Fiberglass vs pet-resistant window screen mesh — worth the upgrade for a dog?

Every spring we end up replacing the same two screens because our lab pushes them out of the back windows. I keep seeing pet screen mentioned online. Is it actually tougher or just marketing? This is Florida, so the sun is brutal on everything too.

— Tina W., Pace

Answer from WAHOO! Team

It's real, not marketing — pet-resistant mesh is a much heavier, tighter weave built specifically to take claws and pushing. The honest tradeoffs: it slightly darkens the view, reduces airflow a bit, and costs more per screen. Our usual advice for exactly your situation: put pet mesh on the two windows your lab actually uses and keep standard fiberglass everywhere else, so you pay for toughness only where it earns its keep. Standard fiberglass is still the right call for most windows — it doesn't corrode in our humidity and it's economical, though years of Florida sun do eventually make any fiberglass brittle. We can rescreen those two frames with pet mesh in one visit: repair or replace damaged window screens, or call or text 850-378-3301.