I need some info on leather furniture and dogs.

[hedgehog]

I have two fair sized (OK, big) dogs who sit (and run across) the couch. If I were to buy a leather couch, how would the leather hold up? WOuld it be easy to keep clean or would they shred it to ribbons with their dainty feet?

Also, I have no air conditioning. How comfortable is leather in the summer?

[Jigarotta]

1. we don't allow our dog on the leather couch.

he's got pokey talons that could do damage. but that's been the rule in the house no matter what kind of couch we have, doggie not allowed in certain areas.

and yes, it does get a bit sticky in hot humid weather, but a throw over cover solves that easily.

[LeftyMom]

2. Judging by a friend of mine's home, leather and dogs didn't work out

Thier new furniture looks like shit already.

Leather in the summer? Your ass will stick. It's hot. You'll sweat.

I'd suggest you get a relatively cheap affordable but not cheaply made sofa and maybe a slipcover. Like kids, dogs preclude having fancy things.

[hedgehog]

4. Well, I have two sets of slip covers now

One for the couches, one for the washer. You'd be amazed what gets buried in the creases in just a week or two!

Thanks for the info. I knew that this was either great or a terrible idea with no in-between.

[havocmom]

12. I second all that. Sister has leather chairs and ottoman.

One of her dogs uses the ottoman for a springboard as she races throught the room. Big dogs have big nails... Leather scratches very easily and tears faster than you would hope.

Don't do it if the dogs hop on the furniture.

[philosophie_en_rose]

3. Even a slipcover won't protect the sofa.

Dogs' nails will poke right through the leather.

Not to mention, it's likely to smell like a chew toy.

[jukes]

5. dog nails

will destroy leather. i'd sugg something more durable, like hemp canvass...
you can train them, o/c/ but there will be some damage while they're learnin, unless thry'e lots smarter than republicans.

then there's slobber, vomit, and the occasional anal-gland leak to consider. personally, i'd go w/ the hemp, or an easily cleanable synthetic.

[AirmensMom]

6. My sister has basset hounds and three leather sofas.

She keeps a doggy blanket on them most of the time, but they've been OK when the blankets are off. There is a big difference in the quality of leather you can buy, which would make a difference in how well it holds up.

[Robb]

7. May I suggest corduroy?

You'd just get sadder every day watching the leather get scritched up. It's that round-and-round-then-sit-down thing as much as anything else.

[mongo]

8. Damn I thought this was a sex thread

Oh well....

[hedgehog]

10. I was very careful in my phrasing

I know know your mind works! (LOL)

[lukasahero]

9. My experience

is that they do less damage to leather than upholstery. I have a 100 lb lab who, while we don't encourage it, occasionally gets on the furniture. It used to be a nightmare trying to get the hair out of it. Leather, no problem. His nails don't damage it either - but we keep them clipped.

As for the summer question, I can't answer that. Our couch is in the basement (coolest room in the summer, warmest in the winte). Sorry.

Just my opinion, but I'd get it.

[ScreamingMeemie]

11. It would not hold up. It did not hold up to our one Sheltie... Your legs

will stick to it in summer time. Hope I have helped. :hi:

[DemoTex]

13. Leather is very uncomfortable in hot weather.

However, I found a great way to train my dogs to stay off the sofa. It's called a "shake-can." Put 13 pennies in an empty coffee can and tape the lid back on. When you catch the pooch on the furniture, shake the can very hard in the dog's face. After you have conditioned the dog to the sound of the shake-can (dogs hate it), start leaving the can on the sofa. You might have to shake it in the dog's face again a couple of times, but after a couple of weeks you should be able to retire the shake-can for good. It worked like a charm on both of my dogs.

[LibertyLover]

14. One word

Don't.

A friend of mine had a leather couch. Then he got a dog. The dog enjoyed the leather couch. He had separation anxiety and one day got out of the kitchen area where he was confined during the day. That was the end of the leather couch. It was almost the end of the dog too, but my friend went out and got another dog to keep the first one company and put him on medication. Things are much better. Also leather can be unpleasant on bare skin in hot weather - think sticky.