company called FLOR does carpet tiles for outdoor application. It's actually a pretty cool look. I'd consider them before rejecting the idea out of hand.

In terms of the finish, I assume you have a basic broom finish concrete slab (has tiny ridges all going the same direction, made by a broom)? This is typical for exterior pours because of slip and fall protection. A concrete overlay is the right term for what you're after. Just make sure it won't end up to slick, especially if you or the pups end up tracking in water,

Another overly option is a kool deck/ excel deck acrylic process. We used Sundek on a client's pool deck and it worked out well (link below). I looked for info on a few of the other companies in that vein we used in AZ, but that was before the recession. It looks like most of them didn't make it through.

Here is a link that might be useful: sundek

Thanks for the info marcinde.

I looked up FLOR and didn't see the outdoor tiles - but those are definitely cool and will keep them in mind for other projects. The reason I hate to do carpet out there is because the dogs aren't real good at wiping their feet before they come in the porch. We've got a piece of that cheap outdoor carpet from Lowes down out there now - feels much nicer to the feet but sure didn't take long to show the dirt of the dogs traipsing through! I think it took all of a week before it looked bad. I guess I need to teach them better manners... :)

Looks like Sundek has someone fairly close, think we'll see what they have to say - at least it's a place to start!

Thanks again for the info - I wasn't familiar with the Sundek name.

You could have flagstone installed over the slab. ;o)