How to Protect Your Floors from Your Dog
Being a dog owner is one of the greatest joys and privileges in life. You get to come home every day to a best friend who has endless love for you. This friend will always be by your side, except when he’s chasing after tennis balls! Some people dream of the day when they can get their first dog, while others never live a moment of their lives without a dog in it.
But, even though dogs bring so much happiness into our lives, they can also bring some messes. One thing all dog owners struggle with is keeping their floors looking nice. New puppies will have accidents all over the house, and dogs of all ages make messes and scratch with their nails. If you’re wondering how to protect your floors from your dog, read on for some ideas you can try, no matter what kinds of flooring you have in your home.
Get Carpets Cleaned Regularly
You vacuum dog hair almost every day, and if you have a puppy, you’re always cleaning up potty messes. You’re probably used to going through a lot of stain remover, but that doesn’t do enough to maintain the quality of your carpet over a long period. Even if you don’t have pets, it’s wise to get your carpet cleaned at least once a year, so make that twice if you do. And if your dog is really young, it couldn’t hurt to give your carpets a fresh cleaning every few months until you’re finished potty-training them.
Put Rugs Over Laminated Areas
In smaller homes, it’s typical for kitchen and bathroom floors to be laminated. Laminate is a cheap material that’s easy to install, and it’s moisture-resistant, but that doesn’t mean it’s waterproof. When you frequently expose it to water—like spilled water bowls, potty accidents or bath time gone wrong—it will buckle and warp. There’s no way to fix laminated floors except to replace them, so place rugs over your laminated floors to help soak up the water and avoid this problem all together.
Install Reclaimed Wood Floors
If you’re considering building a new home in the future, or if you want to redo your floors completely, consider installing reclaimed wood floors. Because of how the wood gets processed, it increases the durability of the material, making it more resistant to your dog. Things like nail scratches and messes won’t faze reclaimed wood floors, so they’re worth the cost over time.
Lay Sealant Over Grout
Anyone who’s ever had a tiled shower knows mold grows quickly between the tiles. The same goes for tiled flooring, especially when your four-legged friend is running around making messes all the time. Don’t worry if you have lots of tiled flooring! All you need to do is lay a sealant over the grout to protect it from the messes of the future. No expensive renovation or project required!
Your dog is your best friend, always finding ways to have fun, but he can also be creative with how he can destroy things and make a mess. Sometimes it can seem like there’s always a quick fix within reach, like using a bitter solution to deter chewing or training your dog to stop what he’s doing at the sound of your hands clapping. But some issues are unpreventable, like the damage that can be done to your floors over a long period of time.
The good news is that you don’t need to renovate your home to have it all be one kind of specific flooring for your dog. Take note of the kind of flooring you have in your home and read up on how you can protect it. Most likely, all you’ll need to do is spend a few minutes on the fix, and you’ll be back to having fun with a forever friend who thinks the world of you.
