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Two Brothers Pet Supply - "The Online Pet Door Experts"

Contained in the Resources section of our website you will find many useful articles that will aid you in your purchasing decision. It is particularly important to review these documents when purchasing a pet door, as sizing and measuring for the particular application can be crucial in determining which pet door you need. We strongly recommend reviewing the information on how to measure your pet for a pet door before purchasing any pet door. Many pet owners will try to squeeze their pets through the smallest opening possible, and this is not healthy for pets. If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to call our very knowledgeable product specialist. We are available at 866-583-0925, 6 days a week!

How to Measure Your Pet For a Pet Door

While shopping for a Pet Door, you may notice that many manufacturers use a pet's weight as the principle guideline for determining what size pet door you need. While the weight of your pet is one of the factors to consider, you should not purchase a pet door solely based on your pet's weight. The most important factor to consider when sizing your pet for a pet door is the overall stature of your pet (shoulder height and width). So before you purchase a pet door please review the following guidelines. Doing so will ensure that you pick the appropriate size pet door for your pet.

First you will need to physically measure your largest and smallest pets. Doing this is as simple as using a yard stick, or tape measure, and taking a measurement of your pet standing on all fours. You will need to measure from the floor to the top of the shoulder/bottom of the neck. (What is considered the withers of a horse). Once you have this measurement, the following considerations should be taken into account. See the diagrams below for examples.

Pet Door Height - It is important that the top of the pet door opening be positioned at least 2" above the shoulder of your tallest pet. This allows your pet to move through the pet door without crouch or hunching down. The crouching motion can actually become very discomforting to pets as they age and develope hip and joint arthritis. While some dogs might be able to maneuver through smaller, tighter openings, as they age, this may not always be the case. Also, properly positioning the pet door 2" or more above your tallest pets shoulders will extend the life of the pet door flaps, saving you money. If your pet door is positioned too low, the flaps will pinch at the top, causing them to wear our early.

Pet Door Width - Determining how wide an opening your pet needs in a pet door is quite easy. Simply open a door in your home partially, measuring the width of the opening you create. Then old the door at that width you just measured and call your pet through the door. If you pet moves through the opening without any trouble, it is likely a suitable opening width size. If it is tight, you will need to go with a wider pet door. Typically pets do not need a lot of extra room in terms of the width. However, it is important to leave a little room on either side to minimize wear and tear on the pet door, and to leave room for your pet to grow.

Pet Door Rise - The Pet Door Rise is the distance from the ground to the bottom of the pet door. Determining the appropriate rise depends on several factors. If you have multiple pets, you need to be sure that you position your pet door low enough to the ground that the smallest pet can get through the opening easily. If you have only larger pets, the rise can likely be a bit higher, but you have to consider the possiblity of mobility issues as your pets age. As a general guideline is is important to make sure you position your pet door with a minimum of a 2" rise. Positioning the pet door 2" up from the floor ensures that you will preserve the integrity of your mounting surface.

Special Consideration for Wall Mounted Pet Doors - When sizing for wall mounted pet doors it is important to pay special attention to the height of the inside tunnel. Smaller pets, or pets with mobility issues will most times step inside the tunnel before stepping all the way through. If you believe your pet will need to step in the tunnel to pass through the wall mounted pet door you will need to allow for enough clearance in the tunnel for your pets shoulder height.

Example Diagrams of How to Size Your Pet for a Pet Door

Diagram 1

This Diagram is a good example of how a pet door should fit for most Door Mount Applications. This shows the top of the pet opening approximately 2" above the dogs shoulder. In this example we show a higher rise which will be suitable for larger pets. If you have pets with mobility issues, or have multiple pets in many sizes, you should use the example below for a lower rise.

Diagram 2

This Diagram is a good example of how a pet door should fit most Wall Mount Applications, as well as for large breeds, homes with multiple pets for varying sizes, and for pets with mobility issues (may even require installing pet door closer to the floor). Large breed dogs maybe able to fit through a smaller opening when they are young and more agile, but as they age, negotiating through a smaller opening can be difficult and cause discomfort. Additionally a lower rise will allow smaller pets (cats and small dogs) to get through a wall mount opening easily.

