Does Dog Pee damage laminate flooring?

Unless you are a quick draw on the mop; dog urine will damage laminate flooring, real wood flooring, engineered wood and tile grout.

Dog pee generally has a PH neutral reading at first but if left it will become acidic. This is what damages certain types of flooring. (It is also what causes the strong odour)

Unfortunately with a lot of flooring the pee will be absorbed into the floor itself or underneath and this is what can make the issue very difficult and expensive.

If you have these types of floors you need to clean the spill/accident immediately to prevent damage to your flooring.

Laminate:
The effect it will have on a laminate floor is that it can cause swelling of the planks, and create a nasty odour once it seeps through to your sub-floor. Once the pee has penetrated the top of the laminate you will need to lift the whole floor in order to clean up the mess.

Real wood/engineered flooring:
Without immediate attention dog pee will damage your wood flooring, so you must wipe up spills as soon as they occur. If this is not possible you will need to sanding down the top layer of the  flooring to remove stains/damage.

Tile Grout:
If dog pee is absorbed into the grout lines you will need to apply a bleach solution to bring the grout back to white. If you are a dog owner it is advisable to use a dark coloured grouting, however  the smell will impregnate all unsealed grout lines so cleaning can become a chore.

The solution: Floors For Paws
Floors For Paws is 100% waterproof and hypo-allergenic. It will not absorb pee or allow it to seep through. You can rest assure that however long it is left on our flooring it will not stain or mark.

Wherever your dog goes; go Floors For Paws https://www.floorsforpaws.com/free-samples/

Blizzard’s case study – Dog and Floor anxiety

Like humans; dogs have good long-term memories in the form of associative memories and similar to humans their behaviours are triggered by these memories (good or bad) We use positive association to encourage certain behaviour from our beloved companions, however as is life dogs have experiences that leave ‘bad memories’ or bad associations.

One of the negative associations that some dogs can have is of an experience on a floor type, that has perhaps caused them to slip, or injure themselves on. This can lead to anxiety over certain types of flooring that will affect dog and owner going forward.

Unlike humans; dogs cannot differentiate between a location or specific floor that caused them upset, and for this reason some dogs will be anxious on flooring that looks similar to that which they had an experience on. This issue is larger than you may expect, and we have come across it on numerous occasions.

Blizzard and Floors For Paws

Last spring 2018 we received an email from Harry Burrell in Harrogate.  Over the last few years his beautiful dog Blizzard had developed a phobia to certain types of flooring which prevented Harry from going into many public areas with Blizzard and also his own Kitchen/Diner.

From a puppy starting to go out walking and visiting places Blizzard has had a phobia to certain types of flooring which made going into many public areas difficult. Blizzard would struggle to walk on most floorings other than carpet, including his own Kitchen/Diner which had a laminate floor that was inherited.

Harry was in the process of a home renovation and hoped to have another hard flooring in his Kitchen/diner for the benefits of ease of maintenance, cleanliness and a hypo-allergenic environment. However due to Blizzards anxiety with hard flooring Harry would quite rightly not consider it unless Blizzard was comfortable with the change of floor type. We invited them both over to Floors For Paws house to see how Blizzard would cope.

We allowed Blizzard to slowly walk over the threshold onto our entrance mat. This is where Blizzard stayed for the first few minutes. In a dog’s mind if a floor looks anything like a floor that had previously been an issue it may as well be the same floor. With patience and gentle encouragement form Harry, Blizzard slowly took her first steps on the flooring. Her claws were clenched to begin with but slowly and once the brain associated the floor with safe footing the paws became relaxed and a slow but normal gait became apparent.

After 20 minutes Blizzard was walking all over the floor with a renewed confidence.

Once Harry had completed his renovation using our Wychwood design wood effect flooring we were very interested to see how Blizzard was reacting to it. Harry sent us this Trustpilot review;

https://uk.trustpilot.com/reviews/5cf4f504b05599053889f82a

Since the review Harry has commented that; ‘We are continuing to see improvements on the floor and I am delighted with the difference it has made.’

Our Pawsafe Domestic range and our Luxury Vinyl range are supplied in a choice of plank or tile options in a range of attractive wood- and stone-effect finishes to satisfy the most house proud amongst us.

