The Right Window Treatments for Pet Owners in Cleveland
It’s an image pet owners in Cleveland are all too familiar with: leaving your house only to look back and see your furry friend’s face looking at you as you leave. For pet owners with certain types of window treatments, daily trips to the window could mean trouble, as dogs and cats can cause some of the worst and lasting harm to your window treatments.
So what can you do to avoid pet damage? The easiest way is to pick a pet-friendly window treatment that can stand up to even the rowdiest pets. We’ve rounded up some of the best (and worst) window treatments for pet owners throughout Ohio.
Non Pet-Friendly Window Coverings
We’ll start by taking a look at which window treatments pet owners should not choose.
Window Coverings With Cords
Just like with window safety for children, cords can be a problem for pet owners. Pets–especially cats–are known to play with dangling cords, which might result in damage to your window treatment or worse, injury to your pet.
Look into window treatments without cords, such as shutters that fit in the window frame or other window treatments that feature a top-down bottom-up configuration or are motorized.
Aluminum Blinds
Photo courtesy Carlos Castro via Flickr (Creative Commons).
Aluminum blinds might be the worst window treatment for homeowners with pets. Not only do the blinds typically operate by cord, but they’re very susceptible to damage from even the most well-behaved pets. Dogs or cats peeking through aluminum blinds can bend, warp, or even snap the weak slats, which means you’ll need to replace the whole window treatment.
Fabric Window Coverings
Depending on your pet and the type of window treatment, fabrics may or may not be something to avoid. Lengthy fabrics like drapes can “pool” on the ground, which makes them easy for dirty paws to stain. Fabric window treatments also frequently collect pet hair which eliminates any fashion value they can add. Finally, fabrics can tear, something cat owners know all too well.
The Most Pet-Friendly Window Treatments
Now that we’ve seen which window coverings don’t get along with pets, we’ll take a look at the most pet-friendly window treatments.
Real Wood and Faux-Wood Blinds
Almost all of the issues aluminum blinds have, wood and faux-wood blinds resolve for pet owners. Even if your pet wants to peek through the window, resilient wood blinds can stand up to more abuse than their aluminum counterparts. In addition, their typically wider slats make it less likely for pets to get their bodies tangled in between them.
But, make sure that if you go with wood or faux-wood blinds that you go with ones without cords.
Plantation Shutters - The Best Window Treatment for Pets
If you’re worried at all about damage to your window treatments or injury to your pet caused by window treatments, plantation shutters can help minimize those concerns. Since they mount directly into the window frame, there aren’t any hanging cords or fabric that can cause issues. And, even if your dog or cat is able to reach them, Polywood® plantation shutters are resistant to scratches and incredibly sturdy so damage is rarely an issue.
Plantation shutters keep your pets happy too. Have a dog that likes to poke its head out the window as you leave? Shutters can let it do so without much risk of damage. Does your kitten want a patch of sunlight to lounge in? Just tilt the louvers to let the light come through without compromising privacy.
In effect, plantation shutters are the perfect window covering for pet owners.
