Flooring With Pets in the Home

Having a pet at home doesn't mean you have to settle for low cost, low quality flooring that's easily replaceable. Learn to protect your floors with area rugs and you'll find that you are your furry friend will both be happier.

Whether you're a cat lover or a dog lover-or you love exotic animals like ferrets-you can relate to the vision of coming home to see your favorite pet laying on your brand new carpet, slobbering in his sleep. And who can shake off the heebie jeebies of the nightmarish tales of furry friends using nature as a toiler and your new white carpet as a wiping station-this scenario is so common, it's even become a cringe inducing and award winning television commercial.

So what can you do to keep your home clean and pet friendly...and to keep your pet home friendly?

If you haven't tried introducing you pet to a pet bed, now if the time. If you can teach your beloved furry friend to sleep in a per bed, you'll have a much easier time keeping your home clean and looking like new.

If you've already tried a pet bed and your pet just won't have any of it, the next best solution is to lay down area rugs as part of your major décor. Laying down area rugs in the places your pet likes to frequent the most for naps, belly rubs, back rubs and general horsing around will help keep your carpet in tip top shape over a longer period of time.

Area rugs, unlike carpets, are meant to take a beating and are produced with heavy canvas backing and thick piles in the case of high quality area rugs so they won't let you down as quickly as fragile, light colored carpet can. The best part about choosing a high quality area rug is that it will not only look amazing in your home, but a high quality area rug is also stain resistant, durable and fade resistant. So now matter how much your pet loves your area rugs or how many times you clean them, your area rugs will continue looking and feeling like new.

The other benefit to this option is being able to choose where you want your area rugs and what styles of area rugs you want around your home. Choose an oriental area rug for your living room and a modern area rug for your study or the other way around. You can decorate every room in your home to give it a unique feel and look while you're protecting it from your pet at the same time.

Additionally, it's important to remember that area rugs, unlike carpets, are easily replaceable. If you have a furry friend that likes to sharpen his kitty claws on the carpets or you have a feisty pup that likes to chew, you don't have to worry about a large holes appearing in your carpets. And if your pets are new to the clan, they may be tempted to mark their territory. It's much easier to clean up the smell of pet urine from an area rug, than it is to clean it out of your carpets.