Dogs are sweet creatures who, from puppyhood, become deeply attached to their owner. Sometimes this attachment can be destructive. So, leaving your home or locking your dog in a separate room so that he does not interfere with your business, you cannot even imagine how your four-legged pet suffers from loneliness.
Dogs need constant communication with their owner because they are social creatures by nature. Being alone, and even in closed walls, is a great stress for these animals.
Left alone with himself, the pet does not know how to behave; he cannot understand why he was locked in a room, why he was not taken with him. Some dogs resign themselves to their fate and go to lie on the mat awaiting their release, while others decide to wage a desperate struggle for freedom - they bark (or even howl) and chew the legs of tables and chairs. They suffer from canine “revenge” on the owner and the door: the pets spend a long time sliding along the surface of the casing with their sharp claws in the hope of a quick release from captivity.
Moreover, even representatives of such small breeds as dachshunds or Pekingese can cause great damage to doors: the wood will be scratched, the leather trim will turn into something torn, the paint will be scratched.
Should you scold your pet for scratching doors?
If you come home and find that your pet has been “operating” over the doors in your absence, you should under no circumstances scold the dog (and, moreover, beat it). Your pet will not understand why he was punished, because he was simply trying to get out of his “prison” and run after his owner and keep him company.
A few words about re-education...
You can retrain a dog to scratch doors, however, it will require a lot of patience and time from you. What complicates the process of weaning from this bad habit is that the dog damages the door not in the presence of the owner, but when he is not at home.
Protective screens – saving doors from dog claws.
Undoubtedly, no one will like the fact that their pet tore the leather door trim to shreds or left deep scratches on the door leaf. If your home has metal doors rather than wooden ones, then only the paint will suffer. But still, there is little pleasant in this spectacle. Yes, of course, it’s a pity for the doors...
In order to protect door panels from scratching, scientists have developed special screens. These devices, of course, are not distinguished by their exquisite appearance and beauty, but they can reliably protect the doors from the sharp claws of your pet. Of course, protective screens are not able to wean your pet from a bad habit, but, believe me, the door will be under reliable protection!
Pets give a person love, selfless affection and the joy of communication. But the appearance of a four-legged pet in an apartment often changes the usual way of life, daily routine and even... the interior.
Puddles on the floor, traces of sharp claws, wool, torn curtains or chewed furniture legs make owners think about how to minimize the damage to their home environment - and at the same time take care of the safety of their pets so that they do not harm themselves after playing too much.
Many of these problems can be solved if, during the renovation stage, you more carefully select finishing options for all surfaces - walls, floors, doors, as well as upholstered furniture and other items. After all, on modern market There are many finishing materials that are resistant to stains, easy to clean and at the same time retain an attractive appearance.
Choosing a floor covering
The floors in a house where a cat or dog lives with people experience significant stress. With such a neighborhood, the two main qualities that a floor covering should have are strength and moisture resistance.
Extremely simple and easy to use linoleum. It is easy to lay, it is not afraid of moisture and is easy to clean. The disadvantage of this coating is that larger animals can scratch it and even tear it with their claws or teeth. The chances of a successful outcome will increase if, instead of ordinary linoleum, you use a covering for public premises (semi-commercial linoleum) - it is stronger and not much more expensive.
But linoleum has another flaw. Pet owners sometimes complain that their pets' paws become loose on such floors, which means that a naughty pet can slip, hit, or accidentally drop and break something valuable. In addition, walking on slippery surfaces is harmful to joints and posture, especially for large dogs. If a slippery floor turns into serious problem, you will have to either cover the linoleum with rugs and carpet, or look for another, anti-slip coating.
Speaking about linoleum, it is worth mentioning its “relative” - PVC tiles. In terms of moisture resistance and unpretentiousness, it is comparable to linoleum, but, in addition, it can be easily repaired - if necessary, a damaged or scratched plank can be removed and replaced with a new one.
Has proven itself well among pet owners laminate. However, you should only buy flooring with a high wear resistance class, resistant to mechanical damage and moisture, otherwise wet and odorous “surprises” from our smaller brothers will quickly render it unusable. Another advantage of laminate flooring is that it is antistatic, that is, wool does not stick to it, and cleaning becomes easier.
Ceramic tile- a beautiful, durable and reliable material, although many of our compatriots do not like it, considering it unsuitable for residential premises. This attitude is quite understandable: the hard ceramic surface cools the feet (and paws), so it is unpleasant to walk on it. The problem of discomfort can be solved by installing a “warm floor” system, but this will require additional costs. However, if you have to walk your dog every day, it makes sense to tile at least the area in front of the front door in the hallway.
Wall decoration
Vertical surfaces in a house where there is a cat, dog or other living creature receive no less damage than the floors. The coating on the walls is torn, scratched and dirty, so paper wallpaper and materials that are difficult to clean are not recommended.
