pet friendly floor
27
Sep

Animal House: The Best Pet-Friendly Flooring | #Blog Post #25

What kind of flooring is best for you and your pet? Today, we discuss what you should consider when choosing an interior surfacing material for a pet-friendly household to maximise your peace of mind and your furry friend’s comfort.

puppy and kitten gif
The editor apologises in advance for the amount of cat/dog gifs in this post.

Vetting Your Floors

While every pet has its quirks, there are some good general rules that you can consider when choosing a floor that is comfortable for your pet and will last a long time.

How pet-friendly is your current floor surface material and to what means will you go to just to protect your floor? ©tenorgif

Scratch Resistance
Skittering claws and rough-housing will scuff up your floors really quickly without a high level of scratch resistance.

cat claws
Sometimes an innocent stretch or playful scrambling around the house by your fur-baby is enough to leave a mark.©safebee

Stain/Chemical Resistance
Toilet-trained cats and dogs are great – they rarely have accidents when going number one or two. However, on the occasion that they do, you’d want a stain-resistant floor that cleans up well, and a chemical-resistant floor that will tolerate cleansers. Spilled food or drool are also potential hazards.

dog drooling
We can't put an image or gif of a pet doing their business, but drool is good enough ©giphy

Slip Resistance
Recall having nightmares where you’re trying to run but you just don’t move? Don’t subject your fur babies to the same horror! A floor that provides good traction allows your pet to move with more comfort and safely land from higher surfaces.

dog on slippery floor
Slippery floors are not hazardous to your pets, but to you as well. ©giphy

Porosity
With pets around the house, it is even more important to clean your floors regularly. Materials with fewer pores trap less dirt and organic debris, making it easier to keep your floors clean.

cat sunglasses gif
Let's begin our comparison on the most pet-friendly floor! ©giphy

A Bone To Pick

With the above considerations in mind, here is how some of the most common flooring types hold up in a fur-friendly household.

dog dirt paw vinyl floor
Vinyl: Cheap and easily replaced. ©carpetdepotdouglasville

Vinyl/Linoleum: 4/5
Scratch Resistance: 2/5
Stain/Chemical Resistance: 4/5
Slip Resistance: 5/5
Porosity: 5/5

Tends to scratch easily, even with a wear-resistant layer. However, vinyl and linoleum provide a softer flooring that reduces the noise of pets running around. Vinyl will permanently stain when exposed to natural rubber products, such as non-slip food dishes or water bowls.

dog on ceramic tile
Contrary to popular belief, ceramic and porcelain tiles are very easily scratched despite being extremely hard. ©quiet-corner

Ceramic/Porcelain: 2.5/5
Scratch Resistance: 2/5
Stain/Chemical Resistance: 3/5
Slip Resistance: 2/5
Porosity: 1-3/5

Ceramic and porcelain tend to scratch easily and generally do not provide good traction. While matte tiles give more grip, most pets still slip on ceramic tiles. The porosity of ceramic and grout also contribute to dirtier floors. Some types of ceramic and porcelain tiles can be permanently stained by pet urine as well.

cat on marble floor
Marble is exquisite, luxurious.. and not a very good choice if you have pets. ©cachorrogato

Marble: 1.5-2/5
Scratch Resistance: 1/5
Stain/Chemical Resistance: 1/5
Slip Resistance: 2/5
Porosity: 2/5; 4/5

Marble is not pet-friendly. It scratches and stains easily, provides poor traction, and is highly porous. Even if sealed to mitigate porosity, the sealed layer is easily scratched off by active pets. Urine, spilled food, and pet drool are big hazards when considering staining. A small pro is that many pets enjoy lying on its cool surface.

dog slip on hardwood floor gif
Let's just emphasise on the importance of traction at home. ©giphy

Hardwood: 2.3/5
Scratch Resistance: 2/5
Stain/Chemical Resistance: 3/5
Slip Resistance: 1/5
Porosity: 3/5

Even when sealed by a protective layer, hardwood is prone to scratches from active pets. Any breaches in the protective layer exposes the wood.

metallic epoxy marble kitchen floor
With metallic epoxy floor coatings and its replenishable protective topcoat, you can be sure of a right choice for your interior surface.

Metallic Epoxy: 4.5/5
Scratch Resistance: 4/5
Stain/Chemical Resistance: 5/5
Slip Resistance: 4/5
Porosity: 5/5

In all regards, epoxy is a perfect material for a pet-friendly household. Besides providing good traction and wear resistance, the material’s slight ductility absorbs impact well and reduces noises produced by playful pets. Vigorous scrubbing with any household cleanser also allows you to keep your floors clean.

metallic epoxy pet friendly living room floor
Metallic Epoxy Singapore coatings are not only pet-friendly, they are baby-safe and food-safe!

Fluffy, Furry and… Scaly?

Reviewing our choices, your best bet for a pet-friendly flooring is indisputably vinyl, linoleum, and metallic epoxy. If you’re looking for a budget-friendly option, vinyl and linoleum are cheap to install or replace. However, they are far less durable than metallic epoxy.

cat trip girl gif
Be wary of cheap products though! They just might scratch you back when you least expect it. ©giphy

Metallic epoxy also offers a drastically larger range of designs, considering that you’re able to customise the colour, pattern, and pigment used during the installation. In contrast, vinyl and linoleum are limited by commercially printed designs.

While the remaining flooring types are still viable, you will be subject to the costs and hassle of regular maintenance, as well as the expense of your furry friend’s comfort.

Here are some interesting posts we think you may like as well!

“The Three Best Materials For Your Kitchen | Blog Post #20“

“The Three Best Materials For Your Bathroom | Blog Post #21“