Hi MsRose, Being in real estate, I see a wide variety of flooring and the mix of tile and wood throughout the house is common and can look really good actually; so I wouldn't necessarily consider ripping out what you have.

No question about it, I would go with hardwood though. We have a prefinished oak throughout most of the main floor and Brazilian Walnut in the kitchen and dining area. I was a little concerned last year when we got our Lab puppy but it's not been a problem at all. Prefinished is known to be a bit more durable, but the occasional mishap will not damage a wood floor whether it's stained and sealed after laying or before.

Also, our Lab does shed quite a bit as well as our white senior cat and the oak usually doesn't show any of the hair at all unless a dust bunny forms or it's been a couple of days since the last dusting or vacuuming. Oak doesn't show dirt as well which makes it very easy to care for.

I would not add more tile. Tile is not easy on the legs and is more cold. I think with the decor you have in place so far, a warm darker toned scraped oak would be beautiful.

I've always had wood floors and dogs. We've had dark wood, light wood, and the run-of-the-mill golden hardwoods put in every 1960's home. Dark floors with a fluffy white dog was the worst, hair-wise. With your Frenchie (who I would like for you to mail to me IMMEDIATELY, by the way) being dark, I don't think you'll have much trouble with hair showing up if you get medium or dark floors.

re: accidents, yes, the polyurethane coating on them makes it so that accidents don't leak below the boards or even onto the actual wood. We had many foster dogs who had accidents in the process of being housetrained and no problem with stains or odors on the floors.

Go with the hardwood and get a swiffer. :)

When we refinished ours 15 years ago, we had three coats of water-based polyurethane in a satin finish. Not shiny. If I had it to do over, I would have gotten two coats of oil-based as the other seems to scratch more easily, but all in all we still don't have noticeable scratches (at least not to others) with our two dogs and the regular visits from the grandpup.

We put in luxury vinyl plank - lowes surface source floating vinyl plank. It looks like wood but wears like iron and spills wipe right up. I have some pictures in my "before and after photos" thread. It's also very economical and easy to install.

The only thing that would be dog friendly would be as tinan suggested, vinyl. As she also suggested, I would go with a wood look too.
My first choice prsonally is wood. As Cyn mentions, you get it coated with a sating finish. Then, you can also put inexpensive area rugs, which by the way you can add color to your neutrals.

Definitely hardwood floors, and site-finished if you can (assuming you aren't on a concrete slab). We had oil based polyurethane and went with 4 coats. Sure, maybe it was overkill ... But they look amazing. There are 3 gloss levels to choose from with our flooring guy - flat, semi-gloss, and glossy. We liked the look of flat BUT it is harder to clean. Anything powdery actually sticks and you have to mop it or wipe it.

For slipping, get some indoor outdoor carpet from Lowes or Home Depot. We used that when our previous dogs got old and it worked well, and when it got dirty we would just hose off the driveway, lay the carpet on the driveway, and hose off the carpet. It dried quickly and went back in the house.

lukkiirish - "it's been a couple of days since the last dusting or vacuuming"? How about a couple of weeks? I know I probably sound like a slob, but I really do go that long sometimes...definitely no more than once a week.

leafy - The Frenchie is my new one and I just adore her! The problem is my other one is a light colored Pug, so what's good with one isn't good with the other. So, the polyurethane would keep anything from dripping between the boards, but what if I got prefinished floors? I wouldn't have the same protection with that would I? It just seems like if urine was down under the floor,it would start to stink.

engineerchic - I do have concrete slabs and I thought someone at a flooring store told me I couldn't have site finished floors because it was an excisting home with concrete slabs. He said I could do it if it was a new build. My mother's friend has an older house than mine on concrete,so I wondered about that.

Here are some picture of the "luxury vinyl plank" as it is going in. I have had real hardwood before (my favorite, but out of our budget), engineered wood (scratched very easily, dented like crazy and any water at all damaged it) and this floor is just amazing for the cost - 80 cents per sq ft and DIY install - and ease of maintenance.

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tinan - Thanks for the pictures. It does look really good, but I had Pergo type floors before and decided that the next time I wanted real wood (I've never had them before). The good part is that it shouldn't be that expensive since I have a such a small area. I can see how that would cost you a small fortune to put real wood all over your house. Hmm, so engineered wood is more prone to damage? It's so hard to know what to do here. I don't want a floor that shows damage easily, but I think my main concern is still whether something will drip down between the boards if I get prefinished floors.

