Not in gray. But gray is available.

Thanks for any input!

((woof))

If you love the velvet, you may just have to train your pup to stay down off the sofa as difficult as it will be to see those big brown eyes begging adoringly. Buy him his own chair - in leather. : )

Personally I like the style of the second, leather sofa. The velvet is a little boxy, but then I don't know what your room looks like. Good luck with your decision.

My 2 Aussies are not permitted on the upstairs furniture (They, and us, are in silent agreement not to talk about the basement furniture). Even so, I have leather everywhere. The amount of dirt I clean from the front of the sofa and chairs, and from underneath the furniture arms, is astonishing. That is just from them walking by.

I also agree with the difficulty of keeping the Chesterfield crevices clean. We have one in the den; it sees little use since the chairs are more comfortable, but the dust settles like crazy.

I assume you've sat in these sofas IRL.

Unless you love housework--leather and cushy blankets and pillows instead.

- a resigned three-cat-owner with towels on her chairs

We have always had either a black or yellow lab. The shedding and dirt is rough! I think you would really regret getting the velvet. If your dog is allowed on the furniture, I think you may want to look at a leather sectional without tufting.

I would wonder about claw marks in the leather furniture but for me personally, I avoid tufted furniture and that includes avoiding tufted ottomans because of the junk that collects there (think of your belly button) and I am a -

resigned 2-cat owner with claw marks in the leather couch and, like robo, towels on my chairs.

I regret not going with leather on my last set of furniture. I have never liked sitting on leather. I now have couches that are barely four years old that with fabric that is worn, dirty, and fraying at the edges. Our dogs are not allowed on the furniture, but trying to keep the Weimarener from rubbing up against it like a bear scratching his back has been impossible!

If this boy is still around when we can afford to replace it, it will be with leather. Also, I will never buy from La-Z-Boy again, as this stuff looks worse than the 20 year old Bassett furniture it replaced.

Oh, and a agree with others about the Chesterfield being difficult to clean. Those yellow lab hair will get into the tufts and under the buttons. The bottom cushions on the one you have chosen are smooth, so it won't be so bad :)

& it's not just pets: family furniture should be easy to clean spills from as well....

Have you sat in the Hollywood Regency style velvet tufted sofa? There is no pitch to the back. It's kind of a "perching" sofa, not one you can lean back into.

Have you tried the furmirator? I wouldn't have dogs without it, and I must have my dogs.

Here is a link that might be useful: deshedding tool

I love velvet, but I wouldn't want it in the family room whether or not I had dogs i don't think- dogs, cat, kids, and husb... maybe if i lived by myself... :)
we have had a leather sectional for 10+ yrs and other than some fading, it has held up very well! we do have big dogs but we don't allow them on the furniture but did have 3 kids at home for much of that time and they were by no means gentle with the furniture! i think cat claws are a much bigger concern with leather than dog claws...

I would choose leather with pets, easy clean up but you can put sheets/cloths on the sofas or teach your pets to stay off the furniture...... but a comment on the sofas.....the backs look so low...are they comfortable?

I own a large Golden Retriever and usually have a second Golden in the house as a foster dog. It isn't just the fur, there is also the general dirt and and oils from the dogs. I think you can choose either velvet or leather, because your best bet is to cover it with a washable throw. I use a painter's dropcloth. My neighbor stopped by one day when the throw was in the wash. She remarked that it was the first time she had ever seen my sofa.

I've never had leather because I don't care for the feel. I don't care for the boxy velvet sofa either in style or how uncomfortable it looks. With any pets, I'd worry about the crap that gathers in the tufts. I have a few tufted cushions and they're hopeless to clean.

I have two black and white cats and their fur shows up equally on dark and light things. They are allowed on furniture. These cats don't take no for an answer. I have towels, throws and faux sheepskin dotted around on my furniture. It's not a great look, but it's the reality of life with animals. I have a mid-sage green velvet chair and ottoman and it's holding up well with the cats, esp. since they play King of the Mountain on it. I have one of these lint brushes and it's amazing for getting cat hair off furniture, rugs, etc.

Get what you want and use a brush. Yes to the rinsable lint/pet brushes! They get the fur, loose dirt, etc. I've been waiting until the teen boy is more responsible to get a new couch, since the two cats are no longer the issue... I have a rinsable lint brush (when I bother to clean, I won't lie). Works wonders! I have owned a brush like the one below, but currently have a Sticky Buddy. Any of these rollers that are sticky and reusable are heaven. Oh, and I am close to being able to have a nice couch; he finally reacted appropriately (sorry and wanted to clean it immediately) when he spilled something the other night.

:)

Here is a link that might be useful: reusable roller

I'll add my vote for leather. Even if you did forbid your dog from going on the new sofa, he'll still rub against it, lay down next to it, look at it - all of which will add hair.

Our dog is allowed on the sofa in the LR, but not the chair. It's nice having a more or less hair-free zone. The reason our dog is not allowed on the chair is because our last dog (Topper) lived in that chair - and when we got the new dog, our kids decreed that New Dog not be allowed on Topper's chair.

We've had a leather sofa and love seat for 20 years, with dogs all the while. I'm a believer! And even though we live in a cold climate, I think the leather warms up quickly when I sit on it.

Have Irish Wolfhounds.
Have leather.
The end :)

It's either that, throws everywhere, or stress.
I choose leather.

We had a yellow lab and a light colored golden retriever at the same time so
I will speak from experience ( they were allowed on furniture ) to get the
leather !

What is the velvet made out of?

I once had a hand-me-down velvet sofa that did not attract cat or dog hair very much. I think it was a cotton/mohair mix.

But I could see a microfibre or polyester velvet being a fur magnet.

I'd get the sofa you like, and train the dog to only get on a specific section of it, one covered by a blanket. My cats have learned that their spot, other than my lap, is on the towel. If the cats can learn that, surely a Lab can . . . .

My yellow lab does not get ON our furniture, all she has to do is walk by or sit next to it and the hair sticks to it.

I have been looking for info on leather for a couch, I have already slip covered the chairs..those slipcovers get washed. A lot.

A good vacuum cleaner should come with every lab.

ML

I have a leather Morris chair and ottoman in the living room that is my main spot to sit. It isn't the real good leather, and I don't like the way my bare legs tend to stick to it, not only in summer. A very uncomfortable feeling, so I don't even sit on it in a short night gown. Maybe real leather is different. Plus my cat has put many scratches on the ottoman.

On the mohair furniture in the library, I use a Dirt Devil hand vac when necessary. Because of the short nap, hair vaccums up easily.

LEATHER! I can't stress this enough:).

Thank you! Truly. The votes are in. The dog will always be welcome on the furniture.

and I will be getting the leather.