Tips To Prevent Your Pets From Triggering False Alarms

United Alarm | 20 FEB 2017

False alarms are a pain to deal with, both for yourself and your security company. They can waste time and result in costly false alarm fees, and they can cause tension between you and your neighbours if they are repeatedly going off in your home. They waste police resources. Worse yet, you may be hesitant to even use your alarm system, which can put you and your family in a vulnerable position. While many things can trigger false alarms, pets are a common trigger. Here is how to stop it.

• Place Motion Sensors High Up on the Walls If you have any motion sensors located close to the ground, consider placing them higher up on the wall or even on the ceiling, where pets won’t be able to come into contact with them as easily, if at all.
• Do Not Place Sensors Near Pets’ Favourite Places Where do your pets spend the most time? Avoid placing motion sensors in these areas. Keep in mind that it can be particularly difficult to place motion sensors with cats in the house because they can make their way into nearly every crevice of the house, but try to avoid placing them in areas that your pets tend to frequent. In general, keep the motion sensors as far away as possible from your pets - 5 to 6 feet away is ideal.
• Consider Pet-Immune/Pet-Friendly Sensors Some motion sensors have an affordable pet-immune or pet-friendly feature that will prevent the triggering of a false alarm if a pet that is less than 80 pounds happens to jump on it. Talk about this possibility with your security provider.
• Use Pet Gates to Your Advantage (Or Train Your Pets) A simple way to prevent certain pets from triggering alarms (this may not be as effective with cats) is to simply put up pet gates in your home where the sensors are located. Alternatively, you could also try to restrict their access to certain parts of the house by training them.
• Consider Other Possibilities If you find that after following the above tips you are still dealing with false alarms, consider other possible causes. For example, do the batteries need to be changed? Perhaps your system is outdated and needs to be replaced.

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