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I used to have a nice couch and love seat but after fostering cats, they've torn the leather up. And that's my way to get around the situation -- The nice pieces of inherited furniture are behind closed doors, away from the cats. That means the rest of the house has sturdy but worn furniture. I'm thinking of changing up and replacing some furniture, bringing out items now that I think our cats are 'older' and less playful.
I'm presently looking at two side chairs that are draped to keep the cat claws off. *sigh* Is second hand furniture the only option? Are there sturdy fabrics out there?
What do you do to have a house you enjoy/love yet is pet friendly? Curious what other pet lovers do.
I used to have a nice couch and love seat but after fostering cats, they've torn the leather up. And that's my way to get around the situation -- The nice pieces of inherited furniture are behind closed doors, away from the cats. That means the rest of the house has sturdy but worn furniture. I'm thinking of changing up and replacing some furniture, bringing out items now that I think our cats are 'older' and less playful.
I'm presently looking at two side chairs that are draped to keep the cat claws off. *sigh* Is second hand furniture the only option? Are there sturdy fabrics out there?
What do you do to have a house you enjoy/love yet is pet friendly? Curious what other pet lovers do.
We have old, cheap stuff that we don't care about, and even that is heavily padded and protected.
The furniture isn't my main concern. It's those door frames they use to sharpen their claws. Lordie, it's a trade off. You just have to decide which is more important, I guess.
This has been an issue with our cats. I've decided that leather furniture is just a non-starter. They seem to do better with cloth furniture. The best thing is to be really diligent about clipping claws. Years ago I used to use a small water pistol and that helped although I haven't done it lately. We are about to move. We have a couple of sofas that are the cloth material that looks like it is a leather/vinyl (I didn't really want it, but that was how the sofas were made with the features we wanted -- recliners, etc.). They have scratched on them and it doesn't look great in a few places. But, the sofas were expensive because of the recline features and some of the other electronics which all work great so I don't want to replace them.
I am going to keep that furniture in the family room. We have a new "nice" sofa (cloth) we will keep in the formal living room where people will see it coming in. None of that is really ideal but is the best I've come up with.
I used to have a nice couch and love seat but after fostering cats, they've torn the leather up. And that's my way to get around the situation -- The nice pieces of inherited furniture are behind closed doors, away from the cats. That means the rest of the house has sturdy but worn furniture. I'm thinking of changing up and replacing some furniture, bringing out items now that I think our cats are 'older' and less playful.
I'm presently looking at two side chairs that are draped to keep the cat claws off. *sigh* Is second hand furniture the only option? Are there sturdy fabrics out there?
What do you do to have a house you enjoy/love yet is pet friendly? Curious what other pet lovers do.
As my hubby says, "The pets eat better than I do!"
After I started this post, I did some online research. Indoor/outdoor fabrics, crypton super fabric, denim, and canvas were recommended for pets. (Sturdy and easy to clean, stain resistant) If you can get samples of the fabric and bring them home, rub one on your pet, see how the pattern/color/texture hides the pet fur. Avoid whites. (Well. . . DUH) Tight weave and texture are recommended . . I love the idea of throws over the area the pet sleeps on - Protecting your fabrics. Throws or slip covers can be tossed or washed.
They mentioned a 'cheap easy' rug replacement with sisal/seagrass. I wonder who's pocket book they're thinking about? They're not cheap! Now we did pick up a small seagrass rug our neighbors tossed in their trash. The cats do leave that alone. hrm…..
I have 3 cats and they don't scratch up furniture. I have put out scratching pads for them (and they like to use the rug ). When I catch them trying to use the furniture, I stop them.
They do have stuff that you can put on your furniture to discourage scratching.
I’ve had cats my whole life, right now two, had three. They haven’t damaged very much at all. I do clip their nails all the time, they love their rope cat scratch, use catnip on it. and they actually obey when I say No. Brush them weekly. Keep the litter box clean.
When they do damage it’s usually my fault, cat scratch pole worn out or no kitty toys. The one thing I don’t decorate with is plants because they will barf that. But other than that, not a problem.
. . . My cats are nocturnal and love to come out and play at night. I do have scratching posts and tile floors, I do what I can. I do need to improve on nail trimming. Mine don't sharped their claws a lot but these are 12lb+ cats. Big cats, big claws.
I have one cat that doesn't groom. Think mats
One cat that over grooms. Think longhaired going hairless
The other with the iffy stomach, all year long, not just in the spring. Even after teeth cleaning!
Has anyone brought patio furniture inside? I was looking at a metal rocking chair and wondered how that'd do on my tile floors.
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). When I catch them trying to use the furniture, I stop them. 
