Without a doubt, we are a nation of pet lovers! The home improvement site Houzz recently published a huge survey on pet ownership in the U.S., and their findings confirm that we’re all pretty much crazy about our dogs and cats. In fact, according to the survey, 22 percent of dog owners and 14 percent of cat owners spend more than $1,000 a year on their fur babies.
This made us realize that homeowners looking into remodeling might want to prioritize their pets. So, what are some ideas for home remodeling with pets? We’ve got four ways to make your home more pet friendly.
1. Make Feeding Your Pets Easier.
There are two considerations when it comes to feeding your pets: where to store the bag of food and where to put the bowls. A little remodeling can help with both.
When it comes to storing food, you can do way better than keeping the 40-pound bag of kibble in the back corner of the basement. Instead, add a cabinet in your mudroom or laundry room to handle the storage of food and other pet supplies.
As for keeping food bowls, we all know that the smallest kick can send water bowls flying and kibble scattering across the floor. As a result, build custom cabinetry that incorporates food bowl storage, as pictured!
2. Make Containing Your Pets Easier.
Remodeling with pets in mind means coming up with ways to contain your pet—without having to plop a crate in your family room or kitchen. (A metal cage doesn’t exactly add to the aesthetics, right?)
Instead of crating, think about planning ahead and creating an area where your pet can be contained—a mudroom isn’t a bad idea, but it could also be your kitchen or your family room. The main point is that there should be a door of some kind so you can shut your dog in without having to use baby gates throughout your home. What’s more annoying than that?
If you do want to use a crate, plan a permanent, built-in space where you can store it in a way that’s aesthetically pleasing, instead of just sticking it in a corner.
3. Make Cleaning Your Pets Easier.
Here’s a great idea for remodeling with pets: Build a dog shower!
Credit: Brian Chow
This is especially helpful for families who wash their dogs’ paws every time they come inside. A dog shower is usually placed in the laundry room or mudroom, and it’s the bottom half of a regular shower, about three feet by three feet. (You should also have tile surrounding and a handheld showerhead as opposed to a wall-mounted one.) This way, when Fido comes in from outside, you can immediately wash off his paws without having to drag him to the bathtub.
A dog shower can also be used to wash off muddy boots, hang coats to dry, or dust off a houseplant. Now there’s a home upgrade with some serious functionality.
