I have been debating whether to have engineered hand scraped wood floors or tile installed in place of carpet (550 SF plus 1st 3 stairs) for the last few months. I am leaning towards wood due to the warmth wood provides. However, I have a 35 lb dog that occasionally will do some laps around the room. How would Appalachian (made by Anderson) - Casitablanca Hardwood Floors hold up? Have read that grinding dog's nails will help tremendously. Any other recommendations in that same quality floor?

Handscraped engineered may not be the best choice. I would suggest going with a solid hardwood. Solid can be refinished more times in the future.

IMO Anderson Appalachian has one of the toughest AO finishes on the market, if not the toughest. Definetely keep on top of the dogs toenail grinding on any hardwood floor. As far as hiding hairline scratches better than others I think it's a good choice considering the distressing, their AO matt finish, and the variations in the Casitablanca Hickory.
On a side note... This finish will last for years if maintained correctly. Down the road if needed, it can be re-coated as opposed to sanding, if you notice finish wear before it gets down to the color.

Thanks for the replies. On going with solid wood floors, I would have to build up from the slab and it would cause a slight step up and step down into other rooms which would not look good. I have been sold on Casitablanca for some time, I wanted to hear from other people on their impressions on the quality and durability. A couple of the salesmen mentioned Regal Hardwoods as an alternative. I haven't heard much on that brand. Quality brand? One of the characteristics I like in Casitablanca Panera is the variety in the colors of wood planks.

Well, I was able to take home several of the Casitablanca Panera planks from the company which they had in stock. To say I'm disappointed would be an understatement. There is no variation in the different planks at all. Just one color tone throughout. Almost looks like laminate! The salesmen stated that is mostly likely what the rest of the batch would look like. Is it normal to have the sample board and actual planks to vary so drastically? Any recommendations? Try another distributor? Thanks!

The sample may be pretty old. Or maybe, since they have it in stock, they got a deal on a batch that's off from the typical run. That product's been around awhile.
Looks to me from this picture of the Panera, ( ofcoarse pictures ), it should have descent variation. Ofcoarse as stated...The Spanish Hickory doesnt have the variation as American Hickory in the darker colors. But then again Panera isn't that dark IMO. I would check it out somewhere else.

http://www.hardwoodinstaller.com/hardwo ... blanca.htm

I like it. I see the same photo of it all over the net. But in it I see some variation. You might have to go through a box or two and lay it out to see it. One sample cannot give you a realistic picture of what a whole room will look like.

I finally was able to get another carton of the Casitablanca Panera. It does look alot better. Has some of the color variation. However, it just doesn't have a hand scraped or distressed look like the samples did. I really think the milling has changed now that Shaw bought out Anderson. They might be even be machined these days. Would Shaw really change a great looking line that sells well? Believe it or now, I find a couple of the Regal Hardwoods hand scrap lines (Havana Hickory or Victorian Birch) to look real nice and much more authentic then the Casitablanca. I haven't read much about birch engineered floors. Any comments?