Pet-proof Your Home with Style

Having a family pet is sometimes like having a small child at home. They bring you great joy and stir up warm fuzzy feelings. But unless your pet is of the variety that lives in a tank or a cage, left on their own, even the most well-trained pet can get up to mischief and hurt themselves, others, or your property. As with a young child, your best bet is to pet proof your home for its safety, and for yours.

We tell you how to do it without compromising the décor.

1. Get Down to the Ground

Get down on all fours and potter about your home. Look out for anything that little paws can get tangled in or tug down to create chaos. Then, scour the floor for anything that can be a choking hazard.

Keep the floor space as un-cluttered as possible. Stacks of newspaper are only begging to be pooped and peed on, or chewed up. Potted plants can be easily overturned. Common plants like aloe vera; and a variety of blooms including carnations, chrysanthemum, and tulips can induce vomiting and diarrhoea in cats and dogs.

2. Be a Cleaning Machine

No matter how clean you keep your pet, your home may sometimes end up with smelling suspect. Get rid of noxious fumes with odour eaters and cleaners. Pet Lovers Centre, for example, stocks a natural cleaner that is non-toxic and biodegradable, making it safe for pets, children, and the environment. EcoAdvance Multi Purpose Enzyme Cleaner breaks down dirt molecules so they can be easily cleaned off. It also breaks down odour molecules and de-odourises the place.

If you have a cat, the kitty litter is a necessary but nasty smelling addition to the home. Regular cleaning and baking soda will help to freshen the spot. Remember also that your cat can leap seven times the height of its tail. Make sure you clean your kitchen countertops judiciously. You do not know what dirt and bacteria kitty claws can track in.

3. Prevention is Better Than Cure

Cats scratch. If you do not want to replace your favourite sofa, go for fabric that does not snag on claws. Velvet is made up of looped threads cut at the end like hair, giving very little for cats to hook their claws into to pull. Leather is also good. Fur does not stick to it, it is easy to wipe down, and it still looks good with a scratch or two.

Wrap sisal rope around furniture legs. They protect them from scratches while creating an interesting decorative detail in your décor.

To keep pets out of rooms like the kitchen or bathroom where they can get hurt, install a pet door. While you are at it, buy child locks for your toilet lids so your dog will not be tempted to take a drink and for low cabinets to prevent your pet from getting to the content which may harm them.

4. Designed to Hide

Go for soft furnishing that have small, dark patterns or colourful fussy ones. Stains do not show up on them as easily.

Pets shed. Even if you are religious about cleaning up fur, they still have a way of turning up. Colour co-ordinating with your pet will help. If yours is a gleaming white cat or dog, steer clear of plain, dark colours. You will be surprised how easily white fur shows on dark furniture.

Incorporate items that protect your furniture into your overall design. For reasons no one really knows, dogs love couches. A throw blanket stylishly draped over your sofa will not only keep it clean, it can be an accent to enhance your décor.

5. Space Invaders

Create a niche for your pet. You can have two ways to go about this. One, you can make the space match the style and theme of your home. For example, a country-style home can accommodate woven baskets for pets. A resort-themed home would do well with wooden dog or cat houses. You can even custom-make a replica of your home for your pet or paint it complement the colour of the room.

Avant garde wall structures and shelves can double-up as climbing structures for your cat.

Two, you can let your pet inspire your home décor. A tropical corner complete with green walls and blooms where you keep your tropical birds, a black and white-themed room where your Dalmatian sleeps, selecting accents the exact shade of your pet – let your imagination run wild.

There is no reason to be in the doghouse about pet-proofing your home. With these great ideas, your home can be pretty and pet-friendly, too.

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