Ginger cat detector

If the ginger cat is a stray, catch it. Put a collar on it with the magnet or else an RFID tag. Install a gadget in the cat door that locks it when the ginger cat approaches and either the magnet or the tag activates it.

Al

Reply to
Al
Loading thread data ...

This makes sense, but is upside down. The ginger-cat-owner is likely to remove such strange apparations as a new collar. Collar your beasts, and give them permission to enter.

--
 [mail]: Chuck F (cbfalconer at maineline dot net) 
 [page]: 
 Click to see the full signature
Reply to
CBFalconer

A stray cat belongs to no one! There is no owner.

Al

Reply to
Al

Get a water-based fluorescent ink marking pen (kid's toy "spy pens" are ideal) and mark your cats' scalps. A photodetector and a small UV light source operate the flap latch, or disable the countermeasure (water spray).

--Gene

Reply to
Gene S. Berkowitz

You are an innocent in the ways of cats. They own humans, not the reverse.

--
 [mail]: Chuck F (cbfalconer at maineline dot net) 
 [page]: 
 Click to see the full signature
Reply to
CBFalconer

Mea culpa! Yes, I have been owned by cats in the past...and by dogs.

Al

Reply to
Al

Cat's own people, but people own dogs - that's the difference between them.

"In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this." Terry Pratchett

"You can keep a dog; but it is the cat who keeps people, because cats find humans useful domestic animals." George Mikes

"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea." Robert Heinlein

Reply to
David Brown

I would go for a combined wetware and hardware solution. Install a button switch by the cat-flap, and train your cats to push the button to unlock the cat-flap. It should not be too hard to train the cats to do that, search YouTube for cat training and you'll find plenty of material I'm sure.

--
Pertti
Reply to
Pertti Kellomäki

I didn't realize that Finland had no cats. :-)

--
 [mail]: Chuck F (cbfalconer at maineline dot net) 
 [page]: 
 Click to see the full signature
Reply to
CBFalconer

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 21:42:36 -0400, I said, "Pick a card, any card" and CBFalconer instead replied:

Not since the Finland Famine struck.

-- Ray

Reply to
Ray Haddad

In fact, it should be possible to achieve it if you train your cats *not* to do push the button.

Reply to
Lanarcam

We (Pat and I) much appreciate the responses. Two additional issues affect what we're going to do:

1) Pat is an architect, so adding a three storey cat-flap and disposal chute is not an option, but would certainly be a cheap fat-black-cat detector. 2) The system needs to be reliable and easy to maintain.

We had no response from an enquiry for the COTS solution mentioned.

As usual, redefining the problem seems to be the best approach. What we really want is an "our-cat" detector. I'm a little concerned by detection time issues, because Lottie (the fat black one) is chased by Spot (the skinny half wild one) or Ginger Tom and sometimes enters the building at speed.

While googling for "cat chip readers", I came across these:

formatting link
formatting link
formatting link
Naturally, the USA uses multiple standards incompatible with those used by the rest of the world!

Chipping the cats seems to be a good approach and doesn't offend Pat (important), but it's quite expensive and not much fun. The thought of taking Spot to the vet is really quite scary, as getting him into a cat box may lead to taking us to the doctor. However, there are people who will come to you and implant the chip for a resonable price.

Stephen

--
Stephen Pelc, stephenXXX@mpeforth.com
MicroProcessor Engineering Ltd - More Real, Less Time
 Click to see the full signature
Reply to
Stephen Pelc

We (Pat and I) much appreciate the responses. Two additional issues affect what we're going to do:

1) Pat is an architect, so adding a three storey cat-flap and disposal chute is not an option, but would certainly be a cheap fat-black-cat detector. 2) The system needs to be reliable and easy to maintain.

We had no response from an enquiry for the COTS solution mentioned.

As usual, redefining the problem seems to be the best approach. What we really want is an "our-cat" detector. I'm a little concerned by detection time issues, because Lottie (the fat black one) is chased by Spot (the skinny half wild one) or Ginger Tom and sometimes enters the building at speed.

While googling for "cat chip readers", I came across these:

formatting link
formatting link
formatting link
Naturally, the USA uses multiple standards incompatible with those used by the rest of the world!

Chipping the cats seems to be a good approach and doesn't offend Pat (important), but it's quite expensive and not much fun. The thought of taking Spot to the vet is really quite scary, as getting him into a cat box may lead to taking us to the doctor. However, there are people who will come to you and implant the chip for a resonable price.

Stephen

--
Stephen Pelc, stephenXXX@mpeforth.com
MicroProcessor Engineering Ltd - More Real, Less Time
 Click to see the full signature
Reply to
Stephen Pelc

Petsmart (and surely others) carry cat doors that respond to devices on the cat's collar; some use magnets, others IR (presumably they are modulated, like with remote controls).

I'd guess that the IR-type might have a longer detection range than the magnetic, so she may be able to hit the door running. You may also be able to either juice up the transmitter (brighter IR LED?) or add an additional detector. Odds are, they went with the economies of scale and use the typical 38'ish KHz modulation.

One word: tuna. That's "people-style" and not cat food grade. One small bowl in the back of the carrier with a tablespoon of juicy, smelly tuna; problem solved. ;-)

--
Rich Webb     Norfolk, VA
Reply to
Rich Webb

ElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.