How Does a Pet Friendly Alarm System Work?

Pets and burglar alarm systems are crucial for protecting both domestic and commercial properties from intruders, proving effective as both an alert and a deterrent to break-ins.

As important as these systems are, all will experience false alarms at one time or another, with consequences ranging from having to jump out of bed in the middle of the night to turn off the ear-splitting noise, to emergency services attending the property after being automatically alerted. In many cases burglar alarm sensors are triggered by pets roaming around the house.

For enquiries regarding our pet-friendly alarm systems in London, call today on 0207 887 2073

How do Pet-Friendly Alarms Actually Work?

Detecting unusual motion within the room, many of these PIRs can be calibrated to ignore particular sizes and shapes of the being responsible for the movement, or to work only above a certain height so that the family dog can pass underneath the motion sensors without triggering the alarm. However, this doesn’t take into account animals that climb (such as cats, as previously mentioned) or that might fly.

Dual, or active, technology alarms require the triggering of two separate sensors before sounding the alarm, allowing for a more precise detection system for pets. This could be advantageous for those with multiple, different size animals in their home.

“One of the biggest causes of false alarms, particularly in domestic properties, is animal movement.”

Whether it’s an active puppy or restless budgie, pets can very easily trigger alarms that rely on movement sensors. As notorious nocturnal prowlers, cats can be especially troublesome in this respect, jumping onto furniture or in and out of cat flaps.

Passive Infrared Detectors

However, pet interference with alarm systems is not a new phenomenon, and many devices exist on the market to combat it, the most common of these being PIRs (Passive Infrared Detectors).

PIRs claim to be the best when it comes to differentiating between unwanted intruders and other movement inside the home, and work by combining a Charge Coupled Device (CCD) that detects infrared, and a lens that translates the information into ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ areas. The heat of these regions is then assessed in relation to the room temperature itself, alerting the system if excess body heat from potential intruders is identified.

Radio Interference

Unfortunately, due to their reliance on infrared detection, PIRs can suffer from interference from radio waves, causing them to act erratically. RFI stabilisers can be installed to combat this issue.

In general, pet-friendly wireless alarms are expensive and not always 100% reliable if not installed by experienced professionals.

Here at AAI Security Systems, we put every alarm we fit through rigorous, post-installation testing and checks to ensure that your pets will not trigger the system while you’re out of the house. Not only will this save you from having to be called home to turn off the alarm, but it will also ensure that your property remains secure from the threat of genuine intruders.