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Cat on a hardwood floor

post #1 of 22
5/20/07 at 12:16pm
Thread Starter 
I'm considering a new apartment that has hardwood floors. I have two cats that love to run around, and have a habit of digging their claws into the carpet in our current place as they run around and play. I can just imagine them scratching the heck out of the hardwood floors in the apartment we'd like to move to. I'd love to hear about everyone's experiences with cats and hardwood floors.
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post #2 of 22
5/20/07 at 12:20pm
We have hardwood and carpet, and mostly they just slide around on the hardwood when they are running...I never noticed scratches, but they have the run of the house and can do whatever they want
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post #3 of 22
5/20/07 at 12:48pm
we have pergo and haven't noticed any scratches at all, i bet if the hardwood has lots of finish on it, it would be fine.
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post #4 of 22
5/20/07 at 2:20pm
We have hardwoods and the cats don't scratch them at all. They will walk to a rug and scratch that from time to time but they ignore the hardwoods. I highly recommend them. Mousies get killer speed and cat hair is so much easier to get up.
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post #5 of 22
5/20/07 at 2:26pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks everyone, that's great to hear. I would much prefer hardwood to carpet, but was hoping I would end up losing a security deposit to cat scratches from my crazy kitties. It will definitely make my apartment hunting easier.
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post #6 of 22
5/20/07 at 3:13pm
I haven't noticed any scratches on our hardwood floors.
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post #7 of 22
5/20/07 at 6:37pm
Same thing here..I don't think they tend to try to dig their claws into hard floors.
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post #8 of 22
5/21/07 at 4:47am
They won't scratch the hardwoods, but hopefully if you do have the hardwood, you'll get some rugs too. My kitties mostly stay to the rugs unless they're doing some "recreational" sliding.
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post #9 of 22
5/21/07 at 4:52am
I should think if it's solid wood it will be fine. Be warned on one thing though, and that is that if your cats are at all playful they will love sliding on it. I have a tiled kitchen floor and both of mine love to hit it at full run and slide across it. Rugs make it even more fun. Don't expect your rugs to stay in one place as they will be used like sleds
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post #10 of 22
5/21/07 at 6:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Epona View Post
I should think if it's solid wood it will be fine. Be warned on one thing though, and that is that if your cats are at all playful they will love sliding on it. I have a tiled kitchen floor and both of mine love to hit it at full run and slide across it. Rugs make it even more fun. Don't expect your rugs to stay in one place as they will be used like sleds
We have started to buy bigger rugs because they slide them all over the place. Right now the bathmat is by the front door

As far as the hardwood, it should be fine and you can always polish up minor scratches if there is any, it isn't like they gouge through it
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post #11 of 22
5/21/07 at 7:08am
Hey don't take away all the fun by putting down rugs! You can have yourself great games of "kitty bowling" by throwing some treats across the floor for them to chase.
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post #12 of 22
5/21/07 at 7:28am
I had hardwood floors throughout the downstairs in my old house and they never clawed it at all
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post #13 of 22
5/21/07 at 9:01am
If you had a dog I would worry more about the hard wood floors. But, if you are worried or see them scratching it up at all you can always buy nail caps for your kitties. They are little rubber caps you glue over their claws. Check eBay for a cheap set to try if you want.
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post #14 of 22
5/21/07 at 10:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Epona View Post
I should think if it's solid wood it will be fine. Be warned on one thing though, and that is that if your cats are at all playful they will love sliding on it. I have a tiled kitchen floor and both of mine love to hit it at full run and slide across it. Rugs make it even more fun. Don't expect your rugs to stay in one place as they will be used like sleds
That is so true! Sophie and Mollie are always getting up to warp speed and unable to slow down in time to avoid sliding into the walls. And as far as rugs moving, I even have the rubber rug mats under my oriental rugs and they still go sliding! I have never had a problem with the cats scratching up my floors. Now, dogs, well that is a different story!
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post #15 of 22
5/22/07 at 2:06pm
Quote:
I'd love to hear about everyone's experiences with cats and hardwood floors.
Best entertainment ever.

We throw balls for the cats to chase. Bunny still hasn't figured out that she stops 5 feet past the ball. This is particularly painful when there is an object only 2 feet past the ball....

We try to aim the ball so it is in front of the beanbags, and she gets a gentle stop. But she's smacked into the wall at full speed, tripped over the coffee table, and tumbled down the stairs. Luckily kittens seem to be invinsible to these things.

The best is when she trips going UP stairs. When she follows us to the bedroom, she races up the stairs so fast that she slides when she lands on the top step. I think she does it on purpose though, because she ends up sliding through the hall and halfway into our room, right where she was going.
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post #16 of 22
5/22/07 at 4:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Epona View Post
I should think if it's solid wood it will be fine. Be warned on one thing though, and that is that if your cats are at all playful they will love sliding on it. I have a tiled kitchen floor and both of mine love to hit it at full run and slide across it. Rugs make it even more fun. Don't expect your rugs to stay in one place as they will be used like sleds

exactly, sledding is a year long sport in my house.
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post #17 of 22
5/23/07 at 5:31am
What type of hardwood floors are they? We have older ones in my house, and Abby has scratched them a few times when she gets really wound up.
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post #18 of 22
5/26/07 at 1:50am
We have laminate hardwood floors and it is quite amusing to see them slide around! Haven't seen any scratches.
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post #19 of 22
6/1/07 at 9:56pm
I have hardwood floors but they are very high gloss because of the finish that was put on them. Because of this, a grain of sand on the bottom of a shoe could scratch the floors. I knew this when I ordered the floor as the house was being built, and it hasn't been a problem for me. I understand having a dog and two cats would not keep my floors in mint condition, but I am considering sanding down some of the finish to give the floor a more matte look, and that I think would make the tiny scratches invisable.

I say go for the apartment though. The scratches the kitties would make if any are so small that someone who rents should expect it as normal wear and tear with or without pets.
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post #20 of 22
6/2/07 at 9:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MusicTeacher View Post
I'm considering a new apartment that has hardwood floors. I have two cats that love to run around, and have a habit of digging their claws into the carpet in our current place as they run around and play. I can just imagine them scratching the heck out of the hardwood floors in the apartment we'd like to move to. I'd love to hear about everyone's experiences with cats and hardwood floors.
When I saw your title, I thought it was a new movie.
But seriously, half of my house is carpet and the other half is hardwood. They run around and play fight on both and I HAVE inspected the hardwood for any damage and there has been none. I think the term hardwood means it will not be scratched if it is real hardwood.
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post #21 of 22
6/8/07 at 1:55am
I've never had a problem with scratches. Only furbunnies in the corners of the wood stairs!
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post #22 of 22
6/8/07 at 3:37am
I used to have hard wood floors and never had a problem noticing scratches or anything. The kitties would run and slide down the hallway and it was a hoot! Especially Hallie (RIP) used to like that. She'd wake me up in the middle of the night, sliding back and forth up and down the hallway! I loved it! More and more apartments here are going to hardwood floors for pet friendly rentals. I think it's great!
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