wood floors + cats = trouble??

mschauer

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I need to replace all the flooring in my house soon. I'm thinking about getting hardwood but am concerned about scratches. Two of my kitties are very resistant to claw clipping so there are times when their claws are long. Soft Paws aren't an option cuz if I can't clip their claws I sure ain't gonna be able to get those on.

What experience do you guys have with this situation? Would wood floors just be a mistake? I've heard that a really hard wood like oak with a polyurethane finish might hold up well. Heard the same about bamboo.
 

gailc

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I have maple hardwood floors in kitchen/living room and not problems with cat claw marks at all. I good quality oil based polyurethane finish is all you need on the wood. I have had for 10 years with 4 cats that have their claws.

I would consider getting the real flooring vs the wood laminate stuff as that can only get refinished once as its so thin. My maple flooring was already 100 yrs old when installed and can get refinished many times!!
 

beck4582

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I had hardwood floors in a house I used to rent with my old kitties. I never had any problems. It was always fun, though, to watch them chase each other and slide around when they were running!
 
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mschauer

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Originally Posted by mistressotdark

I have hardwood floors..and so far..no problems...
How long have you had the floors?

however...sometimes if they run..they slide...
its kinda funny really
Yeah, one of the reasons I might just get carpet again is that they have so much fun tearing through the house and it probably wouldn't be as much fun if they couldn't dig their claws in. Think they're spoiled?
 
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mschauer

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Originally Posted by GailC

I have maple hardwood floors in kitchen/living room and not problems with cat claw marks at all. I good quality oil based polyurethane finish is all you need on the wood. I have had for 10 years with 4 cats that have their claws.
Wow, 10 years huh? Maybe it isn't as much of a problem as I thought.
 

gailc

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If it was up to me I would rip out the rest of my carpeting. Ox has wrecked carpeting in my sewing/computer/office room by peeing-the olive green carpet bleached out to tan in many spots!!
I would rather clean up hairballs, bathroom stains off hardwood vs carpeting anyday!!
 

lillekat

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kitties + wood floor = BIG trouble. At least it definitely did for us. We have a polyeurathane finish floor, but I think it's pine underneath or something. Our floors are totally ruined! We have to have the whole lot re-done before we can sell up. I'm hoping to glue the cats to the ceiling for a couple of days while they're doing that
 

goldenkitty45

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I'd go with oak or maple. Pine is too soft. And make sure you put 2-3 coats of polyurethane on it. That will hold up - especially if you have a dog who doesn't retract the nails


Under our carpet in the livingroom/dining room is nice maple flooring (as far as we can tell). We plan on ripping out the carpet and replacing the living room carpet to tan or grey. But will refinish those nice maple floors for the dining room
 
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mschauer

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Originally Posted by LilleKat

kitties + wood floor = BIG trouble. At least it definitely did for us. We have a polyeurathane finish floor, but I think it's pine underneath or something. Our floors are totally ruined! We have to have the whole lot re-done before we can sell up. I'm hoping to glue the cats to the ceiling for a couple of days while they're doing that
Yeah, I'm not surprised you had trouble if it is pine. That's one of the softest woods. GailC has maple which is one of the harder woods. I'm thinking now about Brazilian cherry. I like the color and it is even harder than maple.
 

robertm

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My wife and I moved into a newly-constructed home in late 2006. The first floor is mostly hardwood. There are numerous claw "holes" in various places, and the cats were front declawed by previous owners. At first we were a little upset since the floors were completely brand new, but we soon decided that the holes were no big deal. It's more than made up for by the high comedy of watching them skid and crash.
Obviously you may feel differently if your cats make similar marks on the floor --- but from what other people have posted, that might not even happen anyway.

I also admit that we still have not clipped their back claws --- if we did, I'm sure the holes would be fewer in number.
 

lillekat

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I figured as much - Maple and cherry and suchlike are very expensive and hard to get over here. It's an old apartment too, so the floors were already in when we got settled. Hopefully though it'll come up nice when it's fixed up and we won't have to wait long before we can sell.
 

sibohan2005

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Unless your cat walks with claws extended at all times this should not be a problem. I have lives in housed with wood, carpet, laminant, tile floors and ver had any vable damage made from cats claws even with them running like idiots around the house. Now dog claws are a different matter.
 

littleraven7726

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My MIL has hardwood floors. She says the damage is from when they had dogs. She's had a couple cats, and they haven't done anything to the floors. Mike and I lived there with 2 of our cats for 6 months (years ago) and they also never caused damage. So I don't think it would be a problem. I'm not sure what kind of wood flooring my MIL has, it is original to the house though. So I would guess it's oak.
 

jcat

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Originally Posted by littleraven7726

My MIL has hardwood floors. She says the damage is from when they had dogs. She's had a couple cats, and they haven't done anything to the floors. Mike and I lived there with 2 of our cats for 6 months (years ago) and they also never caused damage. So I don't think it would be a problem. I'm not sure what kind of wood flooring my MIL has, it is original to the house though. So I would guess it's oak.
We have oak parquet and laminate in most of the house, and the only damage has been done by dogs' claws. Hardwood floors would be even more scratch-resistant.
 

misty8723

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I have hardwood floors, and haven't noticed any damage from the cats. The biggest damage I see is from the dining room chairs scraping on it. Of course, I'm not overly concerned with the cats damaging anything in my house, so I don't inspect it. IMO, the cats are more important than the stuff (which can all be replaced), so I'm very lenient with them
 

anmccleod

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We have Oak floors, with no problems at all!
You will notice a lot more pet hair on the floor though!!
 
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mschauer

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Originally Posted by Misty8723

Of course, I'm not overly concerned with the cats damaging anything in my house, so I don't inspect it. IMO, the cats are more important than the stuff (which can all be replaced), so I'm very lenient with them
Yup, I agree that is the best attitude. As far as I am concerned a house is for the comfort of those living in it. They aren't museums or showplaces. But, since the current flooring needs to be replaced, I's like to replace it with something that will look good for as long as possible.
I'm even still considering carpet again even though it is hard to keep clean because I think the kitties won't enjoy running on a hard surface nearly as much.
 

starryeyedtiger

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My sister just bought bamboo flooring to put down in their master bedroom. I'll let you know how it works. (They have 4 cats)
 
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