Choosing wallpaper, it is reasonable to give preference to vinyl ones - they are very diverse in design and at the same time they can be wiped with a damp cloth to remove stains and dirt.
A good solution can be paintable wallpaper, especially fiberglass, which can withstand the pressure of paws, claws, and beaks well, and can also be repainted many times. Washable, water-based paints are usually used to paint walls.
Decorative plaster– aesthetic, environmentally friendly finishing material with a wide selection of textures and decorative solutions. However, it is better for pet owners to choose not the most sophisticated, but the most durable varieties of plasters that can withstand wet cleaning well - this will make it easier to find a middle ground between design and cleanliness of the house.
Alternative option wall decoration – decorative panels, primarily made of plastic, MDF or chipboard. In addition to being resistant to dirt and damage, they have other useful property: a damaged piece of finishing can be easily replaced with a new one.
Finally, the walls can be tiled artificial stone or porcelain stoneware, eliminating the possibility of damage. And so that the interior does not look too formal, close only the lower part of the wall, to the level where a four-legged family member can reach.
The same technique can be used with decorative plaster and panels, covering the bottom of the wall with them, and decorating it with more comfortable wallpaper on top.
Looking for a way out
Asking to go for a walk, the furry hooligans find him very quickly, whine, meow, scream - and scratch the front door with their paws. If this behavior is typical for your pet, you will have to forget about the soft upholstery on the door.
The inside of the front door can be decorated with anti-vandal plastic, or the issue can be solved more radically - by applying a thick layer of metal coating, which will not be damaged even by the giants of the canine world - shepherds, great Danes and other large dogs. Rough, but reliable.
For installation between rooms, manufacturers usually recommend laminated doors or doors with a plastic finish that won't leave marks from fangs and claws. But wooden or veneer doors are not the best choice in a house where four-legged creatures live: they can be easily scratched even by a small animal.
Upholstered furniture: what to do?
As a rule, the biggest concern for owners of cats and dogs is upholstered furniture, since sofas and armchairs constantly suffer from the claws and “marks” of animals.
One of the most practical upholstery options is considered flock. The dense, velvety-to-touch pile prevents the claw from catching on the fabric base and prevents the appearance of puffs. The fabric is highly wear-resistant, animal hair does not stick to it, and dirt can be removed from it using a sponge with soapy water.
Sofa cover. Photo: Sure Fit.
Finally, you can simply close all the sofas and armchairs removable covers, and then wash them as they become dirty. With the current wealth of fabrics and colors, it’s easy to choose a cover to suit any interior.
There are other ways to redirect the energy of our smaller brothers in the right direction.
For example, to distract a cat from the sofa or curtains, you need to place a couple of scratching posts in her favorite places - and at the same time teach her how to use them. To prevent the cabinet legs from suffering, the puppy must be regularly given a “bone” or other object that he can chew “legally.” There will also be significantly fewer puddles on the floor if you provide your pets with comfortable trays with the filling they like.
Scratching post. Photo: Square Cat Habitat
It is important to understand: although choosing the right finishing materials will simplify your task of maintaining cleanliness and order in the house, at the same time it is necessary to study the character of the animal, its needs, devoting enough time to its upbringing. However, this is a completely different story...
Pets give us a lot of positive emotions, but often cause significant damage to interior doors and other interior items. After all, they want to frolic and play pranks, which can negatively affect the interior of your home. That is why it is important, even at the stage of choosing door leaves, to carefully select finishing options that are resistant to dirt and mechanical damage. And also think about how to protect interior doors from a cat or dog.
Resistant to scratches and dirt
modern interior, and pets will not be able to damage its surface.
Interior doors with artificial eco-veneer coating are characterized by the greatest resistance to mechanical damage. It can withstand sharp claws and paw pressure without losing its attractive appearance. In the catalog of the Porta Prima factory you can find such canvases in a wide variety of designs and colors. They have a presentable appearance and are visually indistinguishable from products with natural veneer. Therefore, it will not be difficult for you to choose doors with eco-veneer for any interior.
Faux veneer flooring is easy to care for. These doors can be washed with a mild detergent; they are not susceptible to moisture. But do not use abrasive cleaners, scrapers or hard sponges.
Removing obstacles to movement
Closed interior doors make pets naturally want to open them. In attempts to leave the room, the animal will scratch the canvas, leaving marks of claws and teeth on it. So that a cat or small dog can freely leave the room and enter it, a special window with a door that opens in both directions can be cut into the lower part of the door leaf. The disadvantage of this solution is that it is not suitable for all animals.
If you are wondering how to protect interior doors from large or medium-sized dogs, you can install an “anti-closer” device. This mechanism will not allow the door to slam shut - a gap remains between the door and the frame, using which a cat or dog can open the door.
