When the cat comes back...the door's always open
Automated flap, activated by microchip under the skin, gives pets freedom to come and go
Edmonton Journal, Business Section, June 13, 2009
Peter DeNooy is hoping to cause a flap among cat lovers.
The Sherwood Park businessman's latest product, a sensor-activated cat door, allows fidgety felines to come and go as they please with no danger of other animals getting in.
"What's great about this is it works for animals that already have an internal microchip. Other products use external tags, and collars and cats don't go well together," says DeNooy, a veterinarian who is now chief operating officer at EIDAP Inc., Canada's largest distributor of pet microchips.
It will start distributing the Sureflap, made by a U. K. company, across North America on Aug. 20, priced at $250 Cdn.
The battery-operated door, activated by a motion sensor when the cat enters the tunnel, works only for animals wearing a microchip injected under the skin and programmed into the device's memory.
"Programming it is so simple, it's done in seconds," DeNooy says.
"You simply push a single button to activate a device which reads and records the cat's existing microchip data."
The cat does not have to enter the tunnel within a limited time period once the learn mode has been activated.
Sureflap also doesn't need an electrical power source, making it environmentally friendly and economical, says DeNooy, whose company distributes a variety of radio-frequency ID devices and scanners for pets, cattle, and even beer kegs and trees.
The AA batteries are always in sleep mode until the tunnel is entered, so they last at least six months, he says.
A four-way manual lock allows a variety of in-and-out options, including letting a cat enter but not leave if it's scheduled for a vet visit.
And if you're really a cat fanatic, up to 32 felines can be programmed into the unit, which will fit most doorways, and even walls between studs.
DeNooy says Sureflap offers protection to cat owners who let their pets out of the house. It's also ideal for acreages and farms, where cats keep small rodents away from the house, he adds.
Because it doesn't need to be plugged into an electrical outlet, it can easily be installed in a barn or other farm building.
More than 14,000 Sureflaps have been sold in Europe in the 12 months since it first hit the market, DeNooy says.
"They were looking for someone over here to sell and service the door, and answer questions, and it's a natural fit for us because of the large numbers of microchips, scanners and research products we handle."
He'll have a website up at sureflap. ca. before the launch. Meanwhile you can visit the British site at sureflap.com,or call DeNooy at 780-467-2707.
David Finlayson, The Edmonton Journal - dfinlayson@thejournal.canwest.com
Photo by: Ed Kaiser
