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How to Protect Your New Floors from Your Pets

Every pet owner has stories to tell about some of the things that their pets have done to the floors.  Whether it’s a pet that can’t get outside in time, mud being tracked in, or hair and oils from the pet’s coat, having a pet can wreak havoc on a nice floor.  Fortunately, there are […]

Every pet owner has stories to tell about some of the things that their pets have done to the floors.  Whether it’s a pet that can’t get outside in time, mud being tracked in, or hair and oils from the pet’s coat, having a pet can wreak havoc on a nice floor.  Fortunately, there are some things you can do in order to minimize the damage and keep your new floors looking nice.

Consider Pretreating the Carpet

Have you ever noticed that people with pristine furniture tend to be proactive in its care?  This includes applying a stain blocker to the fabric on a regular basis to help keep dirt and other things from sticking to it.

Well, a carpet is no different.  You can purchase a number of products that are designed to protect your carpet from stains ever taking hold.  The most popular is probably Scotch Gard, but there are any number of other companies with similar products on the market.

If you have a carpet you may want to consider pretreating it in the high-traffic areas.  Doing this on a regular basis can help minimize the number of stains that you have to work on later.

Trim Your Pet’s Nails

If you have wood floors you probably already know the type of damage that a pet’s claws can do.  To minimize the chances of scratching, keep on top of your pet’s nails and keep them trimmed.  This is a good idea even if you don’t have wood floors because shorter nails will not carry as much mud into the home (and onto the carpets).  Remember that when a pet has long nails, they tend to scoop deeper into mud and bring more of it in.  Further, mud can get caught in the crevices of the nails and fall off in your home.  By reducing the length of your pet’s toenails you reduce the amount of mud they will carry with them.

Get Your Pet a Good Bed

One reason pets track in so much mud is they come inside with wet or muddy paws and head straight to their favorite spot, tracking mud as they go.  You can fix this by getting them a nice bed such as a StainMaster Pet Bed.  Put the bed in a nice spot near the door and your pet will go hang out there while its paws dry.  This will greatly reduce the number of times you have to follow along behind your pet cleaning mud splotches from the floor.


Having a pet does not mean that you cannot have a new (and nice!) floor.  Rather than resigning yourself to an existence of continuous cleaning the floors—or abandoning your hope of having nice floors—take some steps to minimize the amount of dirt that your pet brings into your home, and the impact that the dirt it does bring in house. By following these tips you can help keep your floors looking great while enjoying your pets at the same time.