PetSafe Extreme Weather Aluminum Pet Door, Large

We have had several versions of dog doors over the years. This one tops all the others. Past doors have flapped open in strong wind, not pleasant in the winter! This door stays put, and we've had strong winds this past winter and spring and no cold drafts in the house! We also got a new puppy (1 year old, 50 lbs lab mix!). She has discovered that she LOVES running full tilt from the backyard, through a single flap door onto the porch, then 'bounding' through this door, into the house. This door has held up to this aggressive use better than I could have hoped! Between this sturdiness and wind resistance, I HIGHLY recommend this for anyone with an energetic pup.

Installing the PetSafe Extreme Weather Aluminum Dog Door took longer than expected, especially in a metal door, but once in place, it worked great. The triple-flap design makes a noticeable difference in keeping the cold out—an important feature for Alaska’s harsh winters. Even our more skittish dogs quickly adapted to using it, which was a relief. One downside is that it’s definitely not chew-proof; if you have heavy chewers, you may want to reinforce it or opt for something more durable. That said, the flaps are easy to replace and reasonably priced, so it's manageable. Overall, it’s a solid choice for weather resistance and pet accessibility.

This version of the pet door is made really well and keeps the cold out much better with three flaps. The only issue I had was that the door I previously had with one flap (same brand) was larger. You would think there would be continuity within the brand, but I got it anyway because of it's quality and low price compared to other brands. I ended up cutting a three-foot wooden measuring stick into pieces to fill the gaps and nailed them in, which worked perfectly. Another thing to think about is that the cover for this dog door slides up and down on a track (which I like better) instead of the one flap cover that you push on and pull off. If I wanted to keep my dogs outside for any reason they could just push through the door cover. The only caveat about the three flap cover though is that if you have blinds that are set inside a door window (and have a frame) the dog door cover will hit the frame if you don't ease it off every time.

I originally bought a Large for my two large dogs, who really aren't THAT LARGE. My Trapper is a Foxhound Catahoula mix, so super broad chested due to the Catahoula which has a near Pitbull like shape to them, but only 23in to the shoulder on him. His Chest was hard to measure and was just slightly over 10in from what I could gather. Large probably would have worked fine for him, since his sister is a lot more slender at 9in in the chest, but 26 or 27in to the shoulder. So returned it and got the XL.Initial impression:-Install kind of sucked. Since I was under the impression you were cutting this wide enough and then using the screws as clamps, to hold it in place. Not drilling screw holes for it. Also that Template is PRETTY EXACT, when you do realistically have about just under a half an inch (so probably 1cm) of wiggle room on all sides. The instructions are not very clear, and are lacking. Luckily it is pretty straight forward of an install, but for the life of me, can't figure out what the nylon screws are for. Also wear long sleeves and gloves, since I didn't know that my door was hollow core with FIBERGLASS insulation, man I was itching.-Now that it's heating up in MS on the Coast, man does that VINYL STINK, that's a STRONG VINYL smell.-Dogs didn't have issues using it, and took to it quite naturally. THOUGH, weirdly they don't seem to like it, and prefer my own dog door that I made out of my window. Before they were jumping in and out of the window to go potty. I bought some vinyl table protectors, cut them to size, made one side smooth vinyl and two large flaps, the the other side was two layers of TEXTURED vinyl cut in strips that when overlapped are stagnated. This way when it got hot the vinyl didn't stick to each other. It worked out great, but 1) TOO MUCH SAND kept coming in the house, since outside is sand, since I live close to the MS Gulf Coast 2) while it was a 1.5ft jump out, and 2ft jump in, my one dog is 6 this year, and the other dog broke both of her front legs within the first 6 months of having her, on separate occasions. There was a one month gap of having two working legs and then she broke the other leg. First time was her brother bit her leg and broke it (I'm convinced it wasn't malicious, just never played with a dog before Zelda, and got too rough), second she dodged a speeding truck in front of my house at the last minute and used the curb to break her leg just above the wrist/ankle. Great reflexes. So, I know that's limited time for both of them being able to jump in and out.-Dad likes this option, dogs prefer the immediacy the window provided since it's right where we all hang out, now they have to walk like 30ft to get outside. So they're less impulsive about going outside.Conclusion:As of now, I'm happy with it. I think the dogs will like it in time and see it's 100x better. Since I went with the XL, it gives them SO MUCH clearance room, that I don't have to worry about Trapper getting stuck. Just wished the install instructions were better and the template was a little larger. I'll be glad when I don't have to empty the house of a sandbox worth of sand every month. HOLY COW, it's so much sand. That backyard is like 75% sand and 25% dirt.

This was a life changing purchase. Best thing I bought all year. We live in Colorado and made it through the winter with little to no draft.

Original product lasted about three years with two 80 pound dogs repeatedly coming and going. Started to break apart in order a new one to replace it with the exact same aluminum model. Did not try the plastic version, but I don’t see it upholding as well as the aluminum.

I’ve used pet doors for years and I always buy pet safe I think they last longer and we never have any problems with them.

Our furbabies (1 dog, 1 cat) love this door! We installed it in the center of our laundry room door that leads to the backyard. They love having the freedom of going in and out as they please. We have not had any issue with any other animals coming in, nor any weather issues with the door blowing open, even when there was a wind and snow storm. Excellent quality!