Laminate Flooring w/a Dog?

[aweilba]

Now that we've got the house all painted and such, we are directing our attention to making some upgrades and renovations within the next year.  DH has a big bonus coming in from work that we plan to use to replace all of our downstairs flooring.  Currently, we have some pretty blah tile in the entry that leads into some more blah (and in bad shape) carpeting in the downstairs bonus room.  We were thinking of putting in a nice laminate, as we would love hardwoods but wouldn't see the return for our investment in our area.  We plan to sell within the next 3 years, and I know that the house next door had nice laminate floors and sold quickly for asking price, so I think they're a good investment in our area.  But here's the big question: My goofy dog loves to run around the downstairs bonus room because it is so big and empty.  It won't remain empty once we get new flooring, as we'll start filling up the space with furniture and whatnot.  But are laminates a good idea with a dog?

[jayhawk5]

We (well DH) put in laminate in our kitchen and dining room about 2 years ago.  They've held up well, and haven't gotten scratched up by our dog's nails.  We fostered a Border Collie, and he did have trouble slipping around on them, but a few throw rugs would probably solve that problem.  

We've been really happy with them. We love hardwoods, but like you, wouldn't get the return, and don't plan to stay in our house long enough to make it worth it.

[SusanBAnthony]

We had them in our house in MN, with a golden retriever. They were fine as far as dog wear and tear went, with one big exception.

We had an area rug in the living room floor, with laminate under neath. As our dog got older, he had a few accidents on the area rug, while we were at work. They soaked through and made the laminate bow. Even when he was younger, he threw up a few items while we weren't home, and it wasn't as wet, so it didn't soak through to the same degree, but it did bow them a little too.

It wouldn't stop me from putting them in, but be aware of it, and get some extra bards to save in case of major accidents with the floor. Our biggest issue over the 7 years we had them was gauges from objects with pointy corners being dropped.

Now, we have them in our kitchen in our rental, as well as the sun room that is the main entry in and out of the house. They are terrible in these locations, bc the kitchen gets tons of water drips and is bowing them. The sunroom gets water drips near the door as well (despite a massive water hog doormat) and is bowing. So I would stay far far away from anything that is going to get water drips on the floor.

[RoxMonster]

We have laminate in our front hallway, dining room, downstairs bath and kitchen and we have a lab mix. We have not had any issues yet (no accidents in the house or on the laminate). She does not scratch them and I love that it's easy to clean with her fur shedding and everything.

[pickle123]

Yep! Love our laminate and our 100 pound dog can't damage it!

[aimeedyan]

First house with them - have three dogs.

We LOVE them; they don't scratch and it's so much easier to clean than carpet. Now one of mine slipped one time and was therefore terrified to walk/jump on them for weeks. An area rug helped a lot and he's getting better. Just has to get used to. The other two ran on them from day one.

[kaylie]

I think it's going to depend a lot on the quality of laminate you put in. I've heard really good things about the higher end ($3-$5 per square foot) Pergo flooring but I've seen the cheaper ($1/sq foot) stuff shredded by dogs/kids.