Clip his nails every 3-4 days. If you can hear them click on the floor, they are too long. Some people get the cordless Dremel for that and just file them down.

r m, I am thninking you do not have control of your dog, and you play with him indoors.

thank you for the comments

actually we have very good control of Kaipo, he is exceedingly gentle, in fact getting old and rather slow. However, he startles easily (poodle......), and when he does, he jerks upright abruptly - that's when he scratches the wood floor.

I've seen tile that looks kinda-sorta like wood - but it lacks the warmth, the softness, the authenticity. my wife thought about clipping his nails, but says it isn't that easy - you can cut too deep and he will bleed?

I put down rubber backed area rugs for the places she runs!

Not to hijack but does this phenomenon of dogs scratching wood exist for urban dogs that are walked on sidewalks and pavements. I've had dogs and wood floors for many years with no particular scratching issues as have my neighbors but my dogs are generally walked in the street three times a day.

Asphalt does not wear down their clawws like concrete but the finish on your floors has a lot to do with scatching. And BTW Jim you obviously either don’t own a dofg or have the perfect one since dogs run in the house no matter how well trained they are. I have had laminate in my last 2 homes to avoid the mess my big dogs to make of wood floors. The flooring we have now actually looks like slate and in 11 yrs i have not had a scratch with 2 big goldies and now a great pyrenese

If you are too scared to clip nails, no wonder you have scratches. That’s part of owning a dog responsibility, just as routinely expressing their analsacs is.

Learn to clip nails.

I'm going to throw my hat in - as the local "lazy bones" - and suggest you wait it out. I don't mean to be crass but it is well established that dogs have shorter lifespans than most wood floors.

If you are scared of what the NEXT wood floor will look like, then simply work with the BEST finishes we have. For scratch resistance on a site finished floor I like Loba 2K Supra AT. If you put down 2-3 coats of this product (and yes it will increase your costs by $1/sf) and you will do very well.

And once your pooch has moved on to the great dog run in the sky, you can then have a professional come in and give your floor a "buff and coat" using the same material (in this case it would be more Loba 2K Supra At). Voila. Very nice looking floor and no dog.

I would get him use to Dremel trimming of nails and put down lots of area rugs. You can clip too much and they will bleed a little. There is a powder you can put on them to stop the bleeding. The more you trim and the more often the more the vein recedes. My Aussie was a fantastic dog but stratched my Woden floors. I now have a toy poodle - no issue with stratches.

Growing up our dog was a Husky-German Shepherd mix. There was no clipping her nails at home. And my current dog is ok with getting her nails clipped, but she would freak out if I ran a dremel near her.

Go for the hardwood with the understanding that they’ll get a patina. Also, the type of wood you use will make an impact too.

Well, this thread went a litte sideways. From scratches to pet parenting and nail trims to anal sacs. Awesome! I think hardwood flooring has great charm when both well behaved and poorly behaved dogs have enjoyed their lives on it. I admit, I have hardwood envy. I look at my brothers house and see his eight+/- dogs and swimming pool water being dragged accross that floor and it looks very well loved. Not pristine, not Architectural Digest, but the inherent beauty of a life well lived. IMO, I'd stick with the hardwood. It will always be there and can always be refurbished.

Invest in the finish, use the high end stuff, add an extra coat.

Invest in the finish, use the high end stuff and apply enough coatings to handle 500 daily foot traffic.

Tossing in my opinion about dogs vs. hardwood floors...we've got 40 yo red oak hardwoods in most of the house and 15 yo red oak hardwood in other parts; and we've got a big, slobbering Boxer, who doesn't like to have his nails trimmed. We had 3 coats of poly put on the floors when we refinished them 15 years ago. They have held up well to 3 kids and the dog. Yes, there are scratches, some quite a bit deep. The best thing I ever did was scoop up some dirt out the back entrance, and have the floor guys match the stain to it. Saved my sanity when my littles were little! It was serendipity when we discovered the dog's hair was a close match, too! :)

Does it bother me? Not so much. Being completely honest, sure, I'd rather live with peoples who remove their shoes when they enter, and a dog who doesn't slob and jump on the couch. Instead, I've got a few scratches and dings in the flooring, and also a ton of memories watching my children grow as they loved their pet, Dexter.

In the high traffic areas, the shiny poly has faded. I've just begun re-coating the floors in the refreshed bedrooms as I empty my nest. Those look as good as they did the day we moved in. The high-traffic den was sanded and refinished this past year. Some of the deeper claw grooves did not sand out, but they took the new stain and poly well, and are hardly noticeable.

All in all, I'm satisfied. To me, it shows a family lived and loved in this home.

Your dog is adorable and you clearly love your dog. I would give up all floors in any format to have my boxers back. I miss my old dogs. But that is not the question you are asking. Get what you love. Get the wood floors but find a wood species that is stronger or more durable. Maybe a hickory or teak.. I am not a wood expert but I believe there are harder types out there.

We had 3 boxers and kids with medium stained oak floors. We had a house full of kids in the country. 8 acres and kids and dogs would trample all over our oak floors. Mud, sand, cleats, roller skates, skateboards ... you name it rode on those floors. Our home was the place that family, friends brought their kids and their DOGS. We are dog friendly. We had our floor guys come out every two years to polish and help maintain our floors. It was the cost of having kids and dogs. And every 8 to 10 years we would sand and restain the floors. It was worth it to us to have the animals, family and wood floors together. Get what you love and you won't mind the wear and tear. ~boxer

our old wood floors.

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Pick a floor and more importantly a sheen that doesn't show scratches as much. Wood floors scratch just deal with it.

If your floor person uses the right sheen and products it can easily be touched up. Also if you use real hardwood it will outlive the dog and can easily be sanded and refinished several times.

No wood floor is scratch proof.

That's OK ! All comments and perspectives are welcomed. I really appreciate all the input.

Does anyone have experience with bamboo flooring and dogs? Photos?