Kitty Door

 I have always had cats in my life, but recently, as my kids have grown and started moving out, and with COVID and cancer causing us to be home ALL the time, I have kitties who really don't like not being able to go where their people are.

Like most people, my husband works from home half the time and closes his office door. The cats didn't like this and would meow and scratch on the door till he would open it. This would happen all day long with him getting up and down every 20 minutes or so to let a cat in or out. I didn't want to put a hole in the door because the only way to repair that is to buy a new door, so when I saw that they had made a kitty door that went into drywall, I was really quick to hit buy. The whole thing comes in a kit, which makes it easy to install if you have DIY skills. Here is a link to the one I bought...

https://www.amazon.com/Interior-Functional-Training-Installation-Spacious/dp/B0D33PGXQW/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2LICLDXS2Y7HA&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.xgfikXFybOXI5iAIcnPspzFZzIAOemv8_J8qBBz8EBgiM9Qx6BA778lHzShJMX4sOnpD68v6jwiDxDxonJcbUheTds4PTMGsjumkzikq2ziSITx5OWSHIUGSjEMb28NvYZ-b-krGSgSRWP8ulMCYRRlOUuLWyNBoJ8qFBcsCwRGwgrRR1ItTXFpTuq-QUWYiSXTEC08dm0fWVO717Y7N5SNg1xCmiGIo3PjQxyQ-pRwpSm2IP2i2Zd_zK3CDRbHXSAwXMEAGIlZ6i-yxymQ7J1j5H965uNGLap7KRTX4uDU.h6zGwomaYylelOBwO52U5hYFGjOKX1ZgukxnHhtGs-c&dib_tag=se&keywords=cat+door+drywall&qid=1752853481&sprefix=cat+door+drywa%2Caps%2C1242&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

The first thing I needed to do was figure out the best place to install their new door, which just happened to be next to the human door. In the kit comes a template which I then traced onto the wall to get ready for the first cut.

This is the point where you're like, there is no going back now, as you make the first cut into the drywall. I found using my Dremel was the easiest way to do this. Once the hole was cut, you place the template back into the hole and place two screws on the dots to make a mark for the other side.

On the other side, now you can take that same template and line up the holes from the screws, and then trace your door out again, ready to cut. Before I cut the other side, I wanted to make sure that it was fitting correctly, so I placed the one side in and it fit like a glove, as my dad used to say. Remember, though, before you cut the other side to remove it from the wall, so that you don't damage it while cutting. I then cut the other side, leaving a hole in my wall.

From here it was just placing the two sides in as the directions instructed me to and screwing it into he drywall with the provided screws.

It didn't take long for the cats to figure it out, and now they have even figured out how to open the door if not locked when it's been closed.

I have to say, while this might not be for everyone, if we ever do move, it's easy to take out and repair as it's just drywall that was cut and not the door.