Pretty much the worst thing you could choose, I'm afraid, Leslie.
Laminate does not like water - you are not supposed to clean it even
with water - there is a special stuff. I have it on most of my ground
floor, but not in bedrooms (carpeted), nor in kitchen, bathroom, utility
room - all the potentially watery areas. For those areas I have a
cushion floor vinyl - quite suitable for wet areas. There are numerous
vinyls with a black and white tile pattern. However, the best bet is,
probably, to check out the colour of the mud at the new house and ensure
that the floor covering you choose blends with it! With your big dogs,
you'll need to be aware of mud!
Finally, if you do decide to risk all and lay laminate, you will have to
take off the skirting board (I've forgotten what you call it - would it
be base board?), so that the laminate goes under it and then put it
back. If you don't do that, you have to use a fairly visible (mine is
about 1" wide) along all the walls. Where I have the vinyl, the
flooring chap put a seal of silicone all around the edges, so that water
could not get underneath.

I just went and put a bit of water on this (study) floor and checked for
slippery: yes, very slippery, even with my rubber soled slippers.

I can't see any advantage, even if you could find black and white
squares. Cushion floor vinyl is so warm and easy on the feet, and easy
to lay.
..
In message
,
Leslie & The Furbabies in MO. writes
I want black and white (diagonal) checkerboard-pattern flooring in my
kitchen and bathroom in my little cottage. I've never had laminate
flooring and have concerns about whether it will be slippery if used
in the kitchen with the miriad possiblilites of spills and in the
bathroom with water spills. Second, a friend said he thought there
were laminates available 12 in. black and white square 'sections'. I
tried searching online but haven't found anything but wood patterns.
Has anybody seen laminates in 12 in. squares and solid colors? And
can I install a laminate floor all by myself???

Thanks for any advice and/or help.

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

--
Best Regards
Pat on the Green