Anything with a very tight-weave microfiber fabric. The weave is too tight for the cats to get their claws into, and the fabric is very easy to clean. I have 3 cats and my microfiber sofa from Scandinavian Design has held up well. I wish I could say the same for my two leather chairs. :-( I won't be making that mistake again. LOL

Slipcovers are the way to go! That way if a muddy pooch sits on the sofa, you can just wash the part that is dirty. We have a slip covered couch from IKEA.

When I reupholstered my couch, I brought home fabric samples and used them to pet the two cats and the dog. The one that attracted the least hair was the winner! And another tip for keeping your couch hair-free - wear a rubber kitchen glove and wipe the couch down with the gloved hand. works like a charm.

Velvet is the way to go if you want to avoid shredding of your furniture. They can't get their claws in and it won't show scratches (from jumping and sliding) like some microfiber/leather-eque fabrics will.

It doesn't help much with the shedding problem...but at least it all stays in one place. I usually just run the furminator (uber cat brush) over the furniture and it picks most of it up. The rest, a pass with the Dyson will get.

Unless you're planning on going with a dark color I would suggest patterned fabric versus a solid as it's better/more forgiving at hiding stains/dirt. I don't know the type of fabric I have on my couch but it's almost like a soft yet heavy duty canvas material, fur vacuums off pretty easily using the mini turbine head on my Dyson and I throw the cushion covers in the washing machine ever couple of months.

I am the proud owner of 2 cats and 1 dog and I know through lots of unfortunate furniture experiences, it's all about the microfiber. Forget the leather, linen, cotton and so on. Microfiber is the only thing I will buy. I have the Chloe sofa from Macy's:

http://www1.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=351407&CategoryID=35419#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D412

This piece has held up remarkably well for about 2 years. It has endured muddy paws, sloppy dog bones and multiple hair balls (yuk!) on top of human accidents like coffee and melted chocolate. Despite all this, it looks brand new. My cats can't scratch the microfiber either because it doesn't have a pile, so their paws just kinda slide off and they move onto other things.

In conjunction with the microfiber, let me also totally plug Resolve Multi Fabric Upholstery Cleaner. This stuff cleans EVERYTHING!! I brush my sofa with a lint brush (not the tape roll, a brush), hit it with a little Febreeze every so often and it's good as new.

Hope this helps :)

A word of caution on microfiber... our cats were still able to completely shred it. It's fantastic in terms of stains, but in our case a tight-weave fabric didn't make any difference. In case this helps you make your decision, we got our couch from Room & Board upholstered in "Desmond Charcoal" microsuede. It wasn't cheap and now an entire arm is obliterated.

I second slipcovers. I have had good luck with the Surefit slipcover line. Pretty generic prints, but I just add some crazy pillows and that usually makes things better.

http://www.surefit.net/

You could always get a slip cover specifically designed with pets in mind: This one has great reviews on amazon http://amzn.com/B003FSSIY4

Just remove them when guest come over.

There are many leathers that work great with pets.
I had the cardigan sofa in leather that was a textural leather and even if you scratched it you would never see it and fur slides right off, had three dogs at the time. Because it was a (handed) sectional it did not make it past that space.
Microfiber works but they are not all created equal, choose wisely.

I've done the slip cover thing unless you have a industrial size washer and dryer you will need to haul that thing frequently to the laundry matt and I remember cursing myself every time I put it back on the sofa, not a fun task, I think ok for a chair.

Now I just just throw a nice grey quilt over my sofa and throw it in the wash once a week.

Microfiber attracts fur! I have some sort of tightly worn red chenille-esque fabric on my sofas with a solid look but many colors in it if your eye is right next to it. Has served me and my two big dogs well. I've found that the non-washable fabric washes well after they've left two surprises for me on the couch.

Slipcovers are really the way to go though. Chances are that you'll need to thoroughly wash anything on your sofa at least a few times duing the ownership.

All pet friendly...

http://www.thelivablehomestore.com/

Re: microfiber. You have to be really careful about the type and quality of it. I had a microfiber sofa that lasted for years and cleaned up easily, but the one I have now is a different story. Any kind of liquid - even the cleaning solution that came with it - leaves nasty, black-around-the-edges water marks. After a couple of years the whole thing needs to be replaced. It's made me wary of microfiber in general.

Next time I think I'll just go for a regular, tight-weave fabric with a bit of a pattern to it (nothing "wooly" that the critters will be tempted to scratch at), and then Scotchguard it like crazy. My parents and grandparents always used that stuff, and their sofas lasted for years.

