Sharing your home with pets doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice style. With a bit of planning, you can create a space that works just as well for your furry friends as it does for you.

FLOORING

Carpet tends to trap pet hair, stains and odours, and can be easily damaged by sharp claws. Instead, go for something more durable like hybrid plank floors. They’re resistant to scratches, scuffs and stains, and they’re also good at absorbing sound, a bonus if you’ve got kids in the house. You can find examples that mimic all kinds of timber, as well as stone or concrete.

FURNITURE

Getting pets and furniture to peacefully coexist can be tricky. Hair gets everywhere, furniture gets scratched, smells linger. You can make pet hair less obvious by buying furniture with mid-tone colours, like greys and beiges, that can disguise loose fur from both light and darkhaired pets. When it comes to material, velvet attracts hair but isn’t appealing for pets to scratch. Suede needs delicate care, so opt for microsuede which feels similar but is easier to clean. Open-weave fabrics like tweed, knits and corduroy won’t have long lives in a cat home, as they fall victim to kitty claws. They also attract hair like crazy and absorb odour. Leather works well because pet hair doesn’t stick and it’s easy to clean. Same with microfibre, which can wear very well. If you’d rather not let your pets dictate what kind of furniture you have, you can go into protection mode. Couch covers come in all sorts of colours and patterns and are easy to remove and throw in the wash. You can also stick on cat scratch deterrent tape. It’s like a phone screen protector but for your furniture, and will be most effective taped to the front arm panel of a couch.

NOOKS

Make all your pet-parent friends jealous with the ultimate in pet luxury: built-in nooks. These are cosy spaces for your pets to sleep, sit and rest, integrated into your home and furniture. Rather than having a random pet bed in the middle of the room, your dog or cat can chill in their own private den. It can be built into cabinetry, under the stairs, in the laundry room, in a kitchen island, or even under a table or shelving. You can apply the same idea to food and water bowls by having them built into a low pull-out drawer. Alternatively, buy a pet feeding station which is essentially a small cabinet with a low drawer for bowls, food, and accessories.

LITTER BOXES

Litter boxes are a must for cat owners, but they’re not exactly pretty. But they’re getting better. Welcome to the world of ‘hidden litter boxes’, which can look like timber cabinets, pot plants, or colourful capsules on the outside, but are litter boxes on the inside.

CATIOS AND DOGIOS

If you haven’t heard of them before, a catio or dogio is an enclosed outdoor space where your cat or dog can safely enjoy the outdoors. They give your pet enriching outdoor time and keep them, and local wildlife, safe. Pick colour schemes to match your home, a theme that reflects your personality, greenery to make it a garden wonderland (just double-check which plants are pet-safe), pottery, tree stumps, tunnels, and even outdoor furniture. It can become a lovely spot for you to relax with your pet, or even entertain guests if you’ve got the space.

SOME MORE FUR YOU

A mudroom and dog-washing station helps keep muddy paw prints out of the house.

Wall-mounted cat beds and shelves give your cat vertical space to explore while saving floor space.

If you’ve got valuables on display like jewellery, ornaments, or even Lego, and a curious pet who loves knocking things over, consider glass display shelving.