As a pet-owner, you know that home wouldn’t feel like home without your best furry friend. Living with animals gives coming home an extra bit of joy. Whether you live with a dog, a cat, or both, there’s nothing like the unconditional love an animal brings. But living with animals also brings a particular kind of mess to it. They shed, they scratch, they kick litter all over the floor, and every so often one of them leaves a hairball on the floor. But with some smart decorating tricks, you won’t have to get mad at your beloved pets because they’ve made a mess.
Get Dark Floors
Dark flooring is the most forgiving when it comes to animals. Choose a darker stain for hardwood if you’re moving into a new home or doing some renovations. It will help hide scratches and messes, but also keep in mind the color of your pet’s fur. Light-furred animals will obviously leave much more noticeable fur on dark furniture and floors. You may want to skip rugs and stick to hardwood if you have animals, but if you insist, it’s also a good idea to go with darker colors here.
Find a Durable Sofa
Using indoor/outdoor furniture can save you a lot of money as a pet-owner. A sofa is going to take a lot of wear and tear if you have boisterous dogs jumping all over them. More and more indoor/outdoor furniture has taken on an indoor look. One alternative if you can’t find anything that suits your tastes is using commercial grade furniture, which is made for heavy wear and tear.
Install Shorter Curtains
The style with curtains today is that they should pool a few inches on the floor, but if you own pets you know that you’re inviting them to take a nice long nap in the sun on them, leaving their fur all over the curtains and potentially even pulling them down. You don’t want curtains that are too short and leave too much space above the floor. A great way to fix this is hanging curtains that hover, meaning they stop right at the floor. You can install new curtains that are pet-friendly without breaking with a fashionable look.
Hybrid Crates / Credenzas
Hate the way the dog crate looks and how much space it takes up? Take a look at hybrid furniture that combines furniture with dog beds and dog crates. You can combine your end table or your credenza with a spacious dog crate or find a coffee table that fits a dog bed underneath. These space-efficient solutions are a great way to give your animals a space of their own.
Invest in Training
Last but not least, take the time and effort to train your animals. Go to behavior classes and follow up with regular training for your dogs or being smart about discouraging your cat from scratching furniture. You can save yourself a lot of grief by following trainers’ advice or asking your vet how to discourage cats from scratching. When it comes to cats, you can use a sheet to protect your sofa, or even use Soft Paws Nail coverings.
Make your living room pet-friendly and save yourself a lot of worry.
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