Household Pets and Your Wooden Floor
Posted September 29, 2020 by Litchfield Floor Renovations
We’re a nation of animal lovers and more of us than ever before have one or more pets sharing our family home. Whilst these loveable creatures bring us hours of entertainment and much joy, they can also cause problems for your wooden floors.
As your trusted local flooring experts, we’ve identified some of the biggest risks to wooden floors for you and your pets and how to mitigate against them.
Scratches: Pets, especially larger dogs can cause scratches to wooden floors with their claws if they are prone to running or jumping around. Whilst there is little you can do to change your pets personality traits, there are a few ways to protect your floor from the damage.
Keeping claws trimmed: If your pets claws have far exceeded the pad on their foot, it means there is an increased risk they could scratch your floor. Dogs claws can be worn down by either walking them on concrete or paths, asking your vet to clip their claws, or clipping them at home with appropriate tools. A top tip is you can hear when your pets claws have gotten too long on your wooden floor, you will hear them tapping as your pet runs across the floor.
Strategically placed rugs: Is there a particular area of your home where you pet is more likely to run or jump, maybe the front door for example. If you identify an area where your floor is in particular risk, a rug can be a great alternative to protect your floor. An additional bonus is it will give your pet extra traction for their antics too!
Pet Urine: It is important to clean up any pet urine on your wooden floor as soon as you see it. Liquid sitting on the floor for long periods of time can cause water damage to your floor. Also some pet urine, such as dog, also has ammonia in, which can cause staining and discolouration to your floor.
What to do if your pet has damaged your wooden floor
If your pet has damaged your floor, it is easily repairable and can look as good as new again. Even large ammonia stains or scratches can be easily removed. As with all damage, it is important to get it fixed as soon as the damage is noticed to prevent any further problems with the floor.