How your dog will react to new flooring

As you know Floors For Paws has an industry leading slip rating and is embossed with grain effect to aid in your dog’s safe movement around the home and at work. If the area you have laid Floors For Paws has had another floor covering previously this will be a significant change in their environment so it is important to look at the factors involved for them when you have your Floors For Paws installed.

If you have previously had smooth flooring such as engineered wood, ceramic or porcelain tile, or any such non-profiled floor covering your dog will enjoy the extra grip our flooring gives them, but it still a change in their lives that they need to adjust to.

If you have had carpet down previously your dog may well expect to be able to move the same on Floors For Paws as on carpet – again; there needs to be a period of adjustment for them until they realise and make the connection between the change in the floor and its effect on their behaviour patterns. To aid in their adaptation it can be advisable to add ‘islands’ of soft flooring such as rugs until they are fully confident on the new floor.

In either case we recommend that your dogs are introduced to the new floor slowly (rather than letting them charge in as normal only to find that their normal movement over the floor has a different result.

Walk them in, let them have a sniff of the new floor – this is a bigger change for them than it is for us as they cannot process the change in the same way we can.

Over the last few years we have found all dogs soon find happiness on the clean, anti-slip, and hypo-allergenic floor they now have in their lives.

On Floors For Paws dogs, if traveling at full pace will enjoy a controlled slide bringing them to a gentle stop like they would on grass or concrete – This is important as a dead stop at full pace can cause over exertion on joints. Equally; it is better than on smooth flooring in which dogs can slide out of control without being able to stop which can cause injury through collisions with walls and furniture and strains and tears of ACL ligaments through over stretching of joints while trying to regain control.

For more advice please visit:
http://www.pet-sense.co.uk

Best waterproof flooring for pets

Pet owners rejoice! Laugh in the face of upturned water bowls, puppy/older dog accidents, post rain walks, bath time shenanigans and drool that used to make you run for the mop…..

Floors For Paws is 100% waterproof. Why?

Floors For Paws is waterproof because it is glued down to your sub-floor leaving fluids nowhere to go. Spills, wees, drips and drool will stay on the top surface of our floor and will never go below the top surface. It wont stain, warp or discolour your new floor.

Pet owners know the challenges of wood and laminate flooring with pets. Liquid will find a way into any permeable or semi-permeable surface, and any crack or joint – no matter how small. This can cause damage to your floor.

Floors For Paws top surface is impermeable to liquid and the glue acts as a weld to ensure nothing can seep between the joins.

Imagine if it’s possible that you left dog wee on your floor overnight without mopping it up! Of course you wouldn’t, but if for any reason it happened on Floors for Paws you would get up the next day to find it still on the top of the floor, without staining, without damaging, without warping the product below.

Stress free, easy maintenance for pet owners? Floors For Paws; The best waterproof flooring for pets and pet owners.

Click here to order your free samples

Dog wary of smooth flooring

Our four legged friends develop the same mental associations as us. If you slipped on a certain flooring you would be vary careful when approaching this flooring again. The difference between human and canine recognition is dogs may consider any similar looking flooring as the one they originally slipped on. This can develop into an anxiety for the dog and make taking them to certain homes, shops etc difficult and even wary of your own flooring in the home.

Over the last few years we have met many dogs who have a fear of smooth flooring due to an incident from the past, and this was one of the reasons we decided to find a flooring that would be resilient, easy to maintain and waterproof for our benefit, but more importantly safe for dogs.

The process of building up a dog’s confidence with flooring requires a few things;

  • Time
  • Patience
  • The right flooring
  • Encouragement
  • Re-assurance

In situations when dogs with this condition first see Floors For Paws they may associate it with a similar colour/type of flooring that has been an issue previously, and as such will need a lot of encouragement to step onto the floor in the first instance. This can’t be rushed and doing so will make the situation worse. We start by letting the dog have a good look & sniff of the floor before stepping on it. Then we use a favourite toy to encourage the dog to step onto the floor.

Once this stage is achieved it is important to give lots of positive encouragement. Once the dog realises it is not slippery then we spend some time slowly walking with the dog around the whole floor.

In all but extreme cases; after 10 minutes the dog will have built up confidence on the floor.

Floors For Paws has been installed in vets and recommended by animal physios. With an 85 PTV slip rating you can be sure you are giving your dog a safe, clean, hypoallergenic environment.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR DOG FRIENDLY FLOORING

Glue Down or Click?

