Well, that depends who’s asking; humans or dogs!
In the past we have regarded ‘pet friendly’ as a floors system that is easy to clean and maintain in an environment with pets. Smooth hard floors are excellent at keeping out ingrained dirt, however they are not the best solution for all of us in the family. What we have sometimes not considered is what our beloved dogs require;
Slippery floors are a significant contributor to chronic pain and arthritis in dogs, due to injury from slips. For dogs with existing arthritis it is essential that flooring issues are addressed.
Most dogs in the UK live in their owner’s home, and may spend up to 90% of their life in that environment. If there are steps that they repeatedly struggle up and down, floors they repeatedly slip on, or solid cold beds they repeatedly sleep on, their condition will not improve as they will continue to injure themselves.
Your dog’s lack of ability to correct and therefore protect themselves when they slip or have to negotiate difficult paths will leave them prone to further trauma.
A slippery floor, be it wooden, laminate, or tile is very hazardous for an arthritic dog that already has weak & painful limbs. Repeated slips, no matter how small, will progress the clinical signs of arthritis.
So when choosing your next Floor system please take into account the slip-resistance of your choice;
Floors for Paws has a BS 7976 pendulum slip-test result of 85 PTV.
