Dog is ruining my new wood floor!

[Dakota731]

Any suggestions for scratches? I saw the little nail covers on Amazon - anyone know if they work? Does clipping the nails help - my dog is walked on concrete every day but don't know if that is enough? Any help is appreciated!

 

[jmartinez1895]

I have used orange glow on my wood floors and it has helped reduce the visibility of scratches.
I have not used SoftPaws on our dogs, but in the past I have used these on a cat and they worked very well. I just had to check every week or so and make sure they where all still there.

 

[lauradis]

Do you take the dog in regular for nail cut and file?

This helps a lot

 

[tvguy]

We concluded that there was no way to do that, so we didn't put our wood flooring in until the last of our pets crossed the "rainbow bridge". There will be no more.

 

[arminnie]

What kind of dogs? I had two cocker spaniels (one is now gone) and have never had a problem with scratches. One home (that I've had for 9 years) has prefinished planks (builder grade). My other home has solid site finished wood (top grade) and is 5 years old.

Both dogs got groomed regularly so maybe that's why.

 

[crisi]

Nails need to be clipped - to keep them short enough to not scratch floors its about every two weeks. You can clip them yourself at home if your dog will tolerate it - if not, PetSmart will do it for around $10.

 

[UCFGrad01]

Try a dremel to trim their nails. We have a mighty mite from walmart (about $20) with a sandpaper drum, always used on low. There are good YouTube videos to show you how to do it.

 

[pigletto]

I've never had to cut my dogs nails (with the exception of the dew claw). We walk him 3 times a day for a half hour and it's kept them short and level. If you can't do that, clipping would be best but I'd make sure to be shown how to do it properly before attempting on your own.

I'll tell you what has ruined my wood floors. Marrow Bones. He drops them and throws them around. There were several good chunks taken out of the hardwood before we noticed and stopped giving them to him on the hardwood.

 

[lauradis]

I've never had to cut my dogs nails (with the exception of the dew claw). We walk him 3 times a day for a half hour and it's kept them short and level. If you can't do that, clipping would be best but I'd make sure to be shown how to do it properly before attempting on your own.

I'll tell you what has ruined my wood floors. Marrow Bones. He drops them and throws them around. There were several good chunks taken out of the hardwood before we noticed and stopped giving them to him on the hardwood.

your talking about walks on concrete or the road right?

because walking/ running in a big field does nothing for Ellie's nails

 

[Dakota731]

What kind of dog

He is a big 80 pounder!

PetSmart will do it for around $10

How do they get the dog to tolerate it? I bought a dremmel and he won't come anywhere near it.

 

[lucyem]

Throw rugs.

As an owner of big dogs for many years on many types of wood floors my best advice is throw rugs. Yes you want to keep the nails trimmed. But you still want something over the floors especially in the high traffic areas.

 

[pigletto]

your talking about walks on concrete or the road right?

because walking/ running in a big field does nothing for Ellie's nails

Yes we walk on the sidewalks or roads mostly. Funny, he's trained to walk at heel and I often steer him over just a little bit to put him on the grass because I worry the pavement is uncomfortable. He just leans into me until I've moved over enough that he can get back on the sidewalk.
The only time he'll let me walk him on the grass is if it's hot.

 

[disneydacey]

I'll tell you what has ruined my wood floors. Marrow Bones. He drops them and throws them around. There were several good chunks taken out of the hardwood before we noticed and stopped giving them to him on the hardwood.

This is exactly why I don't give mine bones anymore!

 

[crisi]

He is a big 80 pounder!


How do they get the dog to tolerate it? I bought a dremmel and he won't come anywhere near it.

They use a clippers and put the dog into the grooming harness. Then hold up his feet and clip.

We can do it here, if I get my husbands help - but without the harness it takes two of us. My dog won't come near a dremmel either (he does for the vet, but they have three people hold him down).

 

[lauradis]

Yes we walk on the sidewalks or roads mostly. Funny, he's trained to walk at heel and I often steer him over just a little bit to put him on the grass because I worry the pavement is uncomfortable. He just leans into me until I've moved over enough that he can get back on the sidewalk.
The only time he'll let me walk him on the grass is if it's hot.

Ellie is a field trained hunting dog, hates around the block walks. Its the squirrels they mock her.

good luck op it took a while to get ellie usta the nail smoother. I gave up a while a go and just take her to the groomers every three weeks one time its just nails next its nails and bath.

 

[Dakota731]

They use a clippers and put the dog into the grooming harness.

I will call Petco and Petsmart today to inquire. After this first time, how do you get the dog to go back into the groomers again? Mine catches on pretty quick and won't move, and at 80 lbs, he's too big to lift!

Throw rugs.

I did buy a bunch of rugs but if I get any more, my husband said we won't even be able to see all the hardwood we paid so much for!

 

[LJSquishy]

What type of hardwoods do you have? Different woods have a different hardness rating and some are better for wear & tear than others.

Your dog is most likely just scratching the finish and not the wood itself which is a good thing, though there isn't too much you can do to prevent it aside from keeping their nails short and consider using the nail covers but I've heard those are a huge pain. Just take your dog in every 2-4 weeks for nail trims (he must be up to date on his shots or they won't take him).

We have two Maltese and they scratched the crap out of the finish on our oak hardwoods in the house we just sold. I keep their nails short but they chase each other around the dining table, around corners, etc and still managed to scratch the finish. We lived there 7 years and if we had planned to stay there much longer I would have had the floors refinished. We had the really glossy poly finish which was actually really durable. My parents have gorgeous tiger wood hardwoods with a satin finish but the finish has worn thin or something right in front of their chairs because it's really slick there...I almost fell when I was in my socks getting ready to sit down. You can visually see that it looks worn down also. So, I'm not sure the satin finish is as durable.

 

[crisi]

I will call Petco and Petsmart today to inquire. After this first time, how do you get the dog to go back into the groomers again? Mine catches on pretty quick and won't move, and at 80 lbs, he's too big to lift!

My dog has lots of good qualities, but he is not the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree.

 

[pigletto]

I will call Petco and Petsmart today to inquire. After this first time, how do you get the dog to go back into the groomers again? Mine catches on pretty quick and won't move, and at 80 lbs, he's too big to lift!


I did buy a bunch of rugs but if I get any more, my husband said we won't even be able to see all the hardwood we paid so much for!

Is he food motivated? I have an 85 pound lab that would do my taxes if I offered him cheese.
He is crate trained. He got a bee in his bonnet about going to bed awhile back. He would lay on his back like a toddler and refuse to move. I retrained him. "Time for Sleep" was the command, led him with a piece of cheese in one hand and his collar in the other and he came willingly. He got the cheese when he got in his crate and laid down. I had to do that for a week and now it's retrained. If I say "Time for Sleep" at bedtime now, he jumps up and runs down the stairs and gets right in. He gives me a kiss, and we close the door. Easy as pie and we haven't used the cheese as motivator for a few months. I think you could successfully train him for the groomers if you gave him a cue, treated the heck out of him, and praised like crazy the whole time. It should stick after awhile. It's how we got Charlie Brown to stop whining in the car as well. Sometimes he just needs a refresher.

 

[Dakota731]

What type of hardwoods do you have?

It's real oak hardwood - not engineered. The contractor told us that due to government regulations nowadays they are not allowed to use the old finishes that used to be able to withstand almost anything. I know at my friend's fifty-year old beach house, they have the old finished hardwood floors and they are indestructible. My huge dog and hers run wild jumping and carrying on and the floors never get scratched. But with my new floor, my dog just walks across them and they get scratched. I guess if we ever have to move, I'll have them refinished, and just for now try to believe they add character.