Choose From The Pet Door Categories Below!

Door Mounted Pet Doors

Wall Mounted Pet Doors

Custom Sized Pet Doors

Kennel Doors

Patio Pet Door Measuring Tips

How to measure for a patio pet door.

Patio Pet Doors are designed to fit most all sliding glass door systems. However, there is no guarantee that patio pet doors will fit every brand of sliding glass door. Additionally, there is no such thing as a 'standard sliding door', each manufacturer makes their sliding glass doors differently. So as a result, it becomes very important to properly measure your sliding glass door when considering a Patio Pet Door.

Taking the Measurement

First, open your sliding glass door and measure the overall height of the sliding glass door, from track to track. (This measurement will likely be greater than the actual height of your sliding door.) It is important to measure from the very bottom of the channel (track) on the bottom, to the very inside, top of the channel (track) on the top of your opening.

Typically, there is a thin rail in the bottom channel of your sliding door opening. This rail is what the Patio Pet Doors sets on or straddles, keeping the insert centered in the opening. In most cases this rail is 1/4" in width or less, as you look down for a top view. All Patio Pet Doors will fit on a rail 1/4" or less. If the rail in your sliding glass door is greater than 1/4", and up to 5/8" in width, than the Pet 1 Patio Pet Door is the only option that will work with your sliding glass door. If the rail is over 5/8" in width, then you unfortunately have a sliding glass door system that will not accept a Patio Pet Door.

Height Range Adjustment Example Selecting the Correct Height & Pet Opening

Now that you have accurately measured the opening of your sliding glass door, you will notice that the Patio Pet Doors offered in varying height ranges. These ranges are the minimum and maximum heights that the patio pet doors will expand and contact.

Keep in mind that the Patio Pet Door must be able to contract enough to fit into the top and bottom tracks of your sliding glass door, and still be able to expand enough to fit the overall height of your sliding door opening. There are also sometimes side rails on the tracking, that you may need to fit under as well.

When choosing the size of the pet opening, it is important to consider the overall size of the opening, and the rise on the patio pet door. The Rise is the height of the pet opening from the floor or bottom of the patio panel. You want to select a combination of pet opening size and rise that will position the top of the pet opening 1" to 2" above your tallest pets shoulder height, but still keep the rise low enough that all your pets can move through the pet opening.

Special Considerations

Each Patio Pet Door offers a different method of securing the sliding glass door locked when the patio insert is in place. Some include a device that will allow you to use the existing lock on your sliding door, others include a brace bar or Charley bar that is mounted to the back of the sliding door. Most customers choose to cut a curtain dowel rod, or 'stick' to fit behind the sliding glass door in the tracking to create their own brace bar.

On most sliding glass door systems, the sliding or moving door is on the interior side of the stationary door. If it is not, and the sliding door is on the exterior side, it is near impossible to lock your sliding glass door when a Patio Pet Door is in place. Additionally, this can create problems with getting the weather stripping to stick properly as well.

As a general rule of thumb, the overall width of a Patio Pet Door can be determined by taking the width of the pet opening in a desired model, and adding 4 inches. Every Patio Pet Door is going to take up a portion of the opening you generally use to get in and out of your sliding glass door. The overall width of the panel is the amount of space you will lose in the opening of your sliding glass door, making it difficult to use for pedestrian traffic.

Sliding glass door systems with window partitions (made to look like a French Door), are not compatible with Patio Pet Doors. It is impossible to create an type of weather seal between the sliding door and stationary door with this type of system. This feature is most often seen on Pella Doors.

Some sliding glass door systems do not have a channel that the sliding door follows. In this instance, we do not recommend using a Patio Pet Door as there is nothing to keep it in place on the bottom track.

Below we have included links to the measuring instructions provided by each manufacturer. Please feel free to call us at 866-583-0925 with any questions. We're here to help!

How to Measure for a Hale Pet Door Omni Panel

How to Measure for a Hale Pet Door Standard Panel

How to Measure for a Pet1 Product Patio Pet Door (Standard Height)

How to Measure for a Pet1 Product Patio Pet Door (Tall Height)

How to Measure for a PetSafe Deluxe Patio Pet Door