Glue Down LVT or Click? A fitter’s perspective;

Luxury Vinyl Tiles used to be a floorcovering few could afford. Now with the arrival of many new brands and manufacturers, it has become a huge growth sector within the flooring industry and with the new build sector installing so much in new homes, the term LVT seems to be a term the buying public are embracing across all walks of life.

From low end budget tiles and planks to top spec designer floors the demand for this kind of floorcovering seems to be ceaseless in the south east of England and seemingly across the rest of the UK.

As a flooring installer of 30 years I am often asked to lay the lock or click together LVTs, these are relatively new player in an established game, but I struggle to see their place in an ever expanding market.

LVT flooring has always been about its versatility, combining wood look planks with stones and metallic styles, adding borders, compasses, hand cut motifs all the skilled parts of the job we’ve been trained to do, that set the Luxury vinyl tile market apart from other flooring – these things aren’t, as far as I have seen, possible with a click or lock system.

The preparation for the dry backed floors is often spoken about as being to expensive and puts the end user off the purchase, but it is my experience that the lock system flooring needs as much and sometimes more preparatory work before the installation can commence and the underlay has to be stuck down I just cannot see a benefit in these floors within the professional flooring industry. I haven’t even touched on the fact these lock tiles need an expansion gap to the perimeter of the room, but they do. I’ve also found that in direct sunlight such as an orangery or in front of patio doors, these lock tiles seem to ‘tent’ in the heat that is to say the tiles expand against each other pushing on the joint causing the tiles to lift and look extremely unsightly. With dry backed tiles we have high temperature adhesives to overcome such issues. During the hot summer we have just had in 2018 I looked at, at least 5 jobs fitted by others that had failed in this way.

Then there’s the maintenance, a dry back tile damaged by the end user can easily be lifted and replaced by a decent installer, whilst the lock tiles are replaceable it’s a substantially longer process to do and far more invasive.

Despite my negativity I do see that these lock together tiles have a place in the DIY market, and maybe even for commercial use where flooring can be installed and removed with little fuss to for example a retailer of office environment – but if you want a statement floor, that is unique to you and your home dry backs such as the Paws for Floors range are the way to go, the Floors for Paws can easily be laid with a single plank border or fitted at 45 degrees without the need for an expansion gap or unsightly mastic to the perimeter making them in my opinion an exceptional choice for those with or without pets.

Richard Fordham
Registered installer for Floors For Paws LTD

https://www.trustatrader.com/traders/r-fordham-flooring-carpet-repairs-southend-on-sea

https://rfordhamflooring.com/

Rigsby pet friendly holiday cottages – The Stables

Rigsby holiday cottages are ideally located for escapism in the picturesque parish of Rigsby, which is in the Lincolnshire Wolds – a designated area of outstanding natural beauty (ANOB). Rigsby is just 2 miles from Alford – renowned for its arts & crafts and striking five-sailed windmill. The holiday cottages are perfect for walkers and cyclists, with multiple public footpaths and cycle routes on the doorstep.

Within easy reach of the award winning, golden-sanded coastal resorts of Mablethorpe and Sutton on Sea. Louth, the capital of the Lincolnshire Wolds, is 10 miles away and the historic city of Lincoln is under an hour away.

Already With Two beautifully renovated holiday cottages the family wanted to offer another pet friendly option for their guests by renovating The Stables. So who better to turn to than Floors For Paws – The World’s best flooring for dogs and dog owners!

As farming has changed, Rigsby Farming Company, has ended up with a number of redundant buildings. We opened our first holiday cottage in 2008 and adding a second holiday cottage in 2014. The first holiday has always been the more popular one and we think this is because it is pet friendly and Rigsby in the Lincolnshire Wolds is surrounded by lots of great walks from the cottage door steps. So when we decided to convert an unused barn to make our third holiday cottage, we knew we wanted it to be very pet friendly. Great looks, longevity, paw friendly and easy clean helped us quickly settle on Floors For Paws. We selected Greenwood and it really hits the mark to give the holiday cottage a barn conversion look that also matches the contemporary interior finish we wanted to attract guests and of course their pets. Paul Read – Owner @ Rigsby Holiday cottages.