One other thing to keep in mind with pets: If your sofa is the kind with separate cushions on the back, it tends to develop permanent indentations from the cats and dog lying up there all the time. For my next sofa, I'm going to try the kind with a solid back.

My microfiber was good at resisting stains, but the claws did a number. I have a craigslist sofa now, with a $50 white slipcover that I wash weekly. This has been perfect - you know it's clean every week, and if I absolutely had to replace it, the cost isn't that bad. Overstock had great slipcovers.

I have discovered there is no perfect solution. We have slipcovers and just last week I realized my cats were clawing the couch and not tearing the slipcover, but still shredding the arm underneath. We mix tabasco with water and spray it on the areas of the couch that the cats like to claw. And we try to provide them with their own scratching post to give them other options. As far as the fur, we just vacuum the couch every week when we vacuum the floor. It seems to work the best. No matter what though nothing is perfect, you just have to find what works best for you and your animals.

I am in the slipcover/IKEA camp. I started off with a Klippan sofa when my son was born (after starting my "adult" life with a craigslisted Pottery Barn slipcovered sofa until the slipcovers just fell apart), then graduated to a Kramfors.

As a bonus, IKEA's typically clean design lines mean it's not terribly difficult to make a custom slipcover if you're just a little bit experienced with patterns and machine sewing!

Our Ikea Karlstad (with the sivik gray slipcovers) is holding up really well to two big dogs and a gross baby. We have black labs, so it almost hides hair too well. Some of the covers have gone through the washer and dryer a few times and still look brand new.

DO NOT GET CHENILLE. I can't stress that enough. I have a pretty chenille herringbone pattern couch, but jean grommets/velcro from cargo shorts/the cat's hind claws are always pulling out the loops.

I am a firm believer in leather. I have had my sofa set for 6 or 7 years (Yikes! I haven't realized for how long I have had it) and in spite of my 2 dogs literally living on both pieces, there is not a single scratch.
I would worry about the microfiber though - I made covers for 3 cushins from microfiber fabric and the dogs are obsessively licking it. ALL THE TIME.

we have three cats and have had really good luck so far (about a year) w/ the micro-velvet from room and board in dark gray. easy to clean up stains such as cat vomit (yay...). we have a long-haired orange cat and it doesn't show a ton of cat hair. finally, they don't seem to care much about scratching it (i think b/c of the tight weave) and the few times we've caught them scratching haven't left much of a mark. we keep blankets over the arms just in case, though, b/c damn was it an expensive purchase.

if you don't like the micro-fiber/velvet, i'd recommend a slip cover. at least you can throw it in the wash and if the cats shred it, you can get a new cover w/o replacing the whole couch.

We just have a regular couch and we use a cat hair brush on it. Not sure if it's okay for the fabric depending on the brush but after all the brushes are made to pick up hair.

You may be able to use an enzymatic cleaner on spots where they claw (again, check the label to see if it's safe for the fabric) but if you have cats you might just have to accept that every species of cat scratches stuff, and every day. It's the most natural and normal thing a cat does, and they do so on fabric that the owner uses because they are trying to protect their bond with you.

My cats can shred steel. My leather bed is destroyed. Vintage flamestitch wingchairs, shredded. At the moment, my gorgeous Art Deco sofa and chair in original upholstery are hidden under ugly, oversized polyester slipcovers that amazingly resist the claws.

Another approach is to address the claw issue directly. If you can wrestle your cat to the ground long enough to glue some "soft paw" nail covers onto its claws, you'll find that the covers work like a charm. Some groomers will apply them for you. Another thing I've done is purchased that sticky see-through tape that you put on the arms and the back of the sofa (the area where cats scratch most). They aren't attractive, but cats hate the sticky sensation on their paws so eventually they just stop trying to scratch it. I've removed the sticky strips and the cats have not re-attempted to scratch the furniture (but then, my cats aren't very bright). I've heard that putting tin foil on the furniture will keep pets off of it (because again, the texture). If your pets are as stupid as mine, you may not have to keep the foil on there all the time-- they pets will just assume its there after they encounter it a few times.

We have a 3 year old upholstered sofa (Pearce) from Pottery Barn in their "everydaysuede" microfiber. We got it one week before bringing home 3 week old kittens and were terrified that they would ruin it. Though they've never used it for a scratching post, they did claw their way up and down as kittens without ever tearing the fabric. We've been able to "rub" away any trace of their claws, every time.

