As described in the title… Cooper, and others always paw at the screen in the wood framed patio screen door resulting in my refusal to fix it again. I really like the view that the full screen door offers but am on strike. Please help???
Are they scratching at it, or walking into it? If the latter, then maybe the dogs just don’t see the screen, so putting a strip or silhouette of something across it at their height might work.
As for the former… if you consistently catch them in the act, a reprimand (No!) and a quick diversion to another task might get them trained to stop scratching at the door. I’ll leave it to some of our resident dog trainers to give you more detailed advice (I don’t even have a dog, I just enjoy the dog threads…!)
Heavy gauge chicken wire in addition to the screen.
At Home Depot/Lowes either in the section where they sell door hardware (hinges, patio door knobs etc) OR in the section where they sell metal stuff (long threaded rods, angle irons) you’ll find find what you’re looking for. It’s a perforated piece of metal as wide as the door and about 2 feet tall. Just screw it on over the screen (where they scratch) and you should be fine.
Upon rereading I see this is for a patio screen, I’ve never seen them that big, but I’ve never looked. You could probably just go to your local hardware store and explain the problem, they’ll probably have a solution.
Or you can train them to ring a bell to get in or out. We have two dogs that have NO training beyond sit and roll over, but teaching them to ring a bell only a week or so and it worked great.