Introducing a pet into your home is a truly wonderful thing, but you’ll find that with all that love and attention they give you does come a lot of hard work! It is incredibly important to make sure your home is fully prepared, the floor is the place where they will spend a majority of their time so it’s important you get the flooring right.

In this blog we’re going to take you through our best tips and advice on three main issues, the first combating pets hair, secondly we’ll look at preventing scratches on your flooring and finally removing urine and any other unfortunate accidents. We’ll also show you however that despite all this, they are sacrifices worth making.

Pet hair

One of the main issues of having a pet is the amount of hair they leave behind. As all pet owners will tell you it literally sticks to everything.  However you’ll find that particularly with wood flooring it is incredibly manageable. A wet mop will gather up any loose hairs, and is an incredibly effortless process that won’t take up too much time. A vacuum is not recommended as it will simply blow the hair around the room as opposed to removing it! Regularly brushing your pets can also help prevent excess shedding.

Scratching the floor

The next issue is scratching on the floor.  Unfortunately pets do more often than not have sharp nails that can cause some damage. Not all flooring is recommended but hardwood is probably the best bet, specifically with a brushed and oiled finish, it already has a ‘rough around the edges’ kind of finish so a few scratched won’t make much of a difference. Another great option is vinyl tiles as they are incredibly water resistant and durable, they are also far less likely to scratch and damage. If vinyl does scratch it can be replaced and refinished incredibly easily.

Little Accidents

Finally probably the worst hazard, but easily avoided is urine and other accidents. Unfortunately in the early days whilst your pet acclimatizes to its new environment accidents can occur.  But after a little bit of training, pardon the pun, they dry up. Vinyl flooring doesn’t stain easily so is probably the best bet.  It’s also incredibly water resistant as mentioned before. If it happens on carpets, once you’ve dried the area down with a towel/dry cloth, a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water sprayed over the area with baking soda will neutralise it, and clear the carpet of stains.

Pets truly are a wonderful addition to bring into your life.  Simple accidents and mistakes are expected however don’t let it put you off. When people say they are a friend for life, they don’t say it lightly! We hope our guide has helped you