The only place where cat fur seems to accumulate is on the top/back of the sofa and cushion where they nap in the sun. They sleep all over the couch though, and it isn't covered in cat hair. We vacuum whenever the top is looking too furry.

We've spilled coffee and chocolate on it ourselves, and it's seen a bit of baby spit up, but we've been able to clean the cushion covers with only water and towels so far. If water doesn't do the trick for any future spills, we can machine wash the cushion covers.

We definitely recommend the fabric. It is soft and comfortable, didn't need any breaking in, and very durable. We've been extremely impressed with what it's been able to withstand, though if our cats wanted to shred it, I'm sure it wouldn't put up any fight.

Fabric that cats will shred and fabric that attracts pet fur are two totally separate issues. I say, just put up with the fur and vaccum. The shredding is the real problem. Our microfiber couch is the only thing that has survived our cats. I dream of the day I can have pretty upholstered furniture and draperies!

We have just about everything, and none is perfect. The microfiber couch, while great for stains, attracts cat hair like crazy. And our cats still try to scratch it. We have slip-covered furniture from ikea. The white slip covers get WAY too dirty looking with the cats, and they're all a pain in the butt to wash and put back on. The tan cover has held up pretty nicely though. Stains easily, but usual dirt is well hidden. White leather chair shows lots of little punctures from their claws. Next I'm going to try a heavily-textured leather where the hair won't stick and hopefully the scratches and such won't show as much with the distressed look.

crypton fabric.

http://www.cryptonfabric.com/commercial/home-commercial-page

Microfiber or velvet and an armless couch. The arms are what they seem to want to scratch the most - just get rid of the temptation. Microfiber and velvets can hold up to a bit of scratching, though if they start going to town it they could still destroy the furniture.

Which leads me to...

Sticky Paws, a double sided tape which works as good deterrent if they want to scratch at the fabric anyway.

My dogs also lick our microfiber sofa all the time and I will never buy another one because of that. The only thing that works for me is slip covers so I can replace them when cleaning no longer does the job.

I have a leather sofa, which I'm replacing after six years with a pet and a spouse that likes to wear pants with metal rivets. Went back and forth quite a bit on microfiber vs tightly woven patterned fabric vs leather. Had to remind myself that before leather, I had the vacuum or adhesive roller out every day. Finally decided on a new vinyl composition from Build-A-Sofa. Looks like leather, buts resist scratches, stains and the stretching (and sagging) that result over time. Vinyl is also less expensive.

Microfiber is AWFUL in terms of attracting fur (and I personally just hate it general). I have to disagree with comment on velvet all around though, my couch is currently upholstered in velvet and not only does it attract cat fur like mad, but it certainly doesn't hide any marks my cat has made with his claws. When I can afford to reupholster it I'm going to try and find a fabric can hide the fur more and just get softpaws for the cat.

i second the crypton fabric!!! we have 2 large boxer lab mixes and made slipcovers for their couch (yes my dogs have there own couch ;) in this fabric and it has held up beautifully for over 4 years. every time i throw it in the wash i am amazed at how the couch looks like new afterward. i sing the glory of that fabric to every animal owner i know :)

We're seriously considering outdoor furniture. I've even been looking at benches. We don't use the living room much, any movie watching we do is in the bedroom, so having something that's particularly plush isn't an issue.

Agree with others that 1. chenille is the worst possible option 2. microfiber varies dramatically in quality and accordingly in price.

I have a 4 year old microfiber sofa from room and board in a sand color, and two cats and a dog. the cats have scratched it up some, but have never put a gash in it. it just sort of looks like it has lint where they scratch. it is truly, amazingly stain resistant. I have spilled an entire glass of red wine on it and gotten it out no problem. I've successfully gotten a pet stain off of it with soap and water as well.

I had some problems with my cat using the sofa as a scratching post for a while. But the sofa has quite a structured, sturdy fabric, so there is really no visible damage. Also, as it has a slipcover, this can be washed or exchanged if anything major should ever happen to it (or if I grow tired of the design). I would not recommend to choose anything with a fine weave, as snags would definitely show.

Mohair. Seriously. I had a room and board micro whatever sofa for about a month before dumping it. The hair clung to it from my three black cats and it was already looking claw tattered. I now have a thick mohair covered sofa and it is wearing like iron. Costs a fortune but well worth it. I hoover the cat hair right off like a charm. I also set a very ugly super tall scratching post in the living room in the corner; the cats like to reach up as far as possible when scratching, so a tall post will be more interesting to them as compared with a shorter sofa arm.

