Which is the best sofa material for dogs and cats?

A top tier sofa fabric is one which stands the test of time, looks stylish through every season, and satisfies the needs of every member in your household. And just to state the obvious, yes, that includes your pets.

While we all know that investing in an easy-to-clean material is essential for sticky-fingered kids and darker colours are preferable for clumsy homeowners, it is a tad trickier to find the best pet-friendly sofa fabric on the market.

From thread count to composition and colour, there are myriad elements to consider before investing in a sofa fabric that certifiably complements your furry friends’ lifestyles. After all, they are a major part of the family, right?

Take a look, below, for some of the best sofa fabrics for dogs and cats.

1. Polyester

Affordable and easy to clean, polyester is one of the best synthetic materials for sofas. Due to its tight weave and man-made composition, it is easy to expertly wick away any wet paw marks without a trace on a polyester sofa. 

Looking for extra cleaning assistance? At Plumbs, we offer expert resistance against unsightly marks in our Aquaclean range; any blemish can easily be cleaned up with water alone when you choose these special fabrics! 

Our pretty patterned Abbey Rose fabric in Dove, with its chic design and built-in Aquaclean technology, for instance, is ideal for pet-friendly households.

2. Chenille

Chenille is a highly durable fabric that is comprised of a woven cotton-polyester blend. The name ‘chenille’ is actually a direct translation from the French ‘caterpillar’, which is a reference to the way the threads are woven together in tight, neat rows.

It is this tightness that suits pet-friendly homes to perfection (cats particularly love to play with loose threads). If you’re looking for the ideal hard-wearing sofa material for your pets, you can’t go wrong with our Hendon Plain fabric. With its 40,000-rub count, it will be many decades before your sofa shows any sign of claw-happy tenants.

3. Microfibre

Don’t let its ultra-thin pile put you off - microfibre is a fantastic sofa material for dogs and cats. This synthetic fabric enjoys the dual purpose of looking like real suede and feeling like velvet, while also sharing the same hard-wearing properties as polyester.

Unlike suede, however, microfibre is super easy to clean (for more info, take a look at our top microfibre cleaning tips here), is extremely difficult to rip, and doesn’t show signs of scratches. Many of our customers even report that their feline friends – mistaking the microfibre sofa as a robust scratching post – actually cause no damage at all. Ideal!

4. Synthetic leather

Synthetic leather is a good option if you have pets but aren’t prepared to move over to fabric sofas just yet.

Along with being more affordable, faux leather is also more durable, uber easy to clean, and far more resistant to scratches than its real hide brethren. Granted, cats can still get their claws stuck in this material, but they are more likely to produce teeny-tiny pin-hole marks in your sofa versus producing a huge rip.

As such, a light-coloured faux leather sofa (to obscure scratch marks) or a stylish machine-washable sofa cover thrown over the blemishes will serve you and your pets wonderfully.

For more information about how to choose a pet-friendly fabric, take a look at our helpful blog post. Alternatively, if you’re all ready to shop for the best sofa material for your pets, take a look at our full Plumbs sofa fabrics and sofa covers collection today to find your favourite!