You might have thought about this question before, so we’re here to answer it definitively: do your floors matter to your dog? The answer is yes, but you’re probably wondering how that can be.
To demonstrate how floors matter to your dog’s health and wellbeing (among other things), we’re putting the two most popular flooring styles up against each other – bare floors versus rugs.
In terms of maintenance and durability for your dog, how do they measure up? Interested in seeing which one will come out on top? Keep reading! And if you’re looking for thorough unbiased dog product reviews and fun, informative articles, FurBabyGuide.com is the place for you!
Dogs and Flooring
What does your dog have to do with your flooring? A lot, actually! When your dog isn’t cuddling up to you on the couch or running around outside, he spends most of his life on the floor. And there are a number of ways floors affect them and vice versa.
Long dog nails can damage and scratch all kinds of flooring. Dog hair, dirt from their paws, and smells can also generally get on your floors, with some easier to clean than others.
Hard and rough surfaces can also be hard on sensitive dog paws. Of course, we can’t always control the kind of flooring we have in our homes and in our rentals, but knowing the pros and cons of bare floors and carpeted floors is still useful as we make decisions about our pets and our interiors.
Pros and Cons of Bare Floors
What is considered a “bare” floor really just refers to floors that don’t have rugs, laminate, vinyl, or any kind of mat layered on top of a floor. You may leave their floors bare for a variety of reasons, but aesthetics are probably the biggest reason why.
When you have a beautiful hardwood floor, you probably won’t want to cover it up with a mat or a rug. But hardwood floors are also quite vulnerable to dog scratches, especially softer woods. If you’re dead set on getting hardwood floors and leaving them bare, choose a sturdier wood or go green with reclaimed wood, where scratches will just blend in. And don’t forget to trim those nails!
But other flooring materials do hold up better against dogs even when you leave them bare.
Concrete floors, for example, don’t just look super chic and industrial when left bare – they’re also really durable and pet hair doesn’t stick to them.
The only drawback to these floors is that they get cold in the winter and they make for very hard surfaces, so it could be quite dangerous for your fur baby to slip on them when zooming between rooms.
Another favorite for dog owners is tile flooring! You may have an idea of them as cold and clinical, but tiles these days come in so many designs and patterns that you’ll doubtlessly be able to find tiles that suit your home perfectly. And they’re so easy to clean. A wet mop does the trick to remove liquid, pet hair, and dirt with absolute ease. You also won’t have to worry about scratches.
Going bare with your floors doesn’t have to mean having scratched, messy, and smelly floors. As long as you choose the right kind of material, you’ll find that the pros outweigh the cons.
Pros and Cons of Carpeted Floors
Dogs can make a lot of mess. In fact, they are known to make so much of a mess that we even put together reviews for the best vacuum cleaners on the market to make cleaning after them just a little bit easier. So why go for carpeted floors?
We all love the look of rugs on floors, so we don’t blame you at all for wanting them in your home. They’re great at keeping little doggie paws warm in the winter and they provide good slip-resistance for activity. You also can’t match the luxurious look of carpets.
But carpets are also notoriously hard to clean when hair starts to build up on them or when dogs get dirt (or other things, if you know what we mean) on them. And if your rugs are in a light or even pure white, then it will be hard to hide anytime your doggo has an accident or scratches too hard at them. Maintenance costs are thus quite high if you choose to install carpets or rugs in your home when you’ve also got a dog.
So what can be done? We don’t want to discourage you completely from carpeted floors and rug companies are eager to offer modern solutions for your problems. Many rugs are specifically designed to withstand dog hair, scratches, and smells. You can also adopt a more intensive maintenance routine for your carpets to make sure that hair and dirt don’t build up.
Which Is Better for Your Fur Baby?
This guide to the pros and cons of bare floors and carpeted floors should help you understand how you can better choose flooring to suit your dog.
Depending on the flooring you choose, keeping them bare can be a totally great idea! Concrete and tile, in particular, hold up really well against dog nails and dog hair so maintenance is super easy and affordable. But for a material like hardwood that is more vulnerable to damage from dogs, you can either protect it with a topcoat or choose to embrace the scuffed wood look.
On the other hand, carpeted floors may seem immediately like a bad idea, but they’ll actually do a great job keeping your doggo warm and saving them from slipping on floors when they run. While they do make things a little hard to clean, thorough cleaning can help preserve your carpets. So if you’re adamant about getting carpets for your floors, choose something a little durable and in a neutral dark color that won’t immediately look dirty.