Microfiber and a lint roller works just fine, plus a furminator for the animals (2 maine coons + a pug + a boston terrier, between my roomate and i means TONS of animal fur).

I have man-made leather that is very smooth and 2 large dogs and a cat which have never done more than smatter it with mud - which washes off easily with a little Murphy's Oil. My pets are pillow addicted so we have outdoor Sunbrella pillows - easily washed.

Microfiber is very washable but depending on quality may not be a cat scratch solution.

If leather or man-made leather isnt an option, I'd go to Crypton or Sunbrella fabric slipcovers.

I've also heard some cats cant stand the crunching of plastic shopping bags or tin foil, and have friends that have pinned these to their antique upholstery to break bad scratching habits.

Good luck!

I would also rethink the leather option. I had a leather sofa for years. Yes, it had marks on it, but they were due to the cats jumping onto the sofa back, chasing each other along the back, etc. They never once even tried to use it as a sharpener.

Now I have a vintage fabric sofa, and the cats have absolutely destroyed the arms after five months. Shredded. Thank god it was a $50 craigslist find.

In my experience, the scratches on the leather were incedental, and were far more acceptable than the exposed stuffing the arms of my current sofa.

People! Try Ultrasuede. Having 2 cats, I needed something they wouldn't want to shred plus it's easy to roll, wipe, vacuum or dust the cat hair off of. You can find it in a bunch of different colors and price points— I chose the cheapest in a neutral color. I've had 2 arm chairs covered in it for about 8 years and it's performed beautifully! They need recovering now only due to human wear and tear on the surfaces of the arms. Love the stuff.

I second the Soft Claws option. We might be living in a magical world where cats accept mild-to- moderate humiliation, but we've been able to keep up the routine of checking their paws everyday and replacing any that've been shed (maybe two or three a week). They even come in colors and motifs, but we've resisted temptation. www.softclaws.com

I have a three cat household and have tested and tried it all. Obviously, the tigher the weave the better, but it really all boils down to the individual cat(s). While Ultrasuede seemed like a no-brainer, and it didn't tear or shred, it did show actual fine markings in the fabric from clawing that never came out (like someone had raked a fork across it). Plus true Ultrasuede can be very expensive. I have also tried various faux Ultrasuedes (aka microfibers) that were so-so but claws can still penetrate a lot of them. I've tried velvet, which worked pretty well but is a fur magnet. However, with a great vaccuum attachment it comes off easily. For me, that coupled with slipcovers (but NOT the kind that stretch to fit) have been the best options. For a great book on decorating with pets in mind, try "Animal House Style" by Julia Szabo. Good Luck!

Thanks for recommending Crypton...I know I am prejudiced because my husband and I started the company 18 years ago...but the fabric really is life changing--it's treated with stain and odor protection, anti-static treatment to ward off pet hair and all our fabrics are "heavy duty" upholstery quality. If anyone wants to know more check out our website cryptonfabric.com.

When I reupholstered my couch, I brought home fabric samples and used them to pet the two cats and the dog. The one that attracted the least hair was the winner! And another tip for keeping your couch hair-free - wear a rubber kitchen glove and wipe the couch down with the gloved hand. works like a charm.
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/design/finding-home-design-inspiration-in-your-closet-158189

What I want is someone that will make me fitted covers for the Ikea Karlstad sofa, fitted like the ones offered by Ikea, but I want them pet proof. Research tells me I want them out of Crypton fabric. Now I just need to find someone that will sew them.

@MCMRealtor Have you looked at Bemz and the numerous other Ikea slipcover specialist companies?

I just finished removing all the cat hair that tends to stay on my 100% cotton bedding. It's dark AND light - so you can only see it on the dark material, however, it's really all over the place and about every 2-3 days I have to get the hair off this expensive bedding.

I was wondering if there was a product on the market that I could spray my bedding with so that the hairs don't adhere to the fabric. Unless I get shiny bedding (which I don't want), the hair tends to stick to most fabrics!

By the time I'm finished getting the hair off, I accumulate a handful of cat hairs from 2 long-haired cats. They are too spoiled to stay off the bed at this point! I'm hoping there is some kind of spray (or something) that would prevent the hair from sticking onto the fabric like this.

Anyone know?