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You love your fur babies a lot, and, with the potential exception of a few grumpy cats, they love you too. You also love having nice furniture in your home. Having quality furniture that will last for a long time can save you money and help make your house feel like home.
Unfortunately, sometimes pets and furniture aren’t the best companions. Anyone who has come home to chewed, scratched, or stained furniture, knows the frustration and annoyance that can come from your animal behaving like, well, an animal.
Is there a way to help your pets and your furniture to peacefully coexist? Are there types of fabrics that will stand up to puppy paws, cat claws, and your roommate’s ferret, ironically named Weasley? How do you buy furniture with your pet’s needs in mind as well as yours?
The answer may be more simple than you think. At Furniture Fair, we love animals almost as much as we love quality home furnishings, and we want to make sure that you are happy with both when you come home after a long day.
This helpful guide will help you determine what to look for when buying furniture for a home with pets and how to help keep your pets occupied and away from your couch cushions and table legs. Read on to learn more about how to buy pet-friendly furniture.
Fabric upholstered furniture is sadly never completely pet-proof or stain-proof. While many modern fabrics can resist moisture and stains, there is always the chance that your fabric could be stained, clawed, or scratched by your pets.
Unfortunately, the easiest way to keep your pet from wreaking havoc on the furniture is to train them not to be on the furniture in the first place. While your animals may not like it, keeping them off your sofa or loveseat is the simplest way to make sure your upholstery and wood are protected.
However, many pet owners already know that cuddling with their little fur baby is most likely going to take precedence over having the perfect, spotless armchair. For those of you who are too tender-hearted to keep Madam Floofykins away from your couch cushions, there are ways to help reduce the potential wear of pets on furniture.
Knowing your pet might seem like a no-brainer, but it bears mentioning. Working knowledge of your pet’s behaviors and routines can help prevent accidents on your new rug or claw marks on your custom-designed sofa.
Ensure the dog or cat has access to the outside or the litter box so that they won’t be tempted to do their business on your upholstery. With consistent routines or access to a litterbox, your animal will be more likely to keep from having an accident.
If you have a dog who happens to have minor accidents when they get too excited, consider getting performance fabrics designed to repel moisture and always have a good spot cleaning solution on hand that won’t damage your fabric.
If your dog or cat likes to scratch, dig, or claw at things, you may want to consider using a tightly woven fabric with performance materials or an upholstered piece with a pattern that is less likely to show the marks.
Consider using living room upholstery such as textured leather or textured faux leather, which can hide cat scratches better than smooth leather and offers easier hair removal while being odor-resistant and easy to clean. Avoid more delicate fabrics such as velvets, silks, tweeds, and chenilles, as these fabrics are harder to keep clean.
The best way to avoid your animals mistaking your sectional for a scratching post is to have an alternative scratching post or a toy to keep them occupied. Your little rascals are more likely, with encouragement, to learn what they can and shouldn’t scratch or claw.
Don’t forget to trim your pet’s claws regularly. Consistent nail trimming will help reduce your pet’s need to scratch and file their nails on your furniture.
If you have a particularly slobbery puppy or a big dog who still thinks he’s a puppy, drooling, licking, and chewing may be an issue with your furniture. Chewing can damage wood sections of your furniture, while drool marks can make your couch look like it’s been left in the rain.
The best way to keep your pet from damaging or staining your furniture is to use performance upholstery. Brands like Revolution Fabrics, OptiCLEAN, LiveSmart, and more offer fabrics designed to stand up to drool, mud, and other stains such as food stains.
For chewing, the best way to keep a dog or cat from the temptation of those tasty-looking chair legs is to provide them with ample alternatives. Chew toys, bones, rawhides, catnip toys, and treats can be good distractions and a way to reinforce that they have items that are way tastier than some wooden or leather furniture pieces.
While more of a nuisance than an actual damaging factor, shedding can be a prominent indicator of how often your pet is on your furniture. A lovely patterned fabric or a similar color to your animal’s fur can help make your pet’s shedding less evident until you are ready to clean it.
Most stores sell lint rollers or pet-specific shedding removers to help you remove the pet hair. A great preventative measure to take is grooming your pet regularly. A good brushing will remove that shedding hair before it comes into contact with the couch.
Sadly, your pets aren’t perfect, and accidents do happen. Whether due to your pet or other household mishaps, your furniture is prone to getting stains, cosmetic damage, rips, tears, or even burn marks. The best way to defend against these annoyances is a protection plan.
The Premium Plus Protection Plan is the perfect plan to meet your needs, covering fabric upholstery, leather and vinyl, wood, case goods, and other hard-surface furniture. Most manufacturers' warranties only cover up to a year, whereas The Premium Plus Protection Plan provides peace of mind coverage. A summary of the features of the plan is listed below.
The Premium Plus Protection Plan is good for five years from the date of delivery. If there are no claims on your protection policy, you have six months to contact Furniture Fair for your gift certificate in the amount of the purchase price of your protection plan.
The gift certificate may be used at any Furniture Fair location and must be redeemed in a year from the plan’s expiration date on purchasing at least twice the amount of the gift certificate. It is the responsibility of the consumer to claim the gift certificate within six months of the plan’s expiration.
Protections plans cover accidental damage which occurs during everyday residential use, including:
The protection plan plan DOES NOT COVER outdoor furniture, adjustable bases, or clearance merchandise or mechanical and structural breakdowns as a result of:
With a premium plus protection program, on the off chance that your pet does have an accident or decides to make a meal out of your couch cushions, you are covered for that incident.
Your pets are a wonderful part of your life, and your furniture is a valuable part of your life. Thankfully, with a bit of thought and patience, you can get the best of both worlds. Don’t let your fear of stains and claw marks keep you from buying your dream furniture.
Remember to keep your pets well-groomed and occupied with chew toys and scratching posts, and teach them not to chew on your sofa. Keep in mind that performance fabrics and patterns will help reduce visible marks and stains.
Don’t forget that a good protection plan will help save your furniture from damage, should your pet have an accident. Most importantly, remember that the number one way to avoid pet damage is keeping your pets off your furniture.
If you are looking for furniture that will hold up a little more under pet usage, consider checking out Furniture Fair. Furniture Fair is located in the Cincinnati, Dayton, and Louisville areas and has a wide selection of brands that feature performance fabrics and solid wood designs.
Visit one of our 11 convenient locations or schedule an appointment online so you can get the best of both quality and performance for you and your pets.
