Top local reviews
Needs replacing frequently
Don't get me wrong, these things function correctly for a while, but I'm now on my 4th in 10 years so there seems to be some kind of inherent fault, they generally fail just outside the warranty period. Gonna try another make this time.
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Great while it worked
Really great at first – kept our three cats safe and kept marauders out of the house. Unfortunately, though, after a couple of years it ceased to work. Replacing the batteries sorted things out for maybe 48 hours, maybe less. Apparently this is what happens as electronics age. I think given the price it should’ve lasted longer than a couple of years.
Design fault with batteries
We have had several of these cat flaps over the years and after a couple of years they all develop the same fault, where the batteries last only a few days or less. It’s an obvious design fault, sureflap have replaced under the warranty in the past and we currently have an open warranty claim with them again.
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Dangerous - do not buy
Bought 9 months ago. Worked OK until ... first sign - batteries kept running down v quickly, then constant clicking. Now batteries, dont even last through the night. When flat, the cat flap locks the cats inside - so had toilet accidents. More concerning -despite assurances, it also locks the cats out, randomly. Customer services were completely useless. DO NOT BUY - it does not work as a cat flap
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fantastic cat flap for piece off mind
i have 6 cats, all getting upset as a visiting tom cat was coming in my house and spraying! all my cats are natured or spayed so they didnt want the tom cats in their home and i didnt want the smell. they soon got use to the noise and could unlock it quickly to get in. batteries last me 7 months so not to bad really.
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RFID reader lost sensitivity after three years
Good cat flap, we installed in a double glazing unit. Worked fine for three years, then the RFID reader lost sensitivity and cats were stuck outside. SureFlap gave me a 20% discount, but no flexibility to provide a replacement under warranty, even though it was only two months over.
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Too many faults
TheApp is glitchy. Tech support have offered advice, but none of it has worked. Currently now stuck on the initial screen, so can’t even log in. The usual restart the phone or uninstall nolonger works.
The system when it shows it’s all connected, actually isn’t, so you can’t make changes on the app. Left to now manually operating the cat flap which defeats the object of having it. Reliability to work properly is issue.
As others have said it eats batteries.
Great idea, just not there yet.
Disappointing.
After 3 years 10 months the batteries were lasting only a couple of days at a time. This was in spite of keeping the tunnel clean, the brushes hair free and the sensors clean. Guarantee only lasts 3 years. SureFlap told me to buy a new one! They gave me a voucher but Zooplus is cheaper.
bad with doors containing metal
Metal will cause it not to read your pet´s chip mainly from outside to inside meaning they get stuck outside. If you have even as little as 1 mm thick metal in your door be prepared to cut a huge hole to get this to work.
Also, the weather proofing on the swinging flap itself barely protrudes from the flap. I suppose this is to ensure the flap has no friction. Not good for the winters as cold air pours in around the flap.
Better weather proofing and RFID sensor would make this 5 stars.
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Joey and minne
Pleased with it in general but the problem I have is that they go out ok but as they push with paw, they don’t put head in tunnel to come in n so it’s not registering , they try to by pushing poor but it won’t open
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Eats batteries
Very disappointed. It worked at first but now we have to change the Duracell batteries EVERY WEEK! Poor cat has been locked out all night on several occasions. Just cannot work out why it eats batteries so quickly. It was fine at first. We are even down to one cat since the summer and he sleeps all day too. Wish they'd made it dual function i e take the batteries out and it becomes a conventional cat flap but it doesn't.
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It reverted to open when locked
My year old cat has gone out in the night when flap should have been locked..Got up in the morning to find it had reset to opening for exit. I haven't seen him since and I am heartbroken.
Excellent product.
I read a lot of reviews before buying, and was a bit concerned that Rosie, quite a nervous pussy, would be scared by the click. When first installed I taped the flap open without batteries in the flap. When she had used it a few times I set it with the flap down and the catch taped down. Eventually I installed the batteries to activate the microchip reading function. Quite wary at first but after 2 weeks she now uses it without any fear. A quieter catch mechanism would be welcome.
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Is it really worth having ?
After 3 years parts failing and they expect you to change them and will not replace unit regardless of the times it breaks, after their warranty which is only 3 years, that does not warrant a reasonable time, as trading standards states, so an expensive item to only last 3 years max.
Cat hates it
Makes a loud noise whenever the lock opens scaring my cat. He wont use it. Poor.
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Works brilliantly
Set it up easily with my 2 cats . Just put some treats in the tunnel. Stops little Paddy from next door but one stealing my cats food. Sweet little cat but Greedy
Very good
Easy to instal, works as described. Our relatively small cats didn’t take long to learn to use it. It does click so if you have a cat who objects to snappy / clicking noises it might be an issue, but ours will sit next to us while we use power tools so it was no problem for them. Best of all, the big bad bully cat who kept coming in and terrorising ours is now kept out. Highly recommended.
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VIP entrance!
With the price of this product I wanted to give it 6 months before reviewing.This has been such a great purchase!! It gives the cats their daytime freedom and they enjoy going through the the tunnel.I am happy as I know that nothing else can come in the house without the chip opening the door and the draft excluder on it is perfect at keeping the cold out. I've used 3 tunnel add ons for this on my back house wall and it's fine.The click people speak of is not an issue for my two cats (3yrs old)
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Excellent product
Reiterating other reviews, this is a brilliant little cat flap. Mickey is a bit of a chubster, but still manages to get in & out easily. He was initially wary of the clicking noise as it unlocks, but has since realised what it is & isn’t bothered. I find it is sensitive, & can hear it clicking the minute his head is anywhere near the flap. It’s less draughty than the manual one & has various settings, so the negative reviews on that are misleading. I have a much calmer cat & no more intruders!
