I don't know what to tell you, but I'm in the same position as you. I've heard that laminate was the best if you have dogs. Dogs can easily damage hardwood floors with their nails and the stains I've seen from potty accidents are not good.

I was looking at some Alloc laminate that says their laminate's edges are wax sealed so water won't damage them.

There's always ceramic tile. "wink"

A nice vinyl floor would better suit your needs.... or tile.

I'd look into the vinyl "plank" flooring (strips of vinyl so it's laid like planks of wood). It is not cheap but there's nothing like vinyl for your situation, and this stuff is so beautiful and hard to tell it's not the real thing. Sorry I do not know brand but think Armstrong may have it. I've seen it in model homes.

i agree that you should stay away from wood/laminate and go with tile or this vinyl plank recommendation..

With flooring changes, it isn't the cost so much as it is the hassle of taking everything out of a room and then dragging it all back in.

I totally, completely loathe tile - but in your case, I think it's the only sensible solution. If you have to go with sheet vinyl, go with the absolute top-quality brand you can afford. It will have a thicker clearcoat and be more resistant to scratching and wear.

I'm not a tile fan either, but more than that I wonder about dog weewee and grout... you can seal grout but liquids still get in it, I think. I would think dog urine in grout would never leave. I think vinyl is the only way. Or real (solid, not engineered) wood, if you don't mind scratches and upkeep. You have to keep wiping moisture off of it, otherwise it's really very durable. I think scratches on hardwood are acceptable since it is, after all, wood.

Bigdoglover, I was told if I used an Epoxy grout and cleaned any pee off of it right away, it would not stain or smell. I have ivory light grout upstairs in my bathrooms that match my ivory tiles that has not been sealed in 18.5 years (not idea if it was ever sealed) and I can clean it and it never smells even when my small epileptic Maltese misses the puppy pad and I do not notice the pee on the tile for a few days. The tile is slippery though and I will never buy a tile that does not have some kind of grip on it for a bathroom. I bought the townhouse when it was 7 years old so the pretty ivory shiny tile was not my choice but does look nice in the pattern and octagon design of the tile.

Ceramic tile with epoxy grout would be a pretty good choice. But, for something resilient I would recommend an homogenous commercial vinyl flooring made by Tarkett, Mannington, Armstrong, Lonseal and others. These are chemically resistant flooring materials that are best installed by experienced professionals, as the materials are made in six foot widths and need to be seamed properly to make for acceptable and watertight seams. I installed the Tarkett product in a veterinarian office and it has proven to be an excellent choice.

Konecto or Allure flooring.

Are you on a slab? Was thinking of the acid stained concrete, but if the floors were glued down that might have removed the possibility.

We're getting ready to lay "Wood like Ceramic Tile". We have the samples here and they come in planks of various sizes and widths, and different colors. They look like real wood but they're tile. We have a big dog and we wanted wood floors, but talking to many people, they said the dog would scratch it if they get happy like mine does when her "daddy" comes home from work. lol.

I've seen a room with these tiles and they are just beautiful. They're kind of expensive and are hard to lay, but should last a lifetime.

Duraplank or Karndean make great woodlookin products that are easy to install and waterproof!

I LOVE my duraplank.
{{gwi:1564916}}From Sequoia trip 2008

Stands up to college aged children quite nicely...dogs should be NO problem.

What about marmoleum by Forbo? Look at these two series - Dutch Designs and global 1 . It's great stuff. Some of the series looks very hospital-ish, but not all. It's a green product and very reasonable. Lasts for years. My sister has this in her kitchen - from 1946 and it still looks great. The pattern goes all the way through - not just on the top like vinyl - if the nails scratch it, it won't even show. Plus, it's antimicrobial.

Do a search on google "Forbo marmoleum Dutch Designs" and "Forbo Marmoleum global 1", then hit images. Warning: It looks much better in person than on any computer screen I've seen it on.

Good luck!

Oakleyok - Would you mind sharing where you found your "wood look ceramic tile"? And how you like it so far? I saw on another post that you are in central Oklahoma, which is where I live also. I recently heard about this ceramic tile and would like to see some samples. Thanks!

I have a thread about wood look ceramic and am looking for suggestions for manufacturers. I've seen the Porcelenosa... beautiful and expensive. The name Italgres has come up and well as Interceramic

the op noted that he had a water cooler break so most of this damage was from a significant amount of water which caused the laminate to swell. Small spills most likely would not have been a problem. If this hadn't happened the laminate may well serve his purposes. Scratching aside the floor was be intact.

