A few weeks ago, we told you we were trying to decide what to do with our living room floor. Finally a decision was reached and, before the summer got any hotter, we decided to take the weekend and repaint the floor.
As everyone who has pets in the house knows, painting and pets are not a great combo. Little furry helpers and paint don’t mix so we’ve come up with a few tips for painting when you have pets in the house. (You’ll need to take extra precautions if your home includes fish and birds, both of which are really sensitive to paint. Check with specialists if you have fins or feathers in the house!)
Buying Materials
- When buying paint and materials (such as degreasers), look for eco-friendly options; they’ll be the most pet-friendly choices as well. In paint, look for low or no VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) paints. These paints produce no or low amounts of off-gassing (that “paint smell” that lingers so often after you paint).
- Use traditional cleaning when possible. You’ll find a zillion products designed to prepare a surface for cleaning. Ask yourself how much of this you really need…could you prepare the surface with just a good cleaning and some elbow grease? In some cases you will need to pull out special surface preparation chemicals but, in many cases, you’ll be able to do a good cleaning of the surface with materials around the house (we love to clean with vinegar; when needed, we also clean with baking soda) and deglossing with some sandpaper.
On Painting Day
- Your pets need to be safely away from the painting action. This could mean tucked away, with water, food, litter box, and toys, in a bedroom or maybe enjoying a day of doggie day care. You just want to make sure they don’t get into the room you’re painting, get underfoot (or ladders), get exposed to the paint and chemicals, and possibly run out of the house unnoticed in all the hustle and bustle.
- Leave your pets isolated not only until the paint is dry but until all your tools–including brushes and rags and cleanup materials–are put away. Make sure the area has been well-ventilated and no longer has any paint smells.
Paris Permenter is the award-winning co-author, with John Bigley, of over 30 pet and travel books including The Healthy Hound Cookbook and Texas with Dogs, both available through Simon and Schuster. Paris is also a member of the Dog Writers Association of America.
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