as a dog ma, I understand that ‘OH NO’ feeling.
The door buddy would be great for households with dogs that are bigger than the cats. I’d love to be able to use the Door Buddy to give my cat some privacy, but he’s bigger than our Maltese.
Too funny! Reese tries to breathe in and squeeze herself through the door. She and Goose look the same size but Goose is fluffier.
What a simple, genius idea the pinch guard is! And companies that donate to charities seal the deal.
I love organizations that give back!
Mom Paula heard about these at BlogPaws and thought it would be great for people with dogs and children. We have full access to all of the rooms with the doors usually open now that we are adult kitties.
Yes, my youngest niece and nephew are old enough to know better; for us, it makes a difference with dogs and cat boxes.
The Door Buddy is a great idea when you don’t have a cat door to keep the sniffers out of the litter box. Thanks for this review. Looks like a useful product.
My pleasure. Thanks for checking out our post!
My pleasure – I hope it helps make other’s lives easier.
These are a good idea for multi pet households! Love!
A ‘must have’ for multi pet households.
I love how EASY it is to install and use!
What an awesome invention! The Door Buddy will be particularly helpful for multi-pet households!
I can’t believe the difference it makes.
…and people with two-leggers. I have a niece and nephew that visit; my first step in childproofing!
Oh my gosh, what fantastic products! I’ve never heard of the Door Buddy before but I definitely need to look into it (and send the information along to my sis who has a Dane who loves her cat’s litter!)
Thanks for the honest review. This could come in handy for us because our son (1) is getting a lot more adventurous. We’re moving homes this month – in our current house the cat litter is gated off and only the cats can get into it, but in our new house it won’t be. I’ve been a bit worried about him getting into their food (which he’s done before!). This may be a solution!!
Good luck with your move, Jaimee. I definitely recommend this product and I’m sure it will be a huge help for you and your sister.