# "Uncleanable" Leather?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [June 21, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247 "2005-06-21T20:41:54Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@D.E.S.K.Top668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D.E.S.K.Top668)
#### Post date: [June 21, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/1 "2005-06-21T20:41:54Z")
My sister is thinking about buying a (used) living room set at a very good price. There’s only one concern. On the two pieces, there are tags with the following;
> [@furniture tag](#):
>
> Care: This is a natural leather **that cannot be cleaned** because it does not have a protective coating. This leather will fade if exposed to direct sunlight.
As my sister has two cats, this has put some doubt in her mind. So, is there **any** way to clean this furniture, maybe some sort of specialty product? If not, is there some sort of “do-it-yourself” protective coating that can be applied to protect it? Or does it mean that she’s S.O.L. if something spills?
Thanks in advance - DESK
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### Author:  [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)
#### Post date: [June 21, 2005, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/2 "2005-06-21T22:47:56Z")
It’s partly rubbish and partly true.
Without seeing the leather, I can’t say if it’s a suede or other “naked” hide or if it’s finished. Spills on suede are usually catastrophic. On finished leather, as long as it’s not paint or ink, most household liquids can be blotted up without much problem, as long as you do so immediately.
Upholstery leather usually is chock-full of protection, usually in the form of a surface treatment, or something integral to the tanning process. eg: oils or silicone-type materials. I’ve not run into leather upholstery with a warning like this one before.
With cats, I’d be much more concerned with scratching. There’s nothing to protect against that other than getting rid of either the couch or the cat.
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### Author:  [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)
#### Post date: [June 21, 2005, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/3 "2005-06-21T23:27:24Z")
Cats and leather furniture do not go well together. My cats left hundreds of tiny holes in the leather sofa in our old house.
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### Author:  [@D.E.S.K.Top668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D.E.S.K.Top668)
#### Post date: [June 21, 2005, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/4 "2005-06-21T23:54:48Z")
**gotpasswords** , the set is leather, not suede. I don’t know much about animal hides, but I do know that much. As for naked or finished, I have no clue. Is there a simple way to tell?
**Snakescatlady** , she currently has a leather sofa, she prefers this set though. She’s more concerned with cleaning up after her nieces (my daughters) then the cats. She does want to make sure that she can clean up mainly the cat hair.
Thanks for the help so far, all. Peace - DESK
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### Author:  [@lizardling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lizardling)
#### Post date: [June 22, 2005, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/5 "2005-06-22T21:47:06Z")
Yep. Leather couch in the study. Our cat used it as a scratching post. Long scratches all the way around the bottom up to cat-reach height. :eek: It was finished leather, so all we had to do was wipe the hair off.
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### Author:  [@D.E.S.K.Top668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D.E.S.K.Top668)
#### Post date: [June 22, 2005, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/6 "2005-06-22T21:52:41Z")
I found out that she’s mainly concerned about my daughters’ spills. It turns out that her cats were declawed by their previous owner.
Peace - DESK
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### Author:  [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)
#### Post date: [June 22, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uncleanable-leather/309247/7 "2005-06-22T21:55:06Z")
Oddly enough our cat hasn’t been a problem with our leather sofa even though she scratches on all other upholstered furniture. We avoid punctures by keeping her nails trimmed and I admit she is unusual in letting me trim them so easily. She rarely squirms and doesn’t bolt away when I let her go after I’m done.