Tile is the best and safest. You can use tile which looks like wood. I love tile for dogs, easy cleaning and sanitary.

We had dogs and our entire house was oak floors. After our oldest dog died, I discovered staining of the wood in places I didn't realize she had gone. Her bladder gave out toward the end and we had to refinish our floors after. Cost a small fortune because we had an open, contemporary house and the wood floors ran throughout the house. You can't refinish one room without doing the entire area.

Tile!

Jane

We put in really dark hickory and I love it. I confess that my mostly white dog does leave some pretty fluffy dog bunnies around, but when we clean it looks soooo pretty. Didn't work with carpet! Only had a couple of accidents when my dog was on steroids, and I didn't find them until the next morning. No problem with stains or odor. The installer told me that the glue between the boards prevents water soaking in. We have 2 60-pound dogs and they have not hurt it yet! They do slide around a lot...

I see - your original post didn't specify real wood. I would definitely go with "real" hardwood not engineered. We had very expensive Shaw walnut in our previous condo and it was easily scratched by cats' claws let alone dogs! It dented any time we dropped something or even moved furniture the wrong way. It's not sealed to prevent moisture getting between the boards so if moisture gets on a seam it will seep in and cause expansion and potential damage. We dropped some ice cubes once and missed one, it melted in a corner and caused damage.... so I would not recommend those floors for dogs.

Real hardwood site finished is more durable, can be refinished, and the polyurethane does indeed protect the wood from moisture to a great extent, especially at the seams. Polyurethane does not need to be shiny you can get any finish you desire.

Wood expands and contracts with seasonal humidity changes. Site finishing will not stop that expansion or contraction and any finish that covers it will soon develop micro cracks in the finish between the boards. If you don't have AC, or use a humdifier in winter, the expansion and contraction can be pretty dramatic and so can the cracks in the finish. It's why wood floors in older homes usually have gaps between the boards. When they expand, the fibers on the edge become crushed, and at the ebb cycle in the humidity, I've seen some older homes where a quarter would fit in between the planks. Wood floors can stand the occasional water or piddle accident, but they are NOT a good choice where something like that is expected to happen on a regular basis.

The best floor for any doggie daycare is porcelain tile with epoxy grout. It's completely waterproof and stain proof. It's what they use in restaurants, and it can stand up to kitchen accidents and pressure washing.

If you want something softer underfoot, then look at commercial vinyl tile with a commercial grade acrylic sealer on it that you have a flooring company periodically maintain. That's what's used in most hospitals and other settings where tough wear and a good deal of moisture resistance is needed but something a bit quieter and softer than porcelain is desired. There are lots of people using this in their kitchens in checkerboard patterns and other patterns and it comes in lots of colors. Look at the Armstrong flooring site for pictures and to order samples.

I have hickory engineered flooring by Shaw also, in the thickest they make.

Nothing penetrates it, nor does it scratch unless metal is dragged against it. Ask me how I know. lol

Before I put my dog down, she was making messes several times a day, and there were times I didn't see the mess until hours later. No problem.

I think but could be wrong, that hickory is the hardest wood. You can get a dull stain also.

My dog sheds 24/7, and I keep a large Bona dust mop hidden in the LR which makes it easy giving the floor a quick dusting every morning.

Well, I have 2 birds (messy messy), an old cat and a puppy dog so my requirements are most likely different. :c) I'm sure it varies from house to house.

I have an aging dog and wood with several coats of oil-based poly in part of the house and two poorly-done coats of water-based in another part of the house. I had to take up the area rugs once I discovered the dog was having problems. (Thick orientals are very forgiving.)

Anyway, the water-based hardwood will have to be re-sanded and some planks replaced when the dog is gone. The older oil-based poly is in much better shape. In both cases, in places where there weren't area rugs trapping the moisture, and I caught the accidents quickly, the floor is fine. I'd definitely do site-finished poly, and several coats.

I'm still thinking about the hardwood vs tile choice. On the Color Me Happy Blog, she posted "Going with a espresso brown floor is already considered dated, plus it's a life designed around dusting your floors as every single speck shows". Are dark wood floors really considered dated already? I think her floors may actually be laminate, but she went with a lighter color. I've always thought of that as a more modern look and I'm definitely not modern. Since I want low maintainence and something that won't show much dog hair and dust, should I go with a lighter floor and would that look good with my decor?

Here is a link that might be useful: Color Me Happy Blog