Hungry Hungry Hippo...er, Cat

April 21, 2024 11:50 AM

Looking for suggestions on how to keep my cat from eating the neighbor cats' food.

I have cats and so does my nextdoor neighbor.
My cat likes to visit her house and eat her cats' food.
He gets ample food here, and treats.
My cats go in and out when I open a door for them. Hers have a cat door.
I asked if she'd thought about getting the kind of cat door that only lets cats through if they have a special collar. She says she used to have one but the mechanism doesn't work any more and she's not sure how feasible a new cat door would be.
Also suggested she close down the cat door and just let her cats in and out like I do. She's not keen on that idea because she's out most of the day. (I am too but I let that slide because she is a really nice lady and a great neighbor.)
So if my fellow cat/dog havers have any tips, please let me know.
Yes, I am aware that keeping the cats indoors all the time or restricting them to a "catio" would be the most ethical option, but a short-term option would be appreciated.

posted by The Ardship of Cambry to Pets & Animals (5 answers total)

You can get cat flaps that read pet ID microchips, no collar needed, so if your neighbour's cat has an ID chip that would probably be the best option. We have one from a company called Sureflap, this is in the UK but I'm sure there will be options wherever you are. It works great, only our cats can get into our house. It is a standard size so should be easy to swap out for an existing door.

You can also get food dispensers that are ID chip activated, so that's another option.
posted by tomsk at 11:58 AM on April 21

Response by poster: We're in the U.S. but yes, we could research that.
posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 12:34 PM on April 21

Find out when feeding time at her place is, and keep your cat in at that time. Let your boy out late morning/lunchtime when her cats have had a good run at their food.

Ditto in the evening; find out when her cats get dinner and keep yours in then. Consider starting to keep him in at night in any case.
posted by Pallas Athena at 1:49 PM on April 21

I'm in the US, and for a number of years have had the above mentioned SureFlap cat door (Amazon) that detects my cat's ID microchip. It has worked well for us.
posted by ShooBoo at 2:39 PM on April 21

You're asking your neighbor to solve a problem you are causing. If you want her cat door upgraded, you should offer to pay for it and do the labor.

If that can't happen for some reason, you might be able to do something to reduce your cat's ability to use the existing cat door, like putting it in a cone when you let it out?
posted by metasarah at 3:25 PM on May 6