What is the Best Pet Friendly Flooring?

The absolute best pet friendly flooring would be wall to wall stainless steel with a gigantic floor drain and power washers everywhere for some pet owners. For others, they might prefer lush green artificial grass everywhere and a staff of pooper scooper attendants on call. Sound ridiculous? Maybe a little but the best pet friendly flooring really does depend on how you set your priorities.

Today, we’re going to go over some of the considerations you can make part of your decision-making process so all your people and pets will be as happy as can be. It’s all about the type of floor that meets your needs.

 What kind of pets and how many?

A couple of Teacup Yorkies and a cat are about as low maintenance as you can get when it comes to flooring. Just about any flooring would work. A good quality, stain-resistant carpet will last for years and there’s nothing better than watching amazing cat agility when they can get a good grip on the floor.

On the other hand, two giant, slobbering 200 pound mastiffs or lovable Newfoundlands might just eat your whole carpeting for a snack when you leave them alone at home. In this case, carpet tile might be a little better but there are other options.

Will the pets be primarily in one or two rooms?

Do your pets have the run of the house and there’s no telling where they’re going to be hanging out most of the time? If so, you might want to keep budget in mind to cover most if not all your floor area.

Let’s say your pets spend most of their time in the kitchen. They eat and drink there. They play there. And the kitchen door is their primary access to your backyard. This makes things pretty easy for you.

Hard-wearing porcelain tiles, luxury vinyl floors, (vinyl plank or continuous sheet) and even a top-notch bamboo floor with excellent scratch resistance might work. The best flooring is impervious to the odd dog accident and cat urine. Of course, it’s still a chore cleaning up but it won’t soak through to the underlayment.

How do you balance easy-to-clean with comfort?

Beautiful hardwood floors and quality porcelain tile floors are the easiest keep clean but they can be a little tough on the tushy for you and your pets. Regularly sweeping and an occasional damp mop makes it easy to clean. However, wrestling around on the floor might leave you with a bruise tor two. I will say, watching a furry friend “spin its wheels” trying to get going on a slippery floor is more fun than my favorite sitcom.

How much wear and tear do you expect?

Some people spend a lot of time keep their floors and floor coverings pristine as possible. They take their shoes off outside. The sweep, vacuum and mop several times a week. And their floors will last forever.

Not me and my family. We really want to try to take our shoes off but it doesn’t last longer than a week or two. Be honest with yourself. And then, pick the floor you want according to your needs.

Where do you live and what’s the climate like?

If you’re in the northeast and during the winter they salt the roads, you may want to opt for durability over comfort. If you live in the humid southeast, be careful with which type of wood floors you’re considering.

Here is a quick overview of some different types of flooring.

Vinyl Flooring

This is not your dad’s vinyl flooring. In the last few years, luxury vinyl tile flooring has made a big comeback and it’s because the technology has revolutionized installation, performance, format and just about everything else.

Benefits:

• Cost effective
• Infinite designs
• Many different formats
• Excellent DIY interlocking installation methods
• Mark resistant, waterproof, stain resistant, sound absorbent
• Definitely pet friendly flooring
• Compatible with radiant heat flooring systems
• Easy clean up

Downside:

• May hurt resale value of your home
• Less environmentally friendly
• Depending on quality/cost, it can dull

Ceramic/Porcelain Tile Flooring

This flooring is timeless. It literally has been used for thousands and thousands of years.

Benefits:

• If installed correctly, it can last forever
• Most choices are waterproof and scratch resistant
• Easy to clean
• Cool to the touch
• Excellent for warm climates

Downside:

• If you change your mind once it’s been installed, the removal process is very expensive and time consuming.
• Surface is very hard and unforgiving to anything dropped on it
• Not suitable for all construction methods. Works best with poured concrete floors

Laminate Flooring

A cheap and cheerful choice.

Benefits:

• Low cost
• Easy for DIY projects
• Scratch resistant
• Easy to install and uninstall
• Water resistant depending on quality/brand

Downside:

• Loud underfoot
• Long term water damage can occur if not properly maintained
• Slick surface for pets to walk on

Bamboo Flooring

Here again, bamboo flooring has made tremendous stride due to the developments in bonding technology. It’s a trendy choice and a renewable resource.

Benefits:

• Can be more reasonably priced vs solid hardwood flooring
• Extremely dent resistant, significantly more than oak
• Easy to maintain

Downside:

• Can be affective by humid climate
• Depending on the finish used, can be susceptible to scratches from pets

Engineered Wood Flooring

It’s a relative newcomer to the flooring world but it has impressed everyone with it’s performance and durability.

Benefits:

• Impressive variety of configurations, textures, patterns, finishes, colors and natural wood elements
• Overcomes the warping and movement all other natural flooring products can be susceptible to
• Extremely durable multi-layered factory finishes
• Warm to the touch

Downside:

• Less expensive than solid hardwood floors but still more than some other flooring options
• Cannot easily be refinished
• Not as waterproof as some of the other choices

Solid Wood Floors

These floors can be stunning and last a lifetime. In some homes, nothing else will do.

Benefits:

• Adds great value to your home
• Can be refinished several times
• Warm to the touch

Downside:

• Expensive and expensive to install properly
• Can wear quickly and require refinishing
• May not be suitable for wet environments

Carpet

One of the most common and well known of the floor coverings. It’s been around for a long, long time and its performance is well understood.

Benefits:

• One of the most pet friendly flooring choices in terms of their comfort
• Infinite variety of colors and textures
• Professional installation is done quickly

Downside:

• The most difficult to clean when it comes to pet and dog accidents
• Will trap hair and dander
• Requires regular cleaning/shampoo

Dan Ratcliff

Dan Ratcliff is the CEO and President of Flooring Direct in Dallas / Fort Worth. Over the last two decades, he has grown Flooring Direct into a premier Shop-at-Home traditional & hardwood flooring company. With a true dedication to customer service and integrity, Flooring Direct has become DFW's largest highest-rated Dallas-local flooring dealer. Dan has lived in Dallas all of his life and was raised in Dallas with family roots and love for the community and local sports. It's with that sense of family that Flooring Direct has contributed to and sponsored children's organizations like Jonathan's Place and scholastic athletics like Plano's Girls Soccer.