I would go with the wood look tile. Go to several tile distributors and look. Some look fake and terrible and others look beautiful. I had my heart set on http://www.mediterranea-usa.com/havana.html The local distributor had it for $3.89 per sq foot on sale (half the usual price) They can lay it with a very minimal grout line since its high quality tile and that also makes it look like a wood floor.

However - when we ripped up the carpet to explore why our tile was cracking in the foyer - we found a big crack right down the middle of the floor. There were ways to fix the crack - but since the house is only 5 years old we worried that its still settling in the soft Florida sand... so we are going with a floating laminate floor. Wilsonart is the best quality I could find. Its going down on Monday.

Don't worry too much about pee, poop, puke in the grout lines. My old house was all tile, and while I hate grout lines with a passion - they never held any odors. Go with a dark grout - cause no matter how many times you seal it - it will still get dirty - believe me - I've done it. Best cleaner I've found for grout lines is the magic eraser but basically I've given up and live with dark grout lines.

Oh yea - and the dogs will always have accidents on your carpets and throw rugs - they seem to avoid the tile for messes :)

There is no other flooring type that has the design flexibility of ceramic tile or natural stone. There are multiple shapes, sizes, installation patterns and color ways that give ceramic tile and natural stone endless design choices. This is just one of the many benefits of ceramic tile and natural stone. Ceramic tile and stone are practically impervious to claw scratches and potential damage from, ahem, accidents. The glazed tiles clean easily, so they're easy to keep looking good year in and year out. I will suggest you for get rid of Vinyl and try Ceramic.
Ciciliot

We installed Berry laminate flooring throughout the house about a year and a half ago, primarily because the expense of a hardwood install over slab would have bumped up the cost considerably. I absolutely love the flooring (a red cherry 5" plank and a charcoal slate tile). We have a 17 year old Bichon whose, um, constitution (if you catch my drift) is no longer regular or predictable. We both work, so we often find "presents" that have been on the floor for who knows how many hours. I have to say, in all honesty, that the flooring is none the worse for the wear even after all the urine its seen. No residual smells, either (so far!!).

My parents have a farm house with Pergo that is 15+ years old and barely showing wear. I think the only floor to survive better than this is concrete. Muddy boots, dogs and birds, you name it this stuff has taken a total beating. I think if you want true durability you need a type that is glued together to protect the edges. I don't know how the pergo is now compared to others pricewise but back then it was very expensive but proven worth it considering the linoleum before it was destroyed in under 5 years. I have hardwood now and wish it was laminate.

I am facing the same delimma for my master bedroom remodel.

A few years ago, I decided to get rid of all the carpet in the house (I managed a shelter at the time and totally understand -- I wound up with 3 large shelter dogs - an extra large aussie with epilepsy, a malinois, and an english shepherd). I decided to decorate for the "life I HAVE". No carpet, Ralph Lauren 'rattlebox' suede paint in the den, distressed leather furniture, and tile floors. We chose an italian arghila (sp?) with heat mats beneath the tile and LOVE IT. We wound up putting it in the den and both bathrooms. It will go in our kitchen when that is done late this year.

As for the bedroom, I really didn't want tile in there, but have also seen the wood look tiles and they are gorgeous. At the Gainey Spa and Ranch in Scottsdale, I was there on business and noticed the tiled floor in the kitchen areas are actually ceramic. Since we love those heat mats so much, we thought it might be a good choice. The epi-aussie can sometimes have an accident if he has a seizure. And tile has been awesome for cleanup and accidents, as well as those huge nails.

LOL cindyandmocha! I've been through tile, laminate, wood, carpet, vinyl, concrete patio. Grout is a pain...our's satined and the grout in my husband's bathroom stained badly...yes, it was sealed. The best and easiest..high end vinyl/linoleum (Marmoleum is green). There's another product on the market that I have samples on that I really like..Foresta flooring. This is 100% waterproof and it looks beautiful. We recently lost one of our dogs who had seizures and lost bladder control a lot and have been training a new puppy...so much for the carpet. Our next floor...probably the Foresta. It looks very sound resistant for condos too.

oh those furbabies are so beautiful!!!

Epoxy floors can be an option

After 13 yrs, wanna bet floor has been chosen