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Excellent product
Used to have a bully of a tom cat so never had a problem with intruders so an ordinary cat flap was fine. That all changed after his sad demise - I now have two very nervy females who were terrorised by other cats coming into the house. This flap allows my cats to come & go but they can rest easy knowing they are now safe when indoors. Very easy to set up and cats soon get used to the click as they come through the flap. Wonderful item.
Reviews from other countries
||Austria
Sureflap weiß
Absolutely delighted
At first I had to practice a bit and it took a few days for my cats to figure it out, but now it works brilliantly and takes so much stress off all of us. I chose the larger flap. I have a Norwegian Forest Cat mixed with Maine Coon and apparently a purebred Maine Coon. In any case, I think the size is perfect for both of them and I’d definitely recommend going for the bigger flap if you have larger cats. And yes, the mechanism is actually a bit noisy.
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||Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
Serves its purpose, everything else is disappointing
I've been using the machines for 3 months now. The bowls are too deep and the divided one (which I unfortunately need) is way too small. Otherwise, everything is plastic, the required batteries are from the last century – a rechargeable version would be much better – and one of them only works when it feels like it. At least each cat only eats the food meant for them... Price/performance is completely over the top.
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View original||Sweden
Foderautomat 400 ml
Works well
After training to get my cat used to being comfortable with the flap opening
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View original||Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
Highly recommended
Very good feeder, both of our cats immediately accepted their own one.
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View original||Czechia
Handy little gadget
Works just as described. All the cats got used to the feeders very quickly. All it took was putting their favourite pouch inside and letting them sniff it. They knew it was there, just had to figure out how to get to it. A couple of times they jumped when the lid opened, but their desire for their favourite pouch was stronger. There's no smell of food at all in the flat. I already have 3 feeders for cats on different diets (one tomcat on urinary, another tomcat on no special diet, and two cats on gastrointestinal).
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View original|Switzerland
Futterautomat 400 ml
Cleaning, removal of side windows
Cleaning is a nightmare, there's mould and you can't remove the side windows either. I paid 170 CHF for it, and it's definitely not worth it.
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||Denmark
Sæt: Kattelem Microchip & Hub
Constantly fails
8 out of 10 times, the cats' chip isn't read, even though the batteries are brand new alkaline ones.
The app is also useless, as updates are delayed by several hours.
To be sure the cat can get in, you have to disable the lock and use it as a manual cat flap, which you might as well have bought for 100 kr.
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||Belgium
chatière blanche
Very tight fit for an adult male
Easy to install.
Works well.
It's a shame there doesn't seem to be a LARGE version available.
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View original||Italy
bianco
Cat flap
The little door works well.. It almost completely lacks instructions for setting the opening and closing times.. It doesn't show whether the cat has gone through and whether it's inside or outside..
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View original||Switzerland
Works perfectly
I've had the feeders for 2 years now and they work perfectly! I accidentally dropped one on the floor and it broke, but that was my fault.
The batteries last a really long time, and the cats accepted the feeders straight away! Now my cat with the special diet can't steal the other cat's food anymore, and vice versa ;-) Best investment ever!
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|Germany
Sureflap weiß
Brilliant cat flap and brilliant service
Cat flap in use with 2 cats for 11 years. Scanning the microchips is easy to understand and do, the flap was installed quickly and works reliably. After 11 years, the 4-way lock has worn out and falls out if a cat goes through too quickly. Had a chat with extremely friendly customer service, and now they're sending me a replacement lock free of charge. There really is still quality and service in Germany. Thanks.
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View original||Netherlands
It takes a bit to figure out how it works, but it works perfectly
Works great.
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View original|Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
Never again!!!!
Plastic nightmare with completely unsuitable bowls. Constantly breaking and unreliable.
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View original|Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
Food thief – NO MORE!
After I adopted a fairly young wildling (~1.5 years old) from the area, word apparently got around in the cat community that there’s a 5-star walk-in buffet at my place, and managing that overnight was pretty time-consuming and cost me a lot of sleep. The Surefeed worked brilliantly – the troublemakers are left standing in front of a locked flap, and the little rascal is much more relaxed now that he knows there’ll still be food later on.
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View original||Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
Tears of joy from excitement
My senior likes to pace himself with his food. For the past few weeks, we've had a new rescue who inhales anything edible in seconds.
No chance Grandpa can leave his bowl for later anymore.
The automatic feeder was our hope…
It took less than 10 minutes for the senior to figure out how it works. Lid up – favourite treat – done. The feeder is super quiet and registering only took a few seconds.
I'm thrilled.
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View original||Germany
Futterautomat 400 ml
No chance
My three cats have been refusing to eat from the feeders for days now. The lids are still open so they can get used to them first... No idea why they're acting like this?! Really hope this changes soon.
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View original||Italy
400 ml Distributore
Warning, it's a scam!!
Terrible product. While struggling to get my cat used to it, I realised that the mechanism didn’t close when the other cat arrived. Customer service suggested a reset, but it didn’t work. In the end, I never used it because it didn’t work, no refund, no help with exchanging the product. Over €100 down the drain.
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View original||Germany
Sureflap weiß
Overall a good product, but an important note
The flap is well made, and the closing mechanism is fairly quiet too. Installation was easy. But here's an important tip:
The instructions assume it never rains or gets stormy. That's not the case here. Before fitting the outer panel, you should definitely seal all around the cut-out in the door with silicone, otherwise when it rains, water will get into the wide gap between the outer panel and the tunnel and soak through the door from the inside!
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