I bought much less expensive Persians (but expensive for me). Mine are used... somewhat threadbare in places. Initially I allowed my dogs to play on them (2 golden retrievers; older one is also around 70 lbs), but I stopped. Now they are only allowed to play in our finished basement with w-t-w carpeting. I didn’t see damage done but I figured it would eventually happen, and since I see myself as a caretaker of objects from the past... I couldn’t do it. In other words, for me it was less about the money and more about wanting to preserve vintage items.

I have three rambunctious rescue dogs, who are very sweet, but play hard at times. My rugs, with the exception of a Pottery Barn wool rug in the guest bedroom are all Karastan wool ones. YEARS of many dogs have not hurt these rugs. You can find some on eBay and also Craigslist at times.

Can you post a link to the ones you like on esalerugs?

Thanks for the prompt responses. I've perused ebay in the past. I'll check it again before I make my decision as I over-research every large purchase I make, lol. Here's the esale rug: Rug 1

It has a relatively thick 1/2" pile and 150 KPI. More importantly, the colors work for me. :)

My3Dogs, were your rugs vintage items when you purchased, or new/gently used?

zmith, I’m a little concerned about the rug you posted because it has some areas of low pile. For everyday use I think it’s fine...for me, the look is even preferable to new. But personally I would be concerned about that with a rambunctious, large dog. Same issue my rugs have. You aren’t even supposed to use a beater bar on them according to some... I see the damage my dogs have done to my wood floors even with their regularly Dremmeled nails.

Anele, that's kind of what I was thinking. I have w-t-w carpeting in the hallway and bedrooms. 5 years old, and it looked fine until I brought this guy into my life 3 years ago. I can't get the rugs clean without the beater bar! It sounds like a vintage persian rug isn't right for this room. But maybe for a less-used space.

What else is there in terms of durable rugs? Maybe I need an outdoor rug, lol. I will keep looking. Thanks!

I still use the beater bar— I actually think it’s OK on the lower pile areas. It’s my rug with more pile that I have to be most careful with in terms of the vacuum. I see areas where it’s gotten fuzzy at some point, either with me or its past owners. The low pile ones can’t fuzz!

Is there any other room he can do his playing in? And then he can chew/sleep/train (the calm stuff) in the living room.

My3dogs, lovely rug! Yes, I suspected yours were new or like new. A thick pile is a different ballgame than the vintage ones with low pile, in my experience.

This style on eBay, the Karastan 747 is similar colors to what you're looking for.

There's a WIDE range of prices on the three 8'8" x 12' ones, bit there is a potential bargain to be had if you live near Columbia, SC, as it's pick-up only.

Karastan 747 on eBay

I've always had large dogs and wool persian rugs and the dogs have done no damage; the rugs show no wear at all, after more than 15 years. I do think that buying this particular rug, although it is beautiful, might not be a good idea because it already has worn low pile areas. I think a wool persian without these worn spots would be just fine. I think they are actually the best for people with pets, because they do hide everything. I clean mine regularly, but they never look like they need to be cleaned, IYKWIM.

My3dogs, I used to have that Karastan you just linked on ebay! It was too large for our new house when we moved. I was sort of glad because I realized my heart belongs to the color red, and I never felt the salmon really worked with it.

My3dogs, you're the one who got me to start looking at persian rugs with your 2016 post of that wonderful ebay rug!

Anele, we play outside when the weather permits. But yes, there are other areas where we could play so that not all the activity is concentated in this one space. Good to know about using beater bars on the low pile rugs. Makes sense, too.

Gail, thank you for sharing your experience. I'll pay close attention to the condition and I agree 100% the patterns of these rugs will hide more sins than a solid or lighter colored rug. The rug I linked is also a bit too small, so I'll keep looking.

Good to know that I don't necessarily need to completely rule out a persian rug!