We all adore dogs, but even the sweetest, most angelic creature can become more difficult to love when you come home to a couch in tatters or a chair with a mauled leg. While dogs have many wonderful traits, chewing, biting, and scratching furniture are definitely not among them. If you’re preparing to bring a new puppy home, or you’re on a mission to carry out damage limitation in your living room, here’s a handy guide to protecting your furniture from dogs.
- Covering your furniture
If you’ve got a sofa you love or a favorite armchair, the last thing you want is for your coveted spot to be shredded or permanently covered in fur. Buying covers for your furniture is a simple, affordable means of protecting couches, benches, and chairs and prolonging their life expectancy. If you place a cover over your sofa, this will help to prevent scratching and holes caused by kneading, and it can also provide a shield for fur and dander. If you’re really keen to preserve your chairs and couches, it’s best to avoid letting your dogs climb and settle on them.
- Wipe-clean furniture and flooring
We all know that dogs can be messy creatures. Muddy paws and coats covered in puddle water can change the color of pristine white or cream carpets, throws, and sofas in an instant. If you have dogs, it’s wise to consider investing in wipe-clean furniture and flooring. Leather and faux-leather sofas and tile and vinyl flooring, for example, are much easier to keep clean than tiles, carpets, and plush couches.
- Toys, diet and exercise
Dogs tend to be very energetic and active creatures, and when they’re not enjoying a snooze, they like to be busy. If your dog is bored, there’s a much higher risk of them finding entertainment by gnawing on a table leg or trying to eat a cushion. To minimize the risk of damaged furniture or semi-digested slippers, keep your dog entertained with toys, ensure they get plenty of exercise and don’t forget to fill their tummies with healthy pet food. If your dog likes to chew, buy them toys that will keep their teeth occupied for hours. It’s also a great idea to shut them out of spaces where you have valuable or much-loved pieces of furniture if you’re going out.
- Invest in a comfy bed
Dogs like to get comfy, and this is why they tend to gravitate towards sofas and armchairs. If you regularly find your pup snoring away on the sofa, or you have to keep telling them to get down, provide them with a sumptuous alternative. There are some fabulous dog beds out there, with a vast range of styles available. If your dog has a bed they can curl up in and catch forty winks, the couch might not be so appealing.
As much as you love your dog, you don’t want to arrive home to a living room in disarray. Invest in chair and sofa covers, make sure your dog has a comfortable, cozy bed of their own, keep them busy with toys and plenty of exercise, and consider buying furniture that is easy to clean and maintain.
