Not only is glass quieter and provides your facility with a more open look and feel, it is also easier to clean compared to other options on the market. If you have an animal that has urinated on the glass you can identify that and it can then be easily cleaned and disinfected, and you’ll know by simply looking at it. On the other hand, if you have a stainless steel rod door you can’t see that as easily and it is a lot more difficult and time consuming to clean. By nature humans find the most efficient way to do things and would prefer cleaning a glass door, which takes 30 seconds as opposed to a rod door which takes a minute or two, and not everyone will take the time to successfully clean and disinfect the rod type door. Not only are glass doors easier to clean they are quieter. Glass doors are increasing in popularity as a result of veterinary hospitals and boarding facilities trying to get away from the caged, jail cell look by creating a more open feel and comfortable atmosphere for the animals. The Glass trend has caught on in animal shelter environments as well for the same stress reducing qualities, not to mention the spread of diseases is minimized. With the standard rod doors, humans touch from nose to nose while they feed and water and that can definitely spread germs and bacteria, quickly. TriStar Vet and Direct Animal Products offer glass doors with bowl feeders that allow shelter or boarding personnel to feed and water without opening the door. This eliminates the chance of an animal trying to rush the door and in an animal shelter environment can be an added safety measure against an aggressive animal. There are many positives glass provides for both employees and animals, so consider all of this when it comes time to build a new facility or remodel an existing one.
TriStar uses ¼” tempered clear glass which is a durable and holds up well in these type settings. There are some companies that use 3/16” which is a thinner glass but for the most part ¼” tempered clear glass is an industry standard. Others still use Lexan or plastic in their cat condos for instance, but we have always used the ¼” clear tempered glass simply for the fact that is a longer lasting and more durable product.