Buying furniture for the comfort and beauty of your own home can be difficult, especially if you’re a dog owner. It’s a lot like trying to choose the best pet clothing and accessories for your fur baby, in a way. Not only do these items have to be comfortable or practical, but they must also suit your taste and be safe for your dog to use. Much like you would only purchase high-quality personalized martingale dog collars, toys, leashes, and other products, you’ll also want to pick the best pet-friendly furniture available on the market.
Not sure where to start? When choosing pet-friendly furniture, you have to think about it will affect your fur baby specifically. Read on to learn about a couple more things that pet owners should take into consideration before buying any furniture for the home:
Your Pet’s Breed, Size, and Behavior
If your pet is of a breed that is known to shed a lot, you may need to buy furniture with upholstery or coverings that fur can’t stick to or become embedded in. Your pet’s size matters as well for safety reasons. If they’re big and have a tendency to bump into furniture, you must be sure that they can’t topple it over by accident. So, pick pieces with a heavy or reinforced bottom.
Knowing their behaviors can also provide you with key information regarding what kinds of furniture you can get. If your dog tends to run around the living room, for example, you might want to forego getting a coffee table altogether. But if you have a dog that likes to rest under a dining table that you’re planning to replace, it shouldn’t be a problem. Just choose one that will provide enough room for your pup to rest under. However, it should also be sturdy enough so that it won’t move in case your pet accidentally bumps against it.
The Furniture’s Material
If your pup has sharp claws and loves scratching on things for whatever reason, you may need to go for a more durable material or an appropriate pet-safe furniture cover. Also, consider whether the furniture’s material may be damaging to your dogs’ teeth and claws. Marble surfaces can be tough on your dog’s claws, for example, and metal chairs and table legs could damage their teeth.
This is why wood furniture is highly recommended to pet owners. Depending on the type and thickness of the wood, these kinds of furniture typically won’t hurt your pup’s teeth or claws. The downside to this is that wood is soft enough to let determined dogs leave their mark on them—literally. Fortunately, most bite and scratch marks can be camouflaged using darker wood stains.
How Easy It Is to Clean the Furniture
Dogs love to lick, bite, and scratch sheets, furniture covers, couches, floors, and so much more. In the worst of cases, they may even vomit, pee, or poop on your furniture, especially if they’re not yet well-trained.
If you’re the owner of such a pup, it’s best to prepare for occurrences like these and invest in furniture made of pet-safe, sturdy materials. You can even look for furniture made of stain-resistant, easy-to-clean materials, if at all possible. Couches made of leather or pleather (fake leather), for instance, are often recommended because they’re easy to clean and don’t typically collect a lot of fur.
The Visual Design of the Furniture
Often, it’s best for pet owners to buy furniture that comes in patterned designs to better hide any markings made or any fur shed by a dog. The busy patterns will help the markings or stray hairs blend in a little better with the look and feel of the furniture.
Matching your furniture’s color to that of your fur color can also camouflage any shed dog hair. As a bonus, matching your furniture with your pet’s appearance can be aesthetically pleasing to the eyes.
The Size of the Furniture
When choosing furniture, size definitely matters, even more so if you own a pet. That said, you may have to find a middle ground between your ideal furniture size and your pup’s needs.
For instance, choosing a large couch can be advantageous if you have a large dog and want to cuddle with them while watching television. As a tradeoff, though, the space taken up by the couch means your pet won’t have as much room to run around in. This can be a drawback if you have an active pup or enjoy playing with them indoors.
Decorating with furniture is a great way to make your living space feel nice and cozy. The next time you feel like buying new furniture, make sure to think about the factors above before making any purchasing decision. That way, everyone in the family—furry friends included—can feel right at home.
