I am looking at buying 2 leather sofas for my living room but as I have 2 lively Cavalier King Charles Spaniels I am concerned that they may ruin in with their claws as they are always jumping on and off the sofas we have now.

Does any other champdoggers have dogs and leather sofas ??

Thank you :-)

If you use the search facility you will see this has been discussed a few times.  My leather suite is now about 20 years old and has had a few dogs bouncing over it including a terrier with very hard claws.  Only in the last couple of years has it shown any wear and probably wants replacing now :o it is on the front edge where peoples leg rub though nothing the dogs have caused.  It does depend on quality though, mine is a slightly grainy, thick, but subtle leather and did cost a lot when we bought it but if you calculate the cost per year it was probably the cheapest ever!  I think I would avoid the very soft and probably thin sort that are sold cheaply.

I have had my leather suite for about 10 years and have a large male rottie bouncing on and off it when he is playing with the others, have sharp puppy claws scrabbling up it to chase the big dogs who have leapt on it out of the way of puppy teeth, i have had no problems at all with it, i know of some people though bought leather suites and have had problems, they got the really really soft leather ones, my suite i reckon is not as hard as the chesterfield leather but not so soft that it feels as though you could stretch it out of place hope that makes sense.
it is wipe clean and once a month i use bridle leather cleaner on it that i use on the horse equipment and it comes up a dream.
carol

It's the only type of suite to have if you have dogs IMO - a quick wipe over and mine's as good as new.

But you can have whatever type of sofa you like if you don't let the dogs on it ;) :D

Daisy

Unfortunately, the little bugger does it when I'm out or in bed......:) :) :D :D

I'm afraid that I didn't let mine into the lounge unsupervised until she knew not to :D

Daisy

Cath,

Being honest ifyou have dogs you are better going for the " grainy" type leathers they are actually the lesser quality but far more robust. The finer , better grades snag so quickly.

I'll second that, we got one of the finer type leather suites about 8 years ago now, and it was fine till we got the dogs - Remy's a digger with bedding, sadly, and all three will run and play on it - we now have three seams broken dramatically, and the damage has been made worse by tia - she likes to shove her nose into the bigger hole and pull out the foam!! :o

They are easier to clean though, but just make sure you get a robust grade leather :D of course, i have big dogs, not cavaliers, so I wouldn't worry too much!

Depends what you mean by "quality" the soft italian type may look good but they rarely last the pace :)  What matters is the thickness of the hide if the "grain" has not been buffed off there is no loss of thickness although a good quality smooth look would probably be thick enough, many of the soft types are a split hide and, as we have seen from other threads, only surface dyed .  With leather it is definately a case of "you get what you pay for" I would recommend buying from a quality store rather than a discount place as the greater price will work out as much better value in the long run.

You been searching on Google Isabel ;-)

I have to disagree about you getting what you pay for with leather and suite manufacturers.

Some charge the earth and the sell a lot of junk, others charge reasonable amounts but sell top branded products.

"you get what you pay for" is only a true statement ALL being equal.

An example.. someone recently asked an cost for works to home improvements. My recent extension cost us £15K  but 2 builders quoted me £35k -£40.. there is no quality spared but over priced expense yes :-)

I bought my car from the car supermarket for £5K less that I Would from the dealer, did I get lesser quality No ;-)

Back to the quite though, I prefer the grainy leather that feels thick. My cheapest suite was my best deal so far BUT then I research and make sure I get value for every £1.

Retailers often have a little flip chart of leather samples and I am afraid to say that when we were searching for our leather suite, I did scratch my nails pretty hard on these samples just to check if the dog's claws would scratch the leather :D

Lindsay
x

We are hopefully taking delivery of our new leather sofa which we bought from Next in the next couple of weeks. The leather seemed very robust but won't be getting too much wear as the girls will be strictly off limits :)

Lucy
xx

I bought a new leather sofa about 8 months ago......and my staffy pup bounces all over it, and apart from the odd dirty mark it still looks like new :-D I just use those leather wipes to clean it

I've just ordered 2 leather sofas from DFS (11 weeks for delivery..sob!). I explained to the salesmans that I had two children and two toy poodles - all jump about on sofas. I was worried about the dogs clawing at it, so he took the sample book and using a key, he scratched it.....nothing. I'm glad I asked and he said that the very soft leather was prone to marking and the one oredered was quite grainy. When they are delivered you should receive a special polish that you need to rub in when you first get it and then every month or so. In between you just use a very damp cloth. Hope I'm not tempted by the polish - I love polish I do.
Hope this helps.

Not Google Blue, I did a lot of research around all the stores all those years ago when we bought ours and was pretty keen that I wasn't going to have to go through it all again too soon, this was the information we gleaned :)  Certainly in our case it turned out to be sound.  I think merely by buying from a shop where there is a choice of manufacturers and where the sales staff know all these things and are happy to show you all the different grades of leather you are probably up the right path.

Actually, the 'grainy' look of the leather has naff all to do with its quality.

You want to be looking at the thickness of the leather,a nd also has it been thru-dyed or just surface dyed.

The grain effect is put back on using a metal roller and extreme pressure, thinner leathers can have this but usually thicker leathers take it better.

Basically though, if its a high street company, if it doesnt cost very much then its unliely it will last the course.

