I have two doxies, claws mostly long since their momma hates to fool with trimming. Love my engineered Mannington wood floor.

Red

I have laminate wood floors and I hate them...I know that these are supposed to be "scratch" proof, WRONG..I have one big dog (whose nails are usually kept relatively short) and 2 tea cup chihuhuas) The big dog goes ripping through the house and cant grip the floors, so he's like a cartoon character slipping and sliding around...my floors as a result are all scratched up now....and I've been told you cant do anything to refinish them....woe is me....

I have seen other families with kids (no pets) that had REAL wood floors and they seemed to hold up better in general, but I dont think anything is completely fool proof...If it were me (and I'll have my day one day when we build our new house) I'd put some kind of tile in PLACE of the wood floors...Did I mention that they are impossible to keep clean...that's a whole other story....

consider tile, or get something of good quality...that's my 2 cents worth...and that is based solely on my preference, not any kind of professional experience....

I think Wood floors are the ONLY way to go. Nothing compares to the look of wood. Just don't get a high gloss finish. And don't obsess with the first scratch. They will always be there but that is part of a warm and vintage look. We have cats, dogs and small kids. I find it very easy to keep clean. I sweep them often and swifter. Once a week I vacuum and wet mop. We have real oak and pine floors in the last 3 homes we have had. We love it!

We have Pergo in the family room and as earlier poster mentioned our lab can't get a grip when he's in a hurry and/or excited to see someone. Actually we get a little concerned for his safety. The Pergo holds up very well however.

We debated what we were going to do in the living/dining/foyer area and went back and forth between engineered wood and laminate. We eventually decided on wood but understood that with a lab the floor was going to "experience" some trauma (scratches, etc...).

And yes we have some scratches but we really like the wood flooring vs laminate. There are some nice looking laminates out there however.

If you can't live with scratches on your wood floor then don't get wood. Only having one floor with laminate I can only give you our sense and that is the laminate is pretty bullet-proof but I've seen other posts where the laminate did not hold up. Not sure if that is grade/mfg. related or what....

Whatever you decide, don't look back and second guess yourself or you'll drive yourself crazy. Took us a while to finally come to a decision, good luck

Dom

Wood floors everywhere, one cat, one small dog. Love the way they look. I use a dry cloth mop a few times a week to pick up the hair and the dust. Wash the floors once a week with vinegar/water combo. No regrets.

rjinga - laminate is NOT "scratch proof" they're scratch resistant, big difference! Can you imagine if you had actual wood floors what they would look like seeing that your large dog can scratch laminate up. :-)

To the OP, keep in mind that darker wood or laminates will show scratches easier than lighter species. As another poster already mentioned, glossy finishes will also show scratches far easier than a dull finish would. I would think that your children may possibly do more damage to the wood than your pets since you say your dog is small but if you get hand scrapped it may just give it more of a distressed look which may add character to it.

I have huge dogs and several cats- and also have wood floors. I too think they are the only way to go, but mine are "gently used" and I like the character of old floors. I had 100% ceramic in my previous home and it was much less forgiving to old animals bones and walking phobias, not to mention it killed my feet.

My dogs are quiet indoors and don't run (not much room for Wolfhounds to run in such a small house), but they do not damage my flooring. I do keep the water stations in other areas and they come to have their faces wiped after they drink, plus they don't drool either.

Now the cats run all over creation especially during their zoomier moments, but I see no effect on the floor. My floors are quite old, though, and have seen much worse than teeny cats would ever dish out. I do trim the cats nails every few weeks.

I have 2 little bitty dogs and a pit bull in the house. I decided to go with quarter-sawn white oak floors with a waterlox finish. Waterlox is very easy to spot repair as needed. It is a very durable and long-lasting finish, although it is not a hard finish. It will scratch (as will any other finish). It is just much easier to repair than other finishes.

I have wood floors and a 97 lb 10 month old puppy....When I bought this house, it was one of the major selling points for me! With real wood, she has never been able to actually do more than scratch through the wax/varnish/whatever it is - probably because there is about 60 years of it, who knows - she's never made it down to the actual wood itself to gouge it out. I just take a little Murphy's Oil to it, and it seems to buff right out.

Leather couch, that's another story.

We have everything from a 5# japanese chin to a russian wolfhound. Our favorite floor is Mesquite. Besides Brazilian Cherry it is the hardest wood available, green because its considered a range weed and you use danish oil (waterlox brand) on it. Gorgeous floor no staining either. Its' naturally a seasoned color.

Let me add my voice to the pro-wood chorus. We've had many cats over the years...and my floors still look good. I put a coat of Bona "floor refresher" on them annually. That may help. Actually, the kids seemed to be harder on the floors than the cats...