Hallson Gardens

We're planning to put a dog door in our new house -- never had one before! Does anyone have a brand / model they like, or any warnings about what to avoid? Any issues regarding installation in a door or a wall?

One problem: The original plan was to put it in the garage wall instead of the door, and the framers are wanting the door now . . . but we're doing this for a dog-yet-to-be-chosen. Our beloved Golden Retriever died last Christmas. We're in an apartment waiting for the house to be done, so no new puppy till we move in. (Yeah, I know . . . real smart . . . new house, new carpet, new hardwood . . . new puppy. Duh) We'll PROBABLY get another GR, but are considering a medium sized non-shedding dog -- a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier. So it would be nice to get the dog before getting the door!!

I appreciate any suggestions!!

My dogs are minitures, so our doors are small.

The dog door can let in a lot of cold air in the winter. Now we have it so there is 2 doors. One dooor is from the room going into a pantry that is boxed in but we can open it from the pantry to clean out anything they drag in there.The other door is on the outside of the house and goes into a hole we cut in the back of a dog house that sets by the back door. I don't like the doors in a people door because a kid can reach in far enough to unlock the door. We have never been burglarised that way, but it is a possibility. The dog house in front of it makes it look like there is no access to the house. The double door system cuts down on the draft in the winter.

My neighbor has one that goes into a cabinet in her kitchen but she has to leave the cabinet open for the dogs to get out.
The brand we use is pet safe. It has a plastic frame and it has a 2 flap system with magnets weighing it down so it doesn't get hung up in one direction. The only thing I don't like is that the solid door is just partical board so it's kind of ugly.We only use the solid dooor when we leave and at night so an opossum, skunk or raccoon doesn't wander in the house. I'd rather have the aluminum panel.

The first one we had at our old house had an aluminum frame and an aluminum solid door with it.It had 1 flap that the weights on the bottom eventually came loose so the flap curled. We couldn't find a replacement in the right size and had to replace the whole doggie door.

We had a doggie door at our old house. Installed it in the garage leading out to a fenced in area, 16 x 16. Didn't want it going into the house because we had goldens and labs. A person could get thru the door, and I did one one occasion . Also, if we were going to be gone a long time the dogs could come in or out to suit themselves and the weather using the garage like a large dog house.

Tami