With more and more households in Singapore keeping pets, perhaps it’s time to ask the question: is your home pet-friendly? Have you created a living space where your pet can enjoy it as much as you do?
Owners consider their pets as a part of the family, and thus, it is hardly surprising that they want their animals to be as comfortable as possible. If you have a fluffy friend in your home, here are a few tips to help you deck up your space for a pet-friendly interior.
- Hardy Flooring
Many pets have sharp claws. They can also be messy at times. Therefore, we recommend flooring that is durable and easy to clean. Materials that dent or stain easily, such as hardwood floors (unless you think scratch marks add character to your wooden floors!) and carpets should be avoided. Instead, opt for laminate flooring, stone or ceramic tiles or painted concrete for a modern industrial style. These hard-surface floorings are more resistant to damage and relatively stain-free.
Hardwood floors are subject to scratch marks left behind by our paw friends (Image by qimono on Pixabay)
- Furniture Pets Can’t Destroy
Your furry friends scratch, chew and shed fur – a lot – and thus, choose your furniture carefully. If you have excitable puppies, furniture with exposed wood or rattan may be mistaken as their new chew toy. You may be better off with metal or chrome-designed furnishing.
We also suggest fur-free upholstery for your chairs and sofas, especially if Mr Fluffy likes to nap on the couch. Learn to say no to fur-gathering fabrics such as velvet, corduroy or chenille. Leathers and synthetic fibres are much easier to manage. If you must have delicate fabrics to match your home interior design, invest in smooth tapestries or washable slip covers.
If you still prefer fabrics, washable slip covers are your best bet. (Photo by Dominic Buccilli from Pexels)
Tip: If you have cats that like to scratch your leather sofa or other furniture, there are commercially available products such as sprays and sticky tapes to discourage them from doing so. Alternatively, you can try applying Chinese medicated oil on the areas you want to keep them away. The smell of menthol in the oil, which cats hate, often drives them away.
- Protecting the Walls
Whether to mark territory, pick up a scent or simply scratch a terrible itch, dogs and cats love to rub up against walls. Dogs with jowls can spray drool on walls too. These undesirable habits inevitably leave stains on the walls over time. Therefore, if you want gorgeous wallpapers on your walls, save them in rooms that are out of bounds to the pets. Areas that see lots of saliva and wall-rubbing action should be painted with a washable finish so that you can readily wipe away any body oil or yucky slime.
Reserve your favourite wallpapers to rooms your pets rarely visit. (Image by J4U on Pixabay)
- Doors of their own
Your animal companions, particularly dogs and cats, love to hang out and share a space with you. If you shut the door of the rooms you or your family are in and keep them out, they tend to beg to be let in by scratching – and destroying – the doors. One way to prevent this is to install pet doors at rooms where your family usually hangs out. Not only can you save your doors, you also allow your animal friends to bond with you in the shared space.
An entrance of their own provides discrete access throughout the apartment for your pets. (Photo: Jim’s Glass)
- Window treatment
Pets enjoy sitting by the window to bask in the sun or wait for their human friends to return. While the image of it looks picturesque to many, it is actually dangerous for our beloved companions, particularly for those living in high-rise flats. Incidents of pets falling from the windows have happened in the past, with quite a few being fatal.
To avoid such tragedies or escapes, be sure to close off the view with window treatment such as window mesh or screen, or grilles that are narrow enough to prevent your pets from slipping through them.
Screens keep your pets safe while they enjoy the view outside. (Photo: Priory Blinds and Waterbeds)
- Beyond the horizontal
Many homes in Singapore are space-starved, so if you have several pets, you need to get creative and think vertically. Cats particularly love elevated space where they can climb and explore freely. While some cat lovers go the extra mile to build an elaborate labyrinth above the floor area, a stylish cat tree or wall-mounted shelves are pet accessories you can afford to create pleasures for your beloved.
“Catification” is the latest trend in home interior to allow your cats more vertical space. (Photo: the cat people)
Sharing a home with a pet requires some adjustments. If you are thinking of renovating your home to suit your pet’s needs, please contact our sales consultants for a friendly chat.