Protecting interior doors from pets
No matter how high-quality and wear-resistant the interior door is, it will inevitably lose its attractive appearance if your cat or dog has the bad habit of gnawing on the canvas or sharpening its claws on it. Of course, you can try to accustom the animal to a special scratching post and trim its claws in a timely manner, but what to do if these measures do not give the desired effect?
Keeping an animal constantly in a cage or mini-aviary is not a very suitable option; it is better to install it for protection interior doors anti-vandal plastic cover. If the height of the pet on its hind legs does not exceed one meter, then only the lower part of the canvas can be covered with an overlay. Otherwise, you will need to protect the entire surface of the door. And when your pet stops gnawing and scratching the door leaf, the trim can be removed.
To protect the door from a cat, you can also use special products that repel animals with their smell. These drugs do not harm cats, but simply cause them to stay away from doorways.
Various materials are used to cover interior doors, and the performance properties of the doors, their durability and appearance directly depend on the material. There are several main types of coatings:
- Laminated coating;
- PVC coating;
- Veneered coating (natural, artificial and eco-veneer).
Laminated coating
Laminated door covering is made from thin melamine, fiberglass, PVC or paper film and is classified as budget option, second only in price to conventional paintwork. Some characteristics of laminated doors are better than doors with natural veneer:
The laminated coating can be made not only from the above materials, but also from modern plastic polymers CPL and TSS, which are a type of HPL plastic coating. The CPL plastic polymer is produced by continuous pressing and has high strength, environmental friendliness and wear resistance, and the TSS polymer, produced by thermostructuring, has a beautiful appearance, long service life and resistance to scratches, dirt and other influences. Therefore, high-quality laminated doors made by well-known manufacturers can last up to 15 years.
PVC coating
Polyvinyl chloride or PVC is a thin polymer film used to cover the door leaf. Despite its artificial origin, PVC is considered a more practical coating than natural or artificial veneer due to the following performance qualities:
This combination of positive qualities makes PVC-coated doors an excellent option for bathrooms and kitchens. It's also worth mentioning that there are a huge number of options color solutions polyvinyl chloride and can be used to decorate doors with convex and concave decorative elements.
At the same time, it is important to note several disadvantages of PVC coating.
Note! It has poor sound insulation and is less environmentally friendly. And with prolonged use of doors coated with polyvinyl chloride, edge delamination may occur.
Veneered coating
Veneer coating is made from a thin layer of hardwood or softwood. This layer is up to 10 mm thick and is obtained by sawing, planing and peeling. Veneer can be natural or artificial (fine-line). Natural veneer completely replicates the texture and appearance of natural wood and has the following qualities:
High-quality veneer doors can last more than 10 years, especially if they are made by a reputable manufacturer. The cost of doors covered with veneer is significantly higher than doors with artificial veneer. This is due to the complex technological aspect of production - each sheet has a unique texture, which makes it difficult to select fragments that allow you to assemble several identical door leaves.
Important! Veneer has low resistance to moisture.
This disadvantage is eliminated by applying a paint coating, however, this solution has the disadvantage of the possibility of damage to the coating, which is especially important in homes where there are pets. Another disadvantage of veneer is the difficulty of covering convex and concave decorative elements of doors.
Artificial veneer (fine-line) is made from inexpensive wood (linden, abacha, poplar, etc.) by peeling the wood into separate sheets, which are dried, painted, glued, pressed and sawn into slabs of the required size. This veneer is better than natural veneer due to its lower cost due to the solution to the problem of uneven sheet texture.
There are many design options for fine-line veneer, since this material lends itself well to processing. But in appearance it is somewhat inferior to natural wood, because it has a uniform pattern that is not capable of conveying the beauty of natural wood. This material also has low moisture resistance and strength.
Eco-veneer is an artificially created material in the form of a thin polymer or polypropylene film, widely used in the food industry and medicine. In appearance and operational characteristics it is more similar to polyvinyl chloride than to natural coating. It is united with veneer only by its appearance - eco-veneer can be designed in such a way that it will repeat the relief, texture and color of different types of wood. The advantages of eco-veneer include:
Since in the manufacture of doors covered with eco-veneer, a chemical reaction is used to attach the coating to MDF, this material is more environmentally friendly than its natural counterpart, which is often secured using glue containing harmful chemicals. But it is worth noting that over the past few years, leading manufacturers of interior doors have improved production technologies and use adhesive mixtures that do not contain harmful substances.
Along with many advantages, eco-veneer also has a number of disadvantages. It cannot be restored, and it is inferior to its natural counterpart in terms of sound insulation. Like any other covering of artificial origin, eco-veneer does not create good air exchange and microclimate in the room, unlike natural coverings.