How to repair this door damage from a dog?

wholeshack

Well apparently my dog didn't like being cooped up in the bedroom while we were away because she ended up doing some damage to the door and the molding around the door. Here are some pictures:

http://img228.imageshack.us/i/door3.jpg/
http://img38.imageshack.us/i/door2q.jpg/
http://img256.imageshack.us/i/door1.jpg/

What's the best way to go about repairing this/making it non-obvious? Just staining it? Using a wood putty? Any input would be appreciated!

While I'm at it, I know it's hard to tell from the photo, but what color stain would match that door/molding? The actual color is a good bit darker than what's in the pictures since the flash lightened it all up.

jklingel

The damage does not appear to be all that bad, really. If it were mine (but I am pragmatic before being into aesthetics), I'd take the door off and sand it first. If the damage is not all the way through the veneer on the door, you may be best off sanding that whole face and re-staining. Also, they make metal plates that cover the bottom of doors (commercial) so people can kick the door open and not mark the door. That'd be the simplest. Good luck. john

Ron6519

I wouldn't do anything unless the dog gets trained. Otherwise this is a fruitless endeaver.
Once that happens you can address the door issue. The trouble with scratches is that it compresses the wood fibers. Even after sanding, the issue will be there. If you just try to stain it, it will end up staining the compressed scratch areas darker then the surrounding wood. Take the door off the hinges and lay it on some saw horses. Look at the side of the door to see how thick the door skin is. Older doors have a fairly thick skin that can be sanded a little more then newer doors. You want to sand enough to remove the visible scratchs, but not so much as to put noticeable low spots on the door sides. The stain color will be close to a wealnut base from the pictures, but matching an older stain will be trial and error at best. You might need to mix in a little color from another stasin shade to get it close.
Before you put any stain on the door at all, put on a generous coating of a wood conditioner to minimize the absorption of the stain. Then slowly build up the color, coat by coat. Realize that the color under the seal coat will be different then the area you just stained. You will need to project how it will change with the seal coat applied. It might be easier to match if you sand down all the stiles and rails and stain them in mass.
Ron

Yoyizit

Depending on which side of the door this is on, you could cut 2" wide strips of Masonite and glue it to the door so it looks like a frame on the door surface, but that side of the door would have to be painted.

NitroNate

my advice, repair the dog first, then repair the door , unless of course you just want practice repairing the door this time so you can do an even better job next time.

Blondesense

We had to replace one plank of an old pine floor in our previous home. I started with a small amount of a slightly lighter color stain. Then I raided DH's artists' oil paints and just experimented by adding different browns and reds. It wasn't a perfect match, but it ended up blending in well.

cocobolo

Well, I see you have had a couple of serious replies and a few comedians. I like them all.

Whatever you end up doing with the door - even if you replace the slab - here's what we did.

Our dog doesn't scratch doors intentionally, but she will push a door open if it is ajar. She does the same with the screen doors. My solution was to fix a piece of thin lexan (I think about .060" or maybe .080" thick to the bottom of the doors.

I know this doesn't address the problem of fixing your door, and frankly I wouldn't waste my time doing that. A slab is only a few bucks for a new one, and sometimes free for a used one. Why not go that route? I think it might be less work in the long run. Cheaper and quicker too.