Time Saving Cleaning Tips For Dog Lovers!

There’s no denying we’re nation of dog lovers. According to the Pet Food Manufacturer’s Association, nearly a quarter of UK households have a canine member of the family. How many dogs is that? An impressive eight and a half million! As it’s Crufts this weekend (the 125^th anniversary of the show no less) we’ve got some tips for all you dog owners out there, to help keep your home spick and span.

Muddy Paw Prints

Most dogs love bounding around the garden. The problem is they also have a habit of trekking part of the garden back inside with them. But muddy paw prints can be easily tackled using nothing more than the right appliances and some clean water.

If you’ve been cleaning mud off your carpet whilst it’s still wet, you’ve been barking up the wrong tree! Save your effort and wait for the mud to dry before vacuuming it up. Otherwise it’ll spread and get ground into the carpet fibres during cleaning.

Use a steam carpet cleaner to eliminate leftover muddy marks or a steam mop to easily clean hard wood or tiled floors. As steam kills bacteria, some steam cleaners can sanitise with fresh water alone, rather than chemical cleaning products. So cleaning with steam is healthy for you and your pooch. Just remember to keep your steam cleaner mop pads hygienic by replacing them when they get too grubby.

Patchy Lawn

Dog owners, you may know all too well the struggle of keeping your garden lawn healthy. It’s amazing the damage dog urine can do, burning the grass and making it look patchy. But the solution is amazing too – amazingly simple! All you need to do is pop a few rocks in your dog’s water bowl. But these aren’t just any rocks…

Dog Rocks come all the way from Australia and naturally remove impurities like tin, ammonia and nitrates from your dog’s drinking water. They’re healthy for your dog (as they don’t change the PH of his or her urine) and your lawn will be healthy and green too. Just leave the rocks in your dog’s bowl, keep the bowl filled with water and replace the rocks every two months. Easy as that.

Dog Hair

Clothes, sofas, carpets, beds… If you own a dog you’ll mostly likely find copious amounts of hair on all these places. Let’s be honest, having an efficient vacuum cleaner is essential for dog inhabited homes.

Your vacuum cleaner filters are likely to get clogged more quickly if your vacuum is picking up lots of dog hair. We recommend cleaning them at least every six months. Just give them a rinse in warm water and leave to dry completely before replacing them. If they’re really grubby, buying a replacement filter may be the best course of action. This little bit of maintenance every now and then will make a real difference to your vacuum’s suction. Pet hair be gone!

Urine Stains and Smells

Accidents happen (sorry to break it to any disillusioned pet owners out there). If your dog has accidentally relived himself on your carpet, act fast. It’s best to mop up the urine straight away to stop it from staining, so use an old towel to soak up all the liquid you can. Next, treat the damp patch with a DIY cleaning solution, made with equal parts white vinegar and warm water. Leave the area to soak for an hour then rinse it with clean water.

Still got lingering urine or wet dog smells once your carpet has dried? A carpet cleaning powder could be what you need to freshen up your floor. Sprinkle the powder, leave for half an hour and vacuum up for a clean and deodorised carpet.

Teeth Marks

“The dog chewed my homework” is one of the oldest excuses in the book, but like all good lies it’s based on truth. From sofa legs to remote controls, dogs absolutely do have a habit of chewing everything in their reach.

Rather than constantly teasing your slippers from the vice-like grip of your dog’s jaws, provide an alternative. A dental chewstick or chewable toy that dispenses treats will help to avoid teeth marks on the furniture in future. (Though we can’t guarantee your slippers will be absolutely, 100% safe…) Oh and if your TV is stuck on the news channel because the remote has been rendered ineffectual by sharp teeth and dog slobber, we can help you find a brand new replacement.

So do you prefer to have a loving canine companion or a pristine home? Both of course! Now that you’ve swotted up on our tips and tricks for all dog owners out there, you really can have the best of both worlds. And if anyone says otherwise, throw them to the dogs!

Tags: Cleaning Tips, dog, home, house, pet, sanitise, smells, stain removal