As a dog owner, keeping a clean house can be very challenging. With a few well-planned steps and preventive measures, you can achieve it. But first, it is important to understand the kind of mess our furry friends make at home:
What Kind of Mess Can a dog make inside the House?
● Hair
The major issue to be tackled is the hair that almost all breeds shed around the house. Note that there are very few breeds that don’t shed at all. It’s a normal and healthy process of a dog’s life. Most breeds shed at least a moderate amount of hair. Their excessive shedding is a sign of stress or some complication, so make sure to call your vet.
● Mud
Mud that our pooches carry with them when they return from playtime or walks.
● Toys
Clutter of toys around the house. Pooches love to play, and most would have at least 1000 toys to play with (apart from the bones of the food he carries around the house).
● Germs
Germs, fleas, and ticks can infect your pets, and if untreated can sometimes be life-threatening for your furry friend. Some of them can even infect you or your family members.
● Urine stains
Urine stains in the house or on the carpet: Sometimes accidents do happen, your pooch can urinate on the carpet. This happens even with well-trained pets. Pet urine is strong and though you may clean it thoroughly, the uric acid lingers.
How to keep a clean house
The importance of keeping the dog and a clean environment can’t be ignored. It is a task and
is a part of your responsibility as a pet parent. Cleaning the house and keeping our furry
friend’s space clean make sure that they are healthy and free of any infections. Maintaining
it and keeping it clutter-free ensures they do not get injured.
You just have to add a few extra steps to the cleaning routine. Bathing, grooming your pet,
keeping the house free of mud, dust, and clutter should all be a part of that.
Bathing your pet:
- Keeps it free from nasty smells
- Catches hair, which otherwise would have ended up on your sofa
- Keeps the pets free from fleas and ticks.
Note that frequent bathing is not good for your pooch’s skin as it removes the essential oils and can make its skin dry and itchy. You can use wet towels or pet wipes to clean them between baths.
Grooming
- Groom your furry friend by clipping or grinding his nails.
- Brush his/her hair to prevent knots and matting, as matted hair catches dust, debris, and dead skin.
Cleaning:
His bed can collect dirt, dander, fleas, ticks. Some dogs also carry their bones to the bed to chew leisurely.
Clean his bed regularly
- Wash the linen every other week.
- It is a good practice to wash everything that comes into contact with the bed – linen, toys, blankets etc.,
- Wash your dog’s water bowl daily – as per studies, pet water bowls are the fourth place that contains the most germs in the house. (Sponge, kitchen sink and toothbrush holder being the first three). And yes, you can add your mutt’s favorite toy to that list – so, wash that too.
Read More: What Are the Brown Spots on My Dog’s Skin?
A few other items in the house can also be a potential risk to your dog:
- Small objects that can be easily swallowed like batteries, jewelry, coins, etc., keep them out of reach.
- Leftover food on the table or kitchen counter – he can get into the habit of counter surfing for leftovers.
- Keep the trash cans covered, some dogs tend to rummage through trash cans.
- Loose wires, cords – keep them safely tucked away.
9 Tips to keep your house clean
- Having a good quality doormat outside the door and a washable throw rug inside can catch most of the dust and mud from their paws.
- A powerful vacuum cleaner can take care of the hair around the house. Make sure you buy the one:
- With a powerful suction
- Easy to clean filter
- Should be able to reach all the nooks and corners with the help of attachments
- Your vacuum must be suitable for all types of fabrics and upholstery
- Better still, invest in an automatic vacuum cleaner, it can take care of the cleaning consistently and automatically.
- Invest in a good dog nail grinder to grind his nails and keep them neat.
- Keep a bottle of stain remover handy, either a commercial one or homemade (baking soda is great for neutralizing odors, vinegar works too).
- Keep some latex gloves handy for cleaning the hair. Wear them and rub your hand along the sofa, bed, car interior to get rid of pet hair and it works. You can also use lint rollers to remove hair.
- Shaving foam is another magic cleaner, that works on dog vomit stains. Spray on the strain, wait for a minute and wipe with warm water.
- Cover anything that you’d let your dog jump upon – sofa, couch, bed. Buy some cheap throws and cover your sofa, couch with them.
- Arrange all the dog toys and tidbits in one or two tiny bins around the house. You can easily contain the mess this way. Check the toys for wear and tear, throw away the worn-out ones, and give away toys that your mutt is not playing anymore with.
- Choose décor made of sturdy, durable materials. Use stain-resistant fabric wherever possible, they are easier to clean and maintain.
Final thoughts
Keeping our house clean is one of the most important things we can do to ensure that our dog stays healthy and happy. Not only do they deserve it, but so do owners as their guardians. Knowing how to maintain a clean house ensures our safety, and the safety of our dog as well.