Why miss out on beautiful hardwood floors for fear your pets will scratch them? The two can live happily together with a few tricks and tips to help along the way! Protecting them from pets, even a little, will help…
Are you worried about how pets will affect your hardwood floors?
Although it’s true that mixing hardwood floors and pets can bring challenges… there’s no reason why your beloved cat or dog and stunning wood floor cannot coexist. You can correct nearly every problem. But accept that your floors might look more lived-in than your typical showroom. You probably won’t notice the difference by sticking to some easy maintenance rules and choosing the right floor type!
Below I will touch on how to keep your hardwood floors spick and span, even with the chaos of our beloved pets.
Mopping Up All the Accidents
The key here is speed – as long as all accidents are dealt with straight away, your hardwood floors should stay beautiful. When the stain gets a chance to set in, this becomes a problem.
- Dogs, Cats, rodents, and rabbits all leave pee-related puddles at some point in their lives. This can be disastrous for your floors. If you’ve recently added a new pet to your family, keeping away from your wood floor while house training is best. If you can’t keep them away… Place training pads in all areas of the house where they are more likely to have a little accident but make sure they have plastic backing! Be extra watchful for spillages.
- Not only is the moisture a problem, but urine contains acid that will begin to decompose the upper layer of the floorboard… leaving behind a dark stain if it is allowed to sit for too long. If the accident occurs on a rug or piece of floor furniture, remove this until the item has been washed and is completely dry.
- Remember that all moisture remains detrimental to your beautiful new floors. Put water and food bowls in rooms with tiled surfaces or lay down an absorbent mat. This is a good idea for litter boxes too.
Adding Rugs & Runners
Give your floors a little help with runners and rugs to protect traffic-worn areas and give your pet somewhere comfortable to perch.
- Smaller animals like rodents and rabbits have trouble navigating wood floors during colder climates, so a nice cosy rug is a fabulous way to make them feel snug.
- Does your pup follow the same path whenever food is ready, or the doorbell rings? A runner will protect marks and scuffs happening from all the excitement. Areas such as doorways and corridors can become easily worn when they are walked on countless times a day as you and your pup move through the house. Not forgetting that a protective runner can prevent your dog from skidding and potentially injuring itself.
- A good doormat placed at all entrances is perfect for people and pets, as this will soak up moisture and mud before it spoils your fabulous wood flooring. Make sure that these have a rubber backing to prevent stains.
Clipping your fur baby’s sharp claws
A common concern for pet owners considering upgrading to hardwood floors is the potential scratches… Sharp nails are the biggest culprit.
- Both dogs and cats have strong, sharp nails that can leave unsightly scratches on beautiful wood flooring. If their claws make a sound against the floor as they walk, then it’s time for a trim.
- The good thing is that these scratches and scuffs are unlikely to lead to permanent damage, as restoration is always an option. However, to prevent damage in the first place, keeping your beloved pets’ nails short can help to avoid the issue.
- Did you know if your doggy is particularly fluffy, the fur around their paws may cause them to struggle with walking… thus resulting in scratch-inducing skids and slips.
Hardwood floors shouldn’t cause panic for those of us with pets. Hard-wearing, engineered, solid wood floors will suffer wear and tear over the years… but this only adds character and charm to this long-lasting floor. You can protect your floors with a pet-friendly, non-toxic finish for added peace of mind!
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Written by Tracey Gilbey, Marketing and Admin Coordinator at Art of Clean.
For further advice or information on our Carpet and Soft Furnishing care, please do not hesitate to contact the Art of Clean team on 01223 901551 in Cambridge. Our services include Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, oriental and area Rug Cleaning, Curtain Cleaning, Patio, and Driveway Pressure washing, Leather Cleaning, Stone and Tile Floor Cleaning, and Wood Floor Sanding and Restoration. We also supply new flooring and carpets through our sister company Art of Flooring. Farthings Cambridge provides our Dry-Cleaning service