You want solid made old fashioned furniture made to last at LEAST 20 years, that will withstand dogs and kids and whatever else you want to throw at it -- most modern furniture is not made to do any of these things and will be a waste of £2/£3k

Em

We bought two LazeeBoy leather recliner sofas in 1999 - they cost £3,500 for the two, but they look as good today as they did then :D

Hi

I have 2 leather sofas - 2 years old now and, happily, not a mark on them despite the fact that I have 2 dogs. One of which uses them as his bed and somewhere to stand for a better view out the window. We bought from DFS and I guess they probably are the thicker, more grainy type of leather. Very comfy though.
I got the sofas before the dogs but so glad I did as, as others have mentioned, they are much easier to clean than the fabric kind and don't harbour smells. I just keep a pack of baby wipes handy at all times for a quick wipe down after mucky dogs have been on them. Great for the likes of me who couldn't exactly be called a domestic goddess when it comes to housework!!

ooo - baby wipes to hand - what a good idea :D :D :D

A friend with a leather sofa swears by saddle soap!

Lindsay
x

We use baby wipes as well. The kitten has actually left a couple of scratch marks but apart from that they are as good as new.

Just to warn those of you who have a sofa on order from DFS - you may be in for a long wait, my sister has had a corner sofa on order with them since the beginning of Feb! Still no sign of it now!

Nat

Natalie

We had to wait 3 months for a dFS sofa we kicked up such a stink that they sent us a replacement one until our new one arrived!

When I ordered my sofas from DFS they told me it would be 11 weeks max and would I be able to take them earlier if they came in. I hope I'm not in for a long wait. These advice shows tell you get it in writing that if they do not supply within a certain reasonable period you are entitiled to cancel your order. Makes sense, but maybe I'm a bit gullible where salesmen are. Also does anyone here check and search for marks on items delivered before signing for it?  Whenever I have anything delivered I get that stare from the deliveryman that says "come on, I'm in a hurry"
I think I need assertiveness training classes. Anyone?

Our sofas wehre guaranteed in 10 weeks 14 weeks later we still hadnt received them so called DFS to cancel them but they said we couldnt!!!

We had a huge row with them and it got very messy eventually as we were told the contract was legally binding we had to continue with the order, they did send us replacements but we still werent happy with  attitude!

BE WARNED!

Have any of you looked at the reviews on DFS on the internet ;-)

Where can I look at that?        Now I'm scared....

put into goodle " reviews+DFDS" see what it brings up

I got mine from DFS last year, they said 12 weeks delivery and they arrived in .......... 10 weeks.
The one thing they did ask, as the sofa is huge, was would the delivery men be able to get it in the house, no problem we have french doors straight into the front room from the garden, it was delivered unwrapped and put in place in under 30 mins by 2 very helpful chaps.
We were advised by the very help salesman to only pay the minimum deposit and do the rest C.O.D and I have to say they are the only perople so far that have used the secirity numbers on the debit card which did impress me.
We've had it a year now and it still looks like new, despite a JRx with long claws bouncing all over and a huge GSD sleeping on it all the time, and the best things is it wipes clean and doesn't smell doggy.

We ordered ours from SCS, they were great! They said it would be 12 weeks, but it was here in less than 8, and with four cushions that I really liked in the showroom, but wouldn't pay £25 each for!

My sister has had no end of problems, they keep saying it will be delivered on Monday (e.g.) so she takes the day off work to stay in for it, and they don't turn up, so she rings and they say it will be there next Tuesday, so she has the day off, and it still isn't there! They said last week that it had come into the distribution office, and that they were just checking it over and then they would deliver it. She has told them that if it isn't there by the end of this week, she is going to cancel the order, and she will take them to court if needs be, for loss of earnings and the cost of her telephone bills!

I got mine from Klaussner - they were a nightmare to deal with and it took months to get the 'extras' but I eventually got there!  My dogs are only allowed in the front room when we are there, saying that they do stop in there if I go upstairs but I would not leave them in there if I went out. They know there is a 'no paw' policy with the sofa and they have their own fluffy beds which they happily lie on - could not be doing with 2 rotties taking up all the space ;)  My cats are not allowed on the sofa either and they know this, its amazing what you can teach an animal if you are persistent!

I got my leather suite 2nd hand from a couple emigrating, when new ( i have the paperwork) they cost £4,300 from D.F.S. and they were 5yrs old,we paid £500 weve had them 18 months they are fantastic, i just wipe over with leather wipes( like a baby wipe),dogs up and down all day,look great!

I hadn't heard of the horror stories attached to DFS before we bought our two sofas as the company were very new to our area (Northern Ireland) but when we ordered we were warned that delivery would take up 16 weeks. This wasn't a problem as we were renovating our house and not in any hurry for them but can see how it would be frustrating if you were expecting your new sofa right away. Also, as the renovations still weren't complete by the time they were due to arrive they had to be put straight into storage. DFS were very helpful in assisting with this and arranged for special packaging on them to protect them whilst in storage. I can't complain at all about the service we received from DFS.
However, now its looking like we might need a third sofa... Shay already hogs most of one (he likes to sprawl out) and once our Newfie pup is full grown, there is going to be no room for the OH and me. I guess that leaves us on the dog beds on the floor :-D

My friend who has Great Danes has leather suites & they seem to cope with the 8 dogs ok so your three cavaliers should be fine