The Greenwood design worked beautifully with the original natural wood in the building.

Floors For Paws is 100% waterproof and due to its double wear layer protection it really is the best flooring for dogs and dog owners.

Floors For Paws worked closely with The Rigsby Farming company to provide the perfect fit for their vision, all the way through the process from discussing colour, to organising installation and aftercare. Call us today on 01937 830948 to help with your project.

For more information about staying at this beautiful holiday cottage please visit; http://rigsbywoldholidaycottages.uk or call 01507 463404

Best Flooring for Dogs UK

Simple: Floors For paws. Officially the Worlds best flooring for dogs & dog owners.

Over the last 20 years Dog owners have discovered the limitations of many different flooring types for dogs; carpet, laminate, wood and tile. Each of which has limitations; either impossible to maintain, slippery, or non-resistant to scratches.

With the introduction of Luxury Vinyl dog owners and indeed dogs exclaimed a cry of ‘halleluiah’ Here was something that offered us a solution. Waterproof, stain resistant and hard wearing.

Imagine taking that solution and making it even better! With the introduction of a double wear layer and a slip rating of 85 PTV Floors For Paws can now offer dogs and dog owners a flooring that is Scratch resistant, water proof, stain resistant, anti-slip and with the advancements in printing technology a flooring that has the look, warmth and feel of natural products.

Floors For Paws: The best flooring for dogs. Tested by dogs for dogs. Run by Dog lovers for Dog lovers.

Wherever your dog goes; go Floors for Paws.

ORDER YOUR FREE FLOORING SAMPLES TODAY!

Dogs and Carpets

As Dog lovers we all know the limitations of carpets in a pet friendly house.

To begin with your family relishes the soft cushioned underfoot feel of the carpet; it looks great for the first few weeks and we don’t mind giving it a vacuum every few days. After 12 weeks of the dog trailing its wet paws over it, we need to go a bit deeper with the cleaning, so we use a carpet shampoo. That brings it back to nearly its best. Three months later its ready for another clean, but the stains aren’t coming out. ‘Right’ we say ‘we are going to have to get this deep cleaned!’

The cycle continues for a couple of years and we now have every carpet cleaning chemical known to man in our kitchen cleaning cupboard….and yet the carpet is looking dirty and tired.

Not only that – the allergens in your carpet are building and building and no amount of cleaning can get them out of the fibres. Not good.

Say good bye to scrubbing, say goodbye to stains. Floors For Paws offers a unique solution for dog owners’ homes. Anti-stain, Anti-slip, Anti-Scuff and hypo-allergenic.

Dog Slipping on Floor

Most of us have smooth floor surfaces in our homes, but did you know they pose a safety risk for your dog? Laminate, tile and hardwood floors look great but your dog’s paws aren’t designed to walk on such smooth surfaces. And that can lead to slipping and falling – and potentially serious injury. Luckily, there are many ways to prevent these accidents from happening.

Dog paws like grip

Your dog’s paws will try to garner traction on any floor surface. When walking or running on a smooth floor there will be nothing available to gain that grip. Dogs slipping and falling on smooth floors can lead to injuries varying from bruising to painful cruciate ligament damage.
Floors For paws unique ridged surface gives dog paws a higher level of grip than smooth floor finishes allowing greater traction. As good as this is there are still further measures to consider to ensure you maximise your dogs enjoyment of the flooring.

Cracked and dry paw pads can really increase the chances of slips so it is important to take good care of your dogs pads. Concrete, sand and salt, as well as cold conditions will dry out your dogs pads giving them less moisture and thus less traction.

There are many good waxes and balms available online at very reasonable prices. We personally use Musher Wax to keep our dogs pads in good condition.

Prevention

1. Keep your dog’s nails short.
2. If your dog has hairy foot pads, keep them trimmed.
3. Pay extra attention to where your dog likes to nap or rest. Getting up from a smooth floor can be quite challenging, especially for larger or older dogs, so placing a rug there will make things easier and more comfortable for him.
4. Consider stairs as well. If your dog slips and falls down the stairs, any injuries he sustains can be especially serious. Invest in a good runner and install it securely on your steps.
5. Keeping your dog physically fit is important, too. If your dog maintains an ideal body weight, there will be less pressure on his joints, and that makes walking easier